Bourg displayed championship traits in win over champs

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse enters 2024 as the frontrunner in Group B of the BKT EuroCup after defeating defending champion Dreamland Gran Canaria 92-84 in overtime on Tuesday night. Bourg became the first team in the group to claim a playoff berth as it moved atop the standings with an 11-2 record.

Having now played Gran Canaria and third-place U-BT Cluj Napoca, Bourg can set its sights on winning the group and clinching a bye in the first round of the playoffs. It appears that the team is already thinking beyond that.

“Hopefully we can keep it going,” Bourg forward Isiaha Mike said after the game. “There’s a history of No. 1 teams getting to the finals and then losing, so hopefully we can change that and bring a championship home to Bourg en Bresse.”

Compliments also arrived from the opposing bench with Gran Canaria head coach Jaka Lakovic saying in the post-game press conference: “The last month Bourg is playing at a very high level. Probably the \[EuroCup\] team that is in the best shape at this moment, together with Paris.”

Game News

Lakovic had good reason for saying that as he witnessed Bourg win a tough game despite not playing its best basketball. After an excellent first half that ended with the hosts up 15, Bourg blew that lead and was forced to get the win in overtime. A big part of the reason for Gran Canaria’s comeback was the 19 turnovers Bourg committed. The visitors cashed in 20 points off those turnovers.

Even so, Bourg never trailed and excelled with its shooting and rebounding. Coach Frederic Fauthoux’s men controlled the glass 46-37. The hosts also made 52.3% of their two-pointers and shot 44.8% from downtown. In contrast, Gran Canaria was 43.9% on twos and 34.2% on threes.

Much of Bourg’s success came from contributions from unexpected places. Backup center Bodian Massa, in just his fourth game in the EuroCup, scored 8 of his 16 points in overtime. Another reserve, Bryce Brown, made 5 of 8 three-pointers for 17 points.

The top dog was once again Mike, who finished with 22 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. Mike authored the basket of the night, a turnaround three with 29.1 seconds left in overtime that put his team up by 4 and all but sealed the win.

Bourg's Isiaha Mike shined against Gran Canaria

After he praised the team: “We’ve just been clicking, man. That’s all this says about this team. We’ve been rolling. We’ve been improving in all the areas we need to improve. Obviously, we have a little more we want to do. But I can’t be happier with this group.”

Coach Fauthoux knows a thing or two about winning. A star point guard during his playing days. Fauthoux won seven French championships with Pau-Orthez and made 47 appearances for the French national team. So to see his team show the mental toughness to overcome Gran Canaria when not playing its best basketball and to rely on some second-stringers to do are great signs for the future.

Fauthoux called it “a very good victory against the champion.”

“We believe \[in ourselves\] and that’s the principle. And in the end, with a team like this, it’s perfect,” he said. “It was a tough game… The players can be proud after this game.”

Belief can take a team a long way in basketball. And Bourg looks ready to take us all on a ride in 2024.

Game Videos

Playoff bound Bourg can set its sights high after vaulting past the reigning champs to the top of the standings. 

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse v Dreamland Gran Canaria (2023-12-26T18:30:00.000Z)

Paris flashed its defense in stopping the London attack

Taking into account that two of the best offenses in the BKT EuroCup faced each other on Tuesday night, many expected a high-scoring duel between Paris Basketball and London Lions at Avia Solutions Group Arena. Paris may have not reached the 100-point mark, as it had in eight of its first 12 games this season, but the Parisians claimed a 94-77 victory over the visitors. Head coach Tuomas Iisalo’s men managed to keep London to 77 points despite the English side coming into the encounter as the third-best offense in the competition with 92.0 points per game.

Paris did concede 46 points in the first half, but Iisalo stressed at halftime that his team should tighten up its defense and the players delivered on the floor after the break. The French side outscored London 21-14 and 19-17, respectively, in the last two quarters to record their second victory against London this season.

“For me, the biggest thing was that when we were able to play clean defense, rebound and then turn it into transition we were in the driver’s seat,” Iisalo said after the game.

Indeed, Paris scored 15 points in transition and added another 10 off rebounds. Yet, most importantly, it made the most of London’s turnovers to get 24 points.

