The hosts held on in a tight finish to snap the visiting team’s seven-game winning streak
Besiktas overpowers Bahcesehir 89-82 in Istanbul derby
Besiktas Fidabanka Istanbul held on for a hard-earned 89-82 home win over Bahcesehir College Istanbul in the BKT EuroCup Group A, prevailing in a thrilling city derby on the back of a strong first-half performance.
The result means Besiktas continued its good form and improved to 7-4 after its fourth win in the last five games, having also snapped Bahcesehir’s seven-game winning streak as the visitors, who top the group, dropped to 9-2.
Conor Morgan paced Besiktas with 17 points and 7 boards, Kyle Allman scored 16 points and Derek Needham chipped in with 13 points and 5 assists. Yigit Aslan netted 11 points for the hosts and Kelan Martin added 10 to underline a smooth team effort.
At the other end, Tai Odiase poured a game-high 20 points to go with 8 boards, Alex Bouteille scored 15 and CJ Massinburg netted 13, but the trio lacked support from the rest of the cast.
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Following an even start, Besiktas closed out the first quarter with a 10-0 run to take a 27-18 lead and carried the momentum into the second, carving out a whopping 49-29 advantage late in the first half thanks to great three-point shooting.
At that point, the home team had sunk 9 of its opening 13 shots from deep as its players shared the ball superbly on offense while closing shop at the other end.
The second half produced a more rugged and physical battle as Bahcesehir beefed up its defense and made a purposeful start to the third quarter, slashing the deficit to 72-69 ahead of the final 10 minutes as the home team’s long artillery dried up.
A 5-point possession from Dustin Sleva, who was subdued for much of the contest and finished on a mere 9 points, gave Besiktas some breathing space early in the fourth, 78-72, after the visiting team had closed the gap to just one point.
Bahcesehir refused to roll over and missed several chances to turn the tide before a clutch three from Needham followed by a mid-range jumper from Allman off the dribble gave Besiktas an 87-80 lead in the home straight, effectively sealing the contest.