Gran Canaria defeated Buducnost VOLI Podgorica 76-83 in the Montenegrin capital on Wednesday to climb into a share of the Group B lead. Both teams now have 5-2 records atop the group.
Gran Canaria wins in Podgorica to move atop Group B, 76-83
Miquel Salvo and Nicolas Brussino led the winners with 15 points apiece and John Shurna and Dylan Ennis each scored 14 for Gran Canaria. Justin Cobbs led Buducnost with 18 points, Willie Reed added 16, D.J. Seeley 13, Edin Atic 11 and Vladimir Micov 10. A.J. Slaughter and Brussino fueled a 0-12 run which boosted the visitors' lead to 22-36 in the second quarter. Buducnost found a go-to guy in Reed, who brought his team within 41-49 at halftime. Salvo had 6 points in a 1-10 run that broke the game open, 42-59, soon after the break and Gran Canaria did not find much trouble the rest of the way.
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Micov got Buducnost going with a three-pointer and a fastbreak layup. Ennis struck three times from downtown for a 5-9 Gran Canaria lead. Cobbs found his first points and Zoran Nikolic scored down low, but Salvo buried a corner triple that kept the guests ahead, 9-12. Cobbs and Shurna traded layups and Chris Kramer boosted his team's margin to 11-16. Khalifa Diop took over with an alley-oop slam and Salvo added a jump hook in a 0-9 run that Kramer capped with a floater for a double-digit lead, 13-24. Reed dunked and got help from Cobbs and Atic to bring the hosts within 19-24 after 10 minutes.
Seeley buried a three-pointer early in the second quarter, capping a 9-0 run. Ennis scored in penetration and Slaughter added a triple, igniting a 0-12 run in which Brussino followed a jumper with a bomb from downtown to boost Gran Canaria's lead to 22-36. Ennis sank his fourth triple, but Seeley and Marko Jagodic-Kuridza brought Buducnost within 27-39. Brussino took over with a tip-in and Shurna sank a corner three-pointer to push the guests comfortably ahead, 29-44. Reed scored twice down low and Cobbs added a jump hook, but Shurna insisted from downtown for a 35-47 Gran Canaria lead. Reed followed a layup with a jump hook and Cobbs scored in penetration to give the hosts hope, 41-49, at halftime.
Khalifa Diop rescued Gran Canaria with an alley-oop layup soon after the break and Salvo followed a three-point play with a bomb from downtown for a 42-57 score. Shurna downed a baseline jumper, capping a 1-10 run that broke the game open, 42-59. Micov buried a jumper and bettered Salvo's layup with a triple, giving Buducnost hope at 49-61. Oliver Stevic scored in the paint and Shurna kept Gran Canaria far ahead, 49-65. Stevic scored again and Brussino buried one from beyond the arc to make it 51-70. Cobbs and Donatas Tarolis brought Buducnost within 56-70 at the end of the third quarter.
Brussino found space for a wide-open triple early in the fourth quarter. Atic answered with a tip-in and improved on Salvo's driving basket with a three-pointer to bring Buducnost within 61-75. Seley buried back-to-back jumpers which prompted the visitors to stop the game at 65-75. Atic scored twice around the basket, but Khalifa Diop followed a layup with a dunk to give Gran Canaria fresh air at 69-79. After Brussino and Cobbs traded free throws, Reed followed a jump hook with a layup to make it 75-81 in the next-to-last minute. Cobbs split foul shots and Slaughter sealed the outcome with a five-meter jumper.