“They stopped our ball circulation,” London head coach Petar Bozic admitted after the final buzzer. “We had some opportunities for an extra pass and we didn’t do it. We had 17 turnovers at the end of the game and that’s too much to give someone.”

Ten of the 12 Paris players who stepped on the floor scored at least 2 points, but the man who stood out was Nadir Hifi. The Paris guard finished the game with 26 points, which is his second-best mark of the season, having previously netted 27 away at Joventut Badalona in Round 7. Hifi was electric when the game was in the balance, bagging 9 straight points midway through the first quarter to give Paris a 18-9 lead. He finished the first half on 15 points and went on to score another 11 after halftime.

Nadir Hifi scored 26 points against the London Lions

“I had good rhythm today, I had open shots,” Hifi noted. “My teammates put me in good situations and that’s nice for me and the team.”

Hifi, who is currently leading the EuroCup in points scored per game with 18.3, didn’t manage to find his range from downtown (2-for-7, 28.6%) despite ranking second in three-pointers made with 2.9 per duel. However, he went 7-for-9 from inside the arc and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line for a PIR of 24.

“I think we have the best record, 12-1,” Hifi added. “This is good for us. That’s what we want. There was one loss against Besiktas at home, but it’s a nice season.”

Indeed, Paris ended the 2023 calendar year ideally, with a statement victory against one of the title contenders and extended its winning streak to 5 games. The French side will return to action on January 10 for another tough duel, this time against Prometey Slobozhanske at home for Round 14.

Known for their top-ranked offense, Coach Iisalo’s men turned things up on the defensive end to defeat London on Tuesday.

Paris Basketball v London Lions (2023-12-26T19:45:00.000Z)

JL Bourg en Bresse head coach Fauthoux enjoyed outstanding performances from his five reserves in beating defending champion Gran Canaria. 

Bodian Massa, Bryce Brown led Bourg’s standout second unit

When Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse went on its 15-0 run late in the first quarter to take charge of the game against defending champion Dreamland Gran Canaria on Tuesday night, it only had one starter in the game. And that starter, Isiaha Mike, took a seat after the first basket in that run was scored.

Yes, Bourg surged ahead with a lineup of Axel Julien, EJ Rowland, Bryce Brown, Maksim Salash and Bodian Massa. And for the game, those five players combined for a +/- of +27!

Bourg head coach Frederic Fauthoux played 10 men in this game. The starters spent a combined 135:26 minutes on the floor, which was 60.2 percent of the overall minutes. They scored a combined 48 points, which was 52.3% of the points.

Each of the reserves was noteworthy, though Brown and Massa stood at the top of the list. Brown scored 17 points on 5-of-8 three-point shooting in just 18:13 minutes. The last of those threes gave Bourg the lead for good, breaking an 82-82 tie with a little less that 2 minutes remaining in overtime.

Bodian Massa, Bryce Brown led Bourg's standout second unit

Massa produced 16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block for a PIR of 22 in just his fourth EuroCup appearance. Each of those numbers marked a personal best and he did that in 23:48 of playing time. Massa was the star of the extra session, scoring Bourg’s first 4 points as well as the game’s last 2. In between he assisted on the aforementioned Brown triple.

Salash corralled 7 rebounds in less than 14 minutes on the floor. Julien dished 4 assists. And while Rowland did not have good numbers – he committed 4 turnovers and had a PIR of -3, the veteran playmaker was the team’s joint-leader in +/- with +9, meaning Bourg played its best basketball with Rowland on the court.

Bourg will not have it easy going forward. As one of the hottest teams in the competition, now boasting a seven-game winning streak, Bourg is now the standard of Group B and the team everyone will bring its ‘A game’ for. But the key to winning some of those games will be depth and Bourg proved it can rely on its second unit with its performance this week.   

Coach Fauthoux enjoyed outstanding performances from his five reserves in beating defending champion Gran Canaria. 

Umana Reyer Venice forward Rayjon Tucker was arguably the most outstanding performer in his team’s matchup with Joventut Badalona, but as it so often happens in basketball, one man’s valiant effort was canceled out by a more balanced outfit capable of dictating the pace from start to finish.

