The Turks suffocated Wolves after the intermission
Second-half defense made the difference for Bahcesehir
Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius's fans were more than happy after the first quarter of the opener against Bahcesehir College Istanbul on Wednesday evening, as the home team led 26-23 and showed a very good face - especially offensively - against one of the strongest teams in Group A.
The hosts had shot 5-of-6 from two, 3-of-6 from behind the arc, and 7-of-9 from the line, as Anthony Cowan had 15 points with 5-of-6 from the field and 3 free-throws after 4 attempts.
“The beginning was not good, we made a lot of mistakes,” Bahcesehir head coach Dejan Radonjic recognized in the press conference. But after that it was different… Our defense was much better."
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The numbers prove Radonjic right, as his team allowed just 17 points in the second quarter to reach halftime leading 43-45, and suffocated its opponent by allowing only 26 points in the second half - the same amount it received in the first period.
"The key for this victory was our defense in the second half. We didn't play fluidly in offense but our defense in the last 20 minutes was really good. This was key for the win and I congratulate my players for this game," he added.
Wolves’ offensive struggles turned into below-par shooting in the last 20 minutes, especially from the perimeter, making only 2 of 15 threes. That was a big difference compared to the first half stat-line, which showed a more than acceptable 6-of-13 from downtown.
As such, Cowan was unable to score a single field goal in the second half with his only 2 points coming from the free-throw line in the last minutes of the last period. On the other hand, Axel Bouteille recorded 13 points of his total 17 after the break, fueling Bahcesehir when it mattered most.
"I think we played a solid game. The first half was good, but we got too many points in the first quarter," the French forward emphasized too. "We allowed less points in the second half and thanks to that we got the win. It’s nice for us to start like this, winning the first game of the season [on the road] but we know it’s a long season and we have to keep working."