Hard-fought win against DVTK

SOPRON BASKET - ALUINVENT-DVTK 82-65 (26-19, 17-21, 17-12, 22-13)
Sopron, 1200 néző

SOPRON BASKET: Fegyverneky 6, Turner 7, Czukor 2, Zahui 15/3, Határ 6 Sub.: Dupree 20, Crvendakic 13, Dubei 6/6, Salvadores 5/3, Varga K. 2

ALUINVENT-DVTK: Medgyessy 14/3, Walker-Kimbrough 17/6, Kányási 10, Skoric 2, Mokango 16 Sub.: Sulciute 4, Katona Sz. 2, Zele D. -, Szabó F. -

Stats

FGS: 34/72 47% ill. 23/67 34%

3-PTS: 4/14 29% ill. 3/12 25%

FTS: 10/14 71% ill. 16/17 94%

Rebounds: 46 (Határ 12) ill. 37 (Walker-Kimbrough 10)

Assists: 23 (Turner 5) ill. 16 (Skoric 4)

Steals: 5 ill. 8

Turnovers: 9 ill. 8

Faults: 18 ill. 19

After Betti got the ball at the tip-off Amanda got us started with a double, but we couldn't pull away from the guests. So much so, that after three minutes Zsófi had to make a shot to tie the game up (3rd minute 8-8). As the time passed the game remained balanced, neither side was able to get a lead bigger than a single basket's worth (6th minute 17-15). After that we have scored twice unanswered resulting in a six-point lead, but Miskolc were able to come closer forcing Roberto Iniguez's first time-out of the game (8th minute 21-17). His words had the effect needed, we closed the quarter with a 5-2 period in possession of a confortable single-digit lead (10th minute 26-19).

The second stage of the game began with Miskolc's come-back effort, and after three minutes they cut they deficit in half (13th minute 31-26). Then came Dalma with a nice double to calm her team down. Later on the difference still hasn't changed, we were ahead by five points, meaning that Miskolc couldn't get closer to us, which made László Cziczás call his first time-out for the away side (15th minute 33-28). Just when Miskolc were coming up on our backs, Aleks made a nice double after a spin move under the rim. It wouldn't stop the away side, though, they kept scoring and reduced the gap to two points (18th minute 35-33). What's more, after Walker-Kibrough's triple they even took the lead for a second, before Aleks took it back for us, and Yvonne increased it from the foul line. Kányási and Aleks exchanged baskets, and when Mokango made a shot from close in, coach Iniguez called his team to the bench to talk it over with 15 seconds left on the clock. The first half ended with a double by Aleks (20th minute 43-40).

The third quarter began with a cold spell for both sides, they made a huge effort on defense, but we were able to score some points anyway (24th minute 49-42). Being unable to score Cziczás called his team to the bench to try and overcome this problem (25th minute 51-42). His words have proved effective, we couldn't pull further away, what's more Miskolc managed to trim a little off of the difference. The period ended with Yvonne's foul shots that gave us an 8-point lead before the final stage of the game (30th minute 60-52).

Betti's close double opened the last quarter, to which Medgyessy anwered back likewise. Angela managed to score from downtown increasing our lead into the double-digit range, and after Debi's triple we were already ahead by 14 (32nd minute 68-54). Medgyessy converted three free throws, but then Angela scored from a lay-up. Our lead scorer for tonight Candice made two baskets in a row forcing Miskolc's next time-out (36th minute 74-59). Mokango converted a double, and after two minutes Debi hit a triple. Kányási was successful from the paint, and so was Amanda. In the closing minutes of the game we put two more points between the teams on the scoreboard, ending in a 17-point win (40th minute 82-65).

Roberto Iniguez: First I would like to congratulate Miskolc, who are on the right way, they are facing a nice season, I wish them the best of luck for that! There were mistakes made by the referees, but everyone can make mistakes, we are humans, and it is a difficult job to do. It is absolutely positive that they have communicated with us all the way through the game. We didn't have an easy job tonight, the decisive factor was our more aggressive style of play in the second half, and that we have improved on some elements that we have been working on. We still need to bear in mind who we are, keep working hard during the week, correct the elements we learn, and keep doing our job with the mentality we showed today!

László Cziczás: Sopron have played fantastically, congratulations to them! They have scored with almost 70% during the first quarter, which gave them the lead. All in all I think we have put up a nice resistance for 30 minutes. This is where we stand at the moment, our two international players have joined us later than everyone else, so we still need time. 17 points might seem a bit too much, but we have made the home team fight for the win. We would like to get back on track against Csata next week.

Candice Dupree: We have played a good game against a god Miskolc! In the second half we have stepped up on defense according to the coach's instructions, which led to the difference in the end.

Chanel Mokango: We have played well until the last quarter, but then Sopron decided the game with some accurate shots.