MUNICH (Germany) - There were celebrations on Wednesday night for five clubs who all secured their respective spots in the EuroLeague Women Second Round.
Fenerbahce Opet, Spar Girona, Galatasaray Cagdas Faktoring, Flammes Carolo Basket and Valencia Basket Club ensured they will advance, while Basket Landes moved a step closer and Tango Bourges Basket revived their hopes by beating reigning champions ZVVZ USK Praha.
There's also still one more Week 4 game to be played on Thursday 30, October when CIMSA CBK Mersin host Umana Reyer Venezia.
Key Storylines
Fenerbahce, Galatasaray, Girona, Carolo Basket and Valencia all advance to the Second Round;
Bourges bounce back from big Week 3 loss to blow out holders Praha on the road;
Landes go three in a row after winning a thriller at Zaragoza.
Weekly Highs
Efficiency: Awak Kuier (Galatasaray Cagdas Faktoring) - 24 Points: Jelena Brooks (Sopron Basket) - 20 Rebounds: Maria Araujo (Valencia Basket Club), Murjanatu Musa (Basket Landes) - 10 Assists: Alperi Onar (Fenerbahce Opet) - 10 Steals: Laetitia Guapo (Tango Bourges Basket), Leila Lacan (Basket Landes) - 6 Blocks: Emma Meesseman (Fenerbahce Opet) - 3
Fenerbahce, Galatasaray and Girona still perfect; Bourges bounce back
The quality and depth of Fenerbahce was on display in a big way as they secured their Second Round berth with a blistering 113-65 success at home to DVTK to move to 4-0.
In a super team effort, the Istanbul powerhouse had eight different players post double-digit scoring returns. Alperi Onar finished with 11 points and 10 assists, while Kayla McBride top-scored with 16 points.
Another Turkish giant in Galatasaray claimed arguably their best win of the campaign as they moved past Beretta Famila Schio 72-61 off the back of a late surge.
Kamiah Smalls lit up the backcourt and Awak Kuier stood strong in the frontcourt as the pair shared 34 points.
Girona had to come back from behind to outlast VBW Gdynia 90-65. Trailing at the break, the visitors routed their opponents with a stunning 32-10 third period that turned the game on its head.
Mariam Coulibaly continued her rich vein of form with 18 points and 9 rebounds - as did Juste Jocyte who also dropped an 18-point haul.
Flammes Carolo Basket step into the Second Round after a comfortable 72-62 triumph against Sopron Basket. Isabelle Strunc dropped 3 of 4 from long-range on her way to 13 points, while Ashley Joens fired 15 points to inspire a win-double against their rivals which helped them make the next phase.
Jelena Brooks responded with 20 points in defeat.
Valencia raced out of the blocks and had little difficulty in rolling past Olympiacos SFP 99-57 as they also leapt into the Second Round.
Leticia Romero excelled with 16 points and 6 assists, while Kayla Alexander made 5 of 6 from the floor to harvest 15 points.
In the wake of their huge loss at Girona last week, few people would have tipped Bourges to respond by powering their way past Praha 78-43. Locking down the holders with excellent defense helped by 6 steals from Laetitia Guapo and also holding them to just 12 of 58 from the field, Tima Pouye also shone with 18 points.
Basket Landes made it a perfect night for French clubs as they claimed a dramatic 65-63 win at Zaragoza to wrap up their third straight success in the competition. A productive start laid the foundations and they also profited from 11 points apiece from Leila Lacan and Julie Wojta, while Becky Massey hit a vital and go-ahead triple inside the last two minutes.
Results
Wednesday, October 29
Fenerbahce Opet 113-65 DVTK HUNTHERM Beretta Famila Schio 61-72 Galatasaray Cagdas Faktoring Flammes Carolo Basket 72-62 Sopron Basket ZVVZ USK Praha 43-78 Tango Bourges Basket VBW Gdynia 65-90 Spar Girona Valencia Basket Club 99-57 Olympiacos SFP Casademont Zaragoza 63-65 Basket Landes
Thursday, October 30 CIMSA CBK Mersin vs Umana Reyer Venezia
FIBA