The point guard's inspiring performance allowed the Romanian champs to eliminate Wolves in a double-overtime instant classic
Zavier Simpson and Cluj made history on Tuesday
Article
3 Mins read
After one of the longest post-season games in BKT EuroCup history, U-BT Cluj-Napoca celebrated advancing to the EuroCup Quarterfinals. The Romanian champs claimed their first-ever EuroCup postseason win with a 99-100 road victory at Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius after a game that lasted 50 intense minutes. Both teams seemed to have the win in the bag at some points during this incredible game in which Cluj playmaker Zavier Simpson made the difference with a performance for the ages.
Simpson struggled at first, tallying 7 points and 3 assists in the first half in which he didn't find his rhythm. On the other hand, Wolves star guard Anthony Cowan had 6 assists and just 1 turnover at the break. Cluj trailed 48-39 at halftime, but then Simpson finally got going with a floater and a couple of three-pointers. He singlehandedly carried Cluj to a 75-80 lead that seemed to seal the outcome, but a couple of late three-pointers by Jeffery Taylor and Cowan helped Wolves force overtime, 81-81.
Simpson saved the best for last, finding Zach Hankins for easy points in the paint. His last three-pointer gave Cluj an 88-90 lead and he found Hankins for a wide-open shot in the paint, which he missed with a chance to seal the win. Andrew Andrews drew a foul at the other end and sent the game to a second overtime. Simpson dished 3 critical assists in the final 5 minutes, finding Hankins for a jump hook and a three-point play before feeding Patrick Richard for a three-pointer that gave Cluj a 96-100 edge.
It was an inspiring moment, as it was Richard's first three-pointer of the season after missing almost the entire regular season due to injury. Richard is Cluj's captain and is in his sixth season with the team. He has helped the team grow almost from scratch and he hit one of the biggest shots in club history, one that sent Cluj to uncharted territory in the EuroCup.
Simpson finished the game with 26 points and 14 assists, which marked both a club record and a EuroCup postseason record. The previous playoff record was 12 assists shared by four players: Damir Mulaomerovic of PAOK Thessaloniki (2005), Nemanja Gordic of Cedevita Zagreb (2015), Stefan Markovic of Zenit St Petersburg (2017) and Andrew Albicy of Morabanc Andorra (2019). It was Simpson's fourth consecutive double-double and his sixth in his first EuroCup season. Cowan led Vilnius with 23 points, 7 rebounds and 12 assists.
After the game, Simpson highlighted his team's fighting spirit and not being intimidated by a new situation, fighting for bigger goals in the competition.
"Man, it was crazy. Obviously, this is my first EuroCup playoff game and the atmosphere was lit! We played against a really good team. They had great execution, guys that play hard, made some tough decisions like us down the stretch. And being able to go in two overtimes like this for the first time, it's amazing," Simpson said. "I am very appreciative and grateful that we were able to come out with the win."
His coach had nothing but great things to say about Simpson and his Tuesday night performance.
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"He has been one of the main players all season. He is third in points scored and first in assists in the EuroCup and he can improve even more. He has a lot of room to improve and today, he was amazing," Cluj head coach Mihai Silvasan added. "He had 14 assists and just 2 turnovers. Of course, he had the ball a lot, but still his decision-making was really good. Big congrats to him but again, I will tell the players that one player or the other can have a good game, but it is important to play good basketball collectively, especially on defense, helping each other and not allowing easy points."
Simpson and Cluj will next face in the quarterfinals a familiar team, top-seeded Valencia Basket, at La Fonteta.
"I believe we can win against anybody. Obviously, Valencia beat us twice this season, so hopefully that can be some extra motivation for the locker room. But Valencia speaks for itself. They are a really good team and a really good organization, great coaching staff, great players, so it is going to be kind of up to us to come out and make sure that we execute a game plan and know what we are up against."