BC "Fenerbahce" (Istanbul, Turkey) - BC "Prometey" - 89:93 (21:29, 24:17, 14:25, 30:22). September 23. International tournament Pinar Cup 2022. Second game day. Izmir (Turkey). "Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Karsiyaka Spor Salonu". 2000 viewers.
BC "Fenerbahce": Motli* (14 + 9 rebounds), Birsen* (5), Hazer* (22 + 5 assists), Mamutoