Close wins for Budivelnyk Kyiv and Keravnos as Gaziantep stay perfect

MUNICH (Germany) - Gameday 3 of the Second Round came to a close with tight wins for BC Budivelnyk Kyiv and BC Keravnos, while Gaziantep stayed undefeated and Brose Bamberg took care of business at home. 

Deondre Burns drained a pull-up jumper with 10 seconds to go to win Keravnos' Group L encounter 77-75 over CSM CSU Oradea. Erick Neal got off a three-point attempt before the buzzer, but he couldn’t get it to fall and was on the losing side despite a 28-point haul.

As usual, the Cypriot side got major contributions from Burns with 29 points and Ousman Krubally with 23 points and 11 rebounds for another double-double as both teams now have a 1-2 record in the group.

Budivelnyk Kyiv stole a tough 77-76 road win against Patrioti Levice, led by 26 points from Johnny Berhanemeskel including two clutch free throws. The visitors got a lot of help from James Padgett, who had a 14-point and 12-rebound double-double before fouling out. 

The game went down to the wire as Miha Lapornik drained a late three-pointer off-the-dribble to give his team a narrow lead, but Berhanemeskel managed to draw a foul after a timeout and held his nerve to ice for a maiden victory.

Brose Bamberg pulled away from Anwil Wloclawek with a 20-9 third quarter, only for the Polish side to mount a comeback and pull within a single possession in the final minute of the game. However, they ran out of time when Patrick Heckman split a pair of free throws and the hosts eventually sealed a 73-69 success.

Patrick Miller put up 19 points to go with 6 dimes for the winning side, while Philip Greene scored 20, knocking down six three-pointers. Both teams are now 2-1 in the Second Round, battling for the top spot in Group L. 

Meanwhile, Gaziantep pulled away from HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim in the fourth quarter of their Group K duel, winning 105-87. The Turkish club got 22 points and 6 assists from Olivier Hanlan, and were led in scoring by Damyean Dotson with 26 points, while Codi Miller-McIntyre added 21 points along with 4 steals as they moved to 3-0.

FIBA