The Turkish side has the advantage in its series with Gran Canaria
Bahcesehir's second unit lifted it in Game 1
Article
3 Mins read
It may not have been the way coach Dejan Radonjic drew it up, but it worked perfectly. Bahcesehir College Istanbul dominated on the glass and got a huge lift from its second unit en route to a 74-66 victory over Dreamland Gran Canaria in the opening game of their best-of-three BKT EuroCup Semifinals series.
The home team scored its first basket of the game, a CJ Massinburg three-pointer, after a Kenan Sipahi offensive rebound and continued to control the boards the rest of the night. By the end, Bahcesehir outrebounded Gran Canaria 42-27, including a whopping 20 offensive boards. The home team turned those into 16 second-chance points.
The man who led the way was Marko Simonovic, who tallied 8 rebounds. Those were part of a spectacular line that also included 20 points, 3 assists and 3 steals for a personal-best PIR of 29.
What made his line stand out even more was the fact that Simonovic did not start the game. He was joined by Sehmus Hazer, Furkan Korkmaz and Jalen Smith among Bahcesehir who left their mark on the game despite coming off the bench.
That quartet combined for 42 points, 13 rebounds, 12 assists and 5 steals. The Bahcesehir starters had 32 points, 24 rebounds, 11 assists and 3 steals in 27 more combined minutes.
Hazer made his mark early, subbing in with the game tied 15-15 and promptly nailing a three-point shot from the corner. He would add a monster slam in the second quarter and finished the game with 9 points, 3 assists and 1 steal in 19 minutes.
Game Videos
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Dreamland Gran Canaria-Bahcesehir College Istanbul | SF Game 2 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:24
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/3bd7ec11-50f5-4218-a729-fe324a72e1bf.jpg]()
Homesley keeps Gran Canaria alive! Magic Moment of the Night
- 00:17
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Odiase stretches for big alley-oop! Magic Moment
- 00:13
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Tobey throws down the tough alley-oop! Magic Moment
- 00:08
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Brussino swats away Bouteille’s shot! Magic Moment
- 00:52
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Marko Simonovic: 'We played an amazing game'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/f241c215-7de2-4bcc-b557-bda825ba32ef.jpg]()
Bahcesehir College Istanbul-Dreamland Gran Canaria | SF Game 1 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:12
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Odiase powers in the put-back! Magic Moment
- 00:13
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Hazer carves up the Granca defense! Magic Moment
- 00:15
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Marko Simonovic highlights run with slam! Magic Moment
- 01:00
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Caleb Homesley: 'We put everything we had on the line'
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Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem-Dreamland Gran Canaria | Quarterfinals Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:22
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What a bullet pass! Magic Moment of the Night
- 01:01
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Marko Simonovic: 'We changed the game in the fourth quarter'
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Bahcesehir College Istanbul-Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana | Quarterfinals Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:10
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Massinburg beats the buzzer! Magic Moment
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Dreamland Gran Canaria-Umana Reyer Venice | Eighthfinals Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:31
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Ngouama's poster dunk Magic Moment of the Night
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Joventut Badalona-Bahcesehir College Istanbul | Round 18 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:10
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Odiase hammers home Smith’s great pass! Magic Moment
- 00:30
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Kljajic tremendous block! Magic Moment of the Night
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Trefl Sopot-Dreamland Gran Canaria | Round 18 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
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Dreamland Gran Canaria-Besiktas Fibabank Istanbul | Round 17 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:16
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Homesley throws it down in style! Magic Moment
- 00:14
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Homesley from nearly his own bench! Magic Moment
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Bahcesehir College Istanbul-ratiopharm Ulm | Round 17 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:22
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A stunning team move by Bahcesehir! Magic Moment
- 00:11
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Nice move and dunk by Sehmus Hazer! Magic Moment
- 00:15
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Monster block by Odiase! Magic Moment
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Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv-Bahcesehir College Istanbul | Round 16 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
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Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius-Dreamland Gran Canaria | Round 16 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:11
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Diop throws down the putback! Magic Moment
- 00:08
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Odiase's big block! Magic Moment
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Dreamland Gran Canaria-Joventut Badalona | Round 15 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 01:06
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Carsen Edwards: 'Shout-out to Nick Weiler-Babb with the big stop'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/b9202291-76b3-4442-bd2f-622d72ac072b.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich-AS Monaco | RS Round 21 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:31
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Napier wins the thriller! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:21
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Papagiannis dunks off a smart Strazel dish! Motorola Magic Moment
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Trefl Sopot-Bahcesehir College Istanbul | Round 15 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:28
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2025/01/08/IUvgMl4AQOcQf78N3iCy5aY9p42MDEAv-1736370261475.jpg]()
Odiase's huge block! Magic Moment of the Night
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Bahcesehir College Istanbul-Buducnost VOLI Podgorica | Round 14 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:10
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Odiase's huge block! Magic Moment
- 00:25
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Jovanovic forces overtime! Magic Moment
- 00:18
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Korkmaz beats the buzzer! Magic Moment
- 00:32
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Ngouama with the chasedown block! Magic Moment of the Night
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/c9121fa3-1e28-4694-b307-d3d63653712e.jpg]()
ratiopharm Ulm-Dreamland Gran Canaria | Round 14 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:21
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Ngouama with the chasedown block! Magic Moment
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/e26771e0-b701-4921-bd9e-9f39c11998d0.jpg]()
Dolomiti Energia Trento-Bahcesehir College Istanbul | Round 13 Highlights | 2024-25 BKT EuroCup
- 00:13
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Odiase smashes the rim! Magic Moment
- 00:12
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Haltali’s two-handed slam! Magic Moment
Korkmaz did his damage in the second quarter when he scored all 8 points of his points. Smith clocked in with just 5 points, but dished 6 assists.
Their impact can be seen in the +/- stats with Simonovic at +19, Smith +9 and Hazer +7, showing how Bahcesehir simply played its best basketball with them on the floor.
The series now moves to Spain for Game 2 on Friday and Gran Canaria will need to pay extra attention to Bahcesehir's second unit if it hopes to tie the series and force a deciding game next week back in Istanbul.