A tale of opposite halves

PEAC-Pécs - Sopron Basket 53-72 (17-26, 12-28, 17-11, 7-7)
Pécs

PEAC-Pécs: Szűcs R. 10, Wentzel 6, Strautmane 6/6, Kiss V. 15/3, Andusic 8 Sub.: Sarok 4/3, Kaposi 4, Sánta P. -, Habling -

Sopron Basket: January 12/3, Varga S. 3/3, Williams 12, Brooks 5/3, Krajisnik 18 Sub.: Fegyverneky 10/6, Walker 7/3, Czukor 3/3, Varga A. 2

Statistics

FGS: 18/40 45% ill. 20/34 59%

3-PTS: 4/18 22% ill. 7/22 32%

FTS: 5/7 71% ill. 11/12 92%

Rebounds: 33 (Kiss V. 9) ill. 33 (Krajisnik 12)

Assists: 15 (Szűcs R., Wentzel 3-3) ill. 17 (Varga S. 4)

Steals: 4 ill. 12 (Williams 4)

Turnovers: 18 ill. 12

Faults: 16 ill. 17

VAL: 68 (Kiss V. 18) ill. 108 (Krajisnik 32)

Tina made a quick bucket for two at the beginning of the game, to which Strautmane answered back with a triple at the other end, and then Szűcs came up with a double. It was raining buckets early on, in less than three minutes the hosts scored twelve points, while we put seven on the board (3rd minute 12-7). Not long after that we caught up with the hosts, and from that point on the teams were neck and neck, neither side was able to dominate. However, with a triple by Alíz we got some room to breathe, and when Bri managed to score, too, PEAC called a time-out (16-23). Our American point guard also put a triple on the scoreboard after the short talk, while at the other end Sarok made a free throw (10th minute 17-26).


The second period began with a lay-up by Réka Szűcs, and then Megan got her team going as well. Within the first four minutes of the quarter we came up with an 11-2 run, to which Virág Kiss put an end with a double (14th minute 21-37). We wouldn’t hold back after that either, we kept attacking, and with a 7-4 stage we got close to a twenty-point advantage, forcing head coach Ferenc Csirke to call his next time-out (17th minute 25-44). In that quarter we were still on the front foot, and after yet another scoring run came the next time-out by Pécs. Dalma got herself going with a three, but the final moment of the half was a lay-up for the home side by Réka Szűcs (20th minute 29-54).


Three minutes went by without a basket at the beginning of the third quarter, and then finally Andusic put an end to the drought with a long double (23rd minute 31-54). gabby got us going with two made free throws at the other end, to which Zsófi added a double. Following a 6-0 run by Pécs our captain led the way with another basket, that time from behind the three-point line (27th minute 37-61). In that period the hosts were dictating the rhythm of the game, thanks to which they managed to cut into their deficit a little, but we were still in a comfortable advantage ahead of the final ten minutes (30th minute 46-65).


The final stage of the game also began with an almost three-minute long scoring drought, and then Gabby drew a foul while attempting a lay-up, but was unable to complete the and-one (33rd minute 46-67). When another minute went by without a basket Dávid Gáspár decided to call a time-out, which paid off. Bri came up with a three-point play, and at the other end Wentzel made a double (48-70). Sarok made a triple, cutting PEAC’s deficit down below twenty points, and after a lay-up by Virág Kiss it was Dávid Gáspár’s turn to call his team to the bench again (38th minute 53-70). Tina made a basket from close in after the brief talk setting the final score in the game (40th minute 53-72).

Dávid Gáspár: We played two opposite halves. I am happy with the performance we showed in the first half, but we lost our rhythm after the break. We took too long on offense, and didn't attack the holes which we did in the first half, and our shots were not in place against a tougher Pécs defense. There were some situations which we didn't defend properly, we have to pay attention to that, but all in all, our defense worked well. Congratulations to my team for the win!

Zsófia Fegyverneky: We beat a PEAc side that played good basketball. We got what we expected from the game in advance. It was a tough game, I am happy we were able to create a bigger advantage in the first half, to which we could hold on. Obviously, there were mistakes, we will try to fix them until the next game.