Smooth offense carried Joventut past Reyer

Umana Reyer Venice forward Rayjon Tucker was arguably the most outstanding performer in his team’s matchup with Joventut Badalona, but as it so often happens in basketball, one man’s valiant effort was canceled out by a more balanced outfit capable of dictating the pace from start to finish.

Tucker posted a game-high and a EuroCup personal-best of 21 points, bedazzling his rivals at both ends of the court as he mixed slam-dunks with some monstrous blocks. However, Reyer was outdone 89-81 by Joventut as the home side dominated in two key departments on offense.

Joventut sank 9 of 19 three-pointers while Umana made only 3 of 20, courtesy of a barrage of open looks the hosts got thanks to a superior transition of the ball. In that department, Joventut also excelled as it racked up 22 team assists while Reyer only managed 14, having also committed 11 turnovers.

In addition, Joventut swiped 9 steals which underlined the home team’s aggressive defense, while Reyer collected 4. Although Tucker dominated, the star of the game was Andres Feliz, who racked up 15 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds which epitomized Joventut’s versatility.

“It was always going to be a tough game,” Feliz said after the game. “Reyer is a team that never gives up, they came out hard in the third quarter and our task was to stay focused, control the rebound and not give them too many second chances... I have to thank the crowd too. We need them every night, all of us together is how we are going to make it happen.”

Joventut head coach Carles Duran heaped praise on Tucker and said his men must keep their feet on the ground. “Tucker played with such high intensity and although we relaxed a bit too much a couple of times after going up by 10 or more, it’s a good win for us,” he said. Our confidence is growing after winning five in a row, but we need more.”

Reyer head coach Neven Spahija was somewhat disappointed by the lack of depth from his team. “I expected more from the bench offensively and defensively,” he said. “It’s difficult to play basketball with just five or six players at this level, but we didn’t give up. We fought until the end but in general, our defense was bad.

“Joventut was more consistent over the 40 minutes, while we have to keep working hard and move forward. Also, this was the worst shooting performance this season, just 15 percent from three-point range.”

The home team did a better job shooting from deep and sharing the ball.

Joventut Badalona v Umana Reyer Venice (2023-12-26T19:30:00.000Z)

Paris Basketball cruised past the London Lions with a 94-77 victory at Halle Georges Carpentier for Round 13 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup campaign. 

Paris completes sweep of London, 94-77

Paris Basketball cruised past the London Lions with a 94-77 victory at Halle Georges Carpentier for Round 13 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup campaign. The hosts outscored the English side in three of the four quarters to sweep their opponents, having previously grabbed a 102-106 double-overtime victory in London back in October. Group A leader Paris improved to a 12-1 record, while London dropped to 9-4.

Nadir Hifi paced Paris with 26 points, with TJ Shorts and Collin Malcolm scoring 13 each. Bandja Sy paired his 10 points with 5 rebounds. Matt Morgan led the visitors with 18 points, Luke Nelson netted 15 and Gabe Olaseni added 14.

### Hifi helps Paris take charge

Conor Morgan opened the scoring from beyond the arc, but Sy answered immediately on the other end. Then, Olaseni opened his account with a layup before Shorts drilled a floater. Tyson Ward put Paris ahead for the first time from inside, 7-5, but Tarik Phillip tied things up with a transition layup. Hifi scored 9 straight points including back-to-back triples and Paris extended its lead to 18-9 midway through the first quarter. Mehdy Ngouama hit a buzzer-beating triple for Paris’s first double-digit lead of the night, 21-11. The hosts made the most of a couple of London turnovers to grab a 27-13 cushion, but the guests bounced back and went on a 2-7 run in the last two minutes to cut the difference to 31-22 heading into the second quarter.

### Matt Morgan leads London response

Leon Kratzer and Malcolm drilled a bucket each, but Phillip nailed one from downtown to bring London within 35-25. Then, Matt Morgan and Luke Nelson netted back-to-back triples to make it a two-possession affair, 39-33. A Hifi bucket was followed by a Matt Morgan triple, but Mikael Jantunen capped off a wonderful team play to make it 43-36. What followed was a stop-start duel with the two teams taking to the free-throw line to make it 47-44 with 2 minutes remaining in the first half. Shorts and Sam Dekker exchanged baskets before Malcolm took his tally to 11 points with a layup and Paris took a 54-56 lead into the third quarter.

### Ward and Hifi put Paris in driver's seat

Dekker had to head back to the bench 1 minute into the second half after picking up an injury. Sy and Nelson exchanged baskets before Kratzer dunked off a Shorts alley-oop pass to restore a double-digit lead, 59-48. A Ward triple was followed by a Shorts jumper and a Hifi layup for a 10-0 Paris run, 66-48. Conor Morgan netted a put-back basket and Matt Morgan hit a couple of free throws to trim the deficit to 66-52, but Hifi responded with a three-point play on the other end for a 69-52 Paris cushion. Back-to-back baskets from Hifi and Ward gave Paris a 73-54 lead before London went on a 0-6 run in the closing stages of the third quarter. A Sy basket in its last possession allowed Paris to take a 75-60 cushion into the last quarter.

Olaseni completed a three-point play to open the closing quarter, with Paris going scoreless for a couple of minutes before Shorts drilled a bucket, 77-64. Paris remained in cruise control and went on a 6-0 run to make it 83-66 with 5:05 left on the clock. The hosts maintained a double-digit lead in the closing stages to seal their 12th victory in 13 games.

Nadir Hifi scored 26 points as the Parisians improved on their EuroCup-best record.

Joventut Badalona celebrated its fifth win in the last six games and improved to 8-5 in Group A of the BKT EuroCup after a hard-fought 89-81 home win over Umana Reyer Venice, with six of its players scoring in double figures. 

Joventut grinds out 89-81 win over battling Reyer

Joventut Badalona celebrated its fifth win in the last six games and improved to 8-5 in Group A of the BKT EuroCup after a hard-fought 89-81 home win over Umana Reyer Venice, with six of its players scoring in double figures. In contrast, Reyer slipped to its fifth defeat in the last six games and dropped to 4-9, although the Italian outfit did not go down without a fight.

Yannick Kraag paced Joventut with 17 points, shooting 6 of 7 from the floor and 2 of 2 from the foul line. Andres Feliz posted 15 points, Andrew Andrews netted 14, while Pau Ribas and Michael Ruzic scored 12 each. Ante Tomic chipped in with 10 points for the hosts, who shot 9 of

19 from downtown on the back of free-flowing offense for much of the contest. At the other end, Rayjon Tucker stood out for Reyer with a game-high 21 points, having garnished his fine individual performance with a couple of eye-catching dunks and a pair of spectacular blocks on Tomic and Feliz in quick succession. Jordan Parks scored 16 points for the visitors, Kyle Wiltjer added 14 and Amedeo Tessitori netted 12.

Three-point shooting made all the difference in the first half as Joventut sank 5 of 10 from long range while Reyer was 0 of 6, with the hosts gradually building a 41-31 lead in the closing stages of the second quarter before Reyer slashed the deficit with a late run.

Reyer looked capable of pulling off what would have amounted to a shock win on the road when the visitors closed in to 55-54 on the back of Tucker’s blocks on Tomic and Ruiz, but getting rejected only seemed to galvanize Ruiz who responded by sinking some tough shots in the closing stages of the third quarter.

In the blink of an eye, Joventut pulled away to 70-58 and the writing was on the wall for Reyer midway through the fourth, when the home team had an 80-64 cushion. Still, the visitors refused to roll over and pulled it back to 84-77, but Joventut did a good job of running the clock down and getting the win that kept last season’s semifinalist firmly on course to reach the playoffs.

The Spanish team was made to work hard by its Italian rival but prevailed thanks to a more balanced effort.

Turk Telekom Ankara has one of the hottest players in the BKT EuroCup at the moment and another career night by Tyrone Wallace as well as some strong second-half defense kept alive last season’s runner-up's chances of reaching the playoffs. 

On-fire Wallace, second-half defense kept Turk Telekom’s hopes alive 

Turk Telekom Ankara has one of the hottest players in the BKT EuroCup at the moment and another career night by [Tyrone Wallace](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tyrone-wallace/011925/) as well as some strong second-half defense kept alive last season’s runner-up's chances of reaching the playoffs.

Wallace connected on 7-of-8 three-pointers in scoring 31 points in Turk Telekom Ankara’s 79-85 win at ratiopharm Ulm. That was the Turkish side’s third victory in the last four games and gives Selcuk Ernak’s team a 4-9 record just outside a playoff spot with five games to play.

“It’s beautiful,” Wallace said about being so locked in offensively. “It’s always great to have a game like that where you just feel like you got it rolling. Credit to my teammates for finding me when I was open. It’s even better to get a W.”

Tyrone Wallace scored a career-high 31 points in Ulm

Wallace has been one of the top players in the EuroCup in December. Against U-BT Cluj-Napoca in Round 10, the 29-year-old scored 19 points with 7 rebounds and followed that with 22 points in helping Turk Telekom beat Buducnost VOLI Podgorica for a second straight win. Wallace poured in a then-career-high 30 points along with 6 rebounds and 6 assists in Round 12 but they were not enough in a loss to Aris Midea Thessaloniki.

But the former NBA guard lit it up with 5-of-5 three-pointers in the first half and finished with 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals for a career-best index rating of 39.

“It was very important. We haven’t been doing very well in the EuroCup. They came to our house earlier in the season and beat us so we had this game marked as a game that we needed. And we were able to come out and get it,” Wallace said.

Besides Wallace’s standout performance, a major key was Turk Telekom’s defense in the second half. Ernak’s team held Ulm to 41 points in the first half but allowed the hosts to grab 11 offensive rebounds, leading to 14 second-chance points.

Ulm finished with three offensive rebounds and only 38 points in the second half. The 79 points were 11.0 points fewer than Ulm’s average as the fourth-highest-scoring team in the league.

“In the second half, we took care of (offensive rebounds) and started playing better defense. We kept Ulm under their average on their court. That was the key,” Ernak said.

Tyrone Wallace remained red-hot by improving on his EuroCup career-high for the second straight game. 

ratiopharm Ulm v Turk Telekom Ankara (2023-12-26T18:30:00.000Z)

Turk Telekom Ankara remained alive in its late push for a playoff spot as it knocked off ratiopharm Ulm 79-85 on the road for its third win in the last four games. 

Turk Telekom still alive in playoff race after 79-85 win in Ulm 

Turk Telekom Ankara remained alive in its late push for a playoff spot as it knocked off ratiopharm Ulm 79-85 on the road for its third win in the last four games. Tyrone Wallace scored a career-high 31 points with 7 three-pointers and 6 assists for last season’s runner-up, which improved to 4-9 in Group B.

Steven Enoch collected 14 points and 8 rebounds and James Palmer chipped in 14 points. Ulm missed a chance to take a big step towards grabbing a spot in the playoffs as it lost its second straight game for an 8-5 record. Trevion Williams tallied 26 points and 11 rebounds in the loss and Thomas Klepeisz added 14 points.

Williams played a major role in Ulm jumping ahead early with an assist, an inside score, a three-pointer and an assist and offensive rebound for a 14-6 lead. Palmer hit a three-pointer and Wallace followed with 2 triples as Turk Telekom raced back ahead 16-17. The game was even at 19-19 after 10 minutes.

Ulm continued to grab offensive rebounds - snatching 8 of them in the first 12 minutes - but it struggled to make shots and another Wallace three-pointer had the guests up 21-24. Philipp Herkenhoff answered from deep and offensive rebound putbacks by Williams and Karim Jallow pushed the hosts up 28-24. Wallace remained hot though with 2 more three-pointers and the guests led 32-34. Ulm regained the lead and led 41-40 at the break.

The back and forth continued in the second half with Herkenhoff and Pacome Dadiet hitting three-pointers and Enoch scoring 7 points. New addition Brandon Brown knocked down 2 three-pointers and Wallace connected from deep again for a 52-58 advantage after 5 lead changes. The Turkish side was up 56-61 after 30 minutes.

Yet another Wallace three-pointer gave Turk Telekom a 62-68 cushion. Williams was not done as he had a three-pointer and three-point play to get within 65-68. Ulubay responded with a three-pointer and a three-point play from Wallace had the guests up 65-74 with less than 7 minutes left.

Ulm managed to get some defensive stops over a 4-minute stretch and trimmed the gap to 73-75. Ulubay drained a three-pointer and then after a steal, Ismail Ulusoy missed a layup, allowing Thomas Klepeisz to answer from deep. Enoch made it a two-possession game with 2 free throws with 15 seconds remaining. Williams committed an offensive foul and that was the end of Ulm’s comeback hopes.

Tyrone Wallace scored a career-high 31 points as last season's runner-up won for the third time in four games. 

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse secured a ticket to the BKT Playoffs and took sole possession of first place in Group B with a 92-84 overtime victory over defending champion Dreamland Gran Canaria at Ekinox on Tuesday night. 

Bourg holds off Gran Canaria 92-84 to clinch playoff spot

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse secured a ticket to the BKT Playoffs and took sole possession of first place in Group B with a 92-84 overtime victory over defending champion Dreamland Gran Canaria at Ekinox on Tuesday night. Bourg remained undefeated at home this season with its seventh straight win to improve to 11-2, while second Gran Canaria to its third straight loss and a 10-3 record. Despite the loss, Gran Canaria managed to retain the potential head-to-head tiebreaker between the teams.

Isiaha Mike paced the winners with 22 points and 8 rebounds. His wild three-pointer with 29.1 seconds left in overtime helped secure the victory. Bryce Brown added 17 points on 5-of-8 three-point shooting, Bodian Massa netted 16 points and Jequan Lewis dished 9 assists for Bourg. A.J. Slaughter netted a game-high 23 for Gran Canaria in defeat. Nicolas Brussino chipped in 15 and Ethan Happ tallied 8 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals.

### Bourg uses a 15-0 run to take control

The offenses had their way early with the points coming freely. It was 13-13 after 5 minutes with Andrew Albicy playing a key role for the visitors and Mike starting to heat up for Bourg. Massa made an impact off the bench and free throws by Axel Julien put the hosts up 4. Maksim Salash’s runner made it 25-19 after 10 minutes.

Back-to-back threes by Julien and Brown to open the second quarter prompted a Gran Canaria timeout. Salash then capped a 15-0 run to lead 33-19. Sylven Landesberg drilled a triple to revive the visitors and Brussino’s third three of the game closed the gap. Free throws by Landesberg made it 38-33. Bourg scored the next 6 points to stay out of trouble and used another 7-0 spurt to surge ahead 51-36 at the break.

### Gran Canaria rallies

The visitors opened the second half with back-to-back threes by Slaughter and John Shurna. Bourg regrouped and managed to maintain a lead in the 9-to 11-point range. Brown kept Bourg in control as Gran Canaria turned the pressure up. Brussino scored in the paint and Ben Lammers added a second-chance bucket on the third-quarter buzzer to trim the deficit to 62-58.

Former Bourg star drilled a three to get Gran Canaria within 3 early in the fourth quarter, but a dunk and a jumper by Massa gave the hosts breathing room. A jumper by Slaughter made it 76-72 with 3 minutes remaining. Mike was called for an unsportsmanlike foul on Ethan Happ with 1:27 remaining, but Gran Canaria did not capitalize as the big man missed both of the resulting free throws and Slaughter missed a three on the ensuing possession. Slaughter got the champs within a basket with a jumper with 38.1 on the clock and – after Massa missed under the basket – Slaughter tied the game at 76-76 with free throws with 15.1 seconds left. Lewis missed a three at the buzzer and the game went to overtime.

### Massa leads Bourg to victory in OT

Massa scored the first 4 points of the extra session before Slaughter answered with a pair of triples, the second tying the game at 82-82. Massa then fed Brown for a go-ahead three. After a layup by Brussino, Mike beat the shot-clock for a miracle three and a 4-point cushion with 29.6 seconds remaining. Massa iced the game after grabbing a defense rebound, getting fouled and sinking 2 free throws with 18.1 seconds to go.

The overtime win sent the French side to its seventh straight win and put it atop the standings in Group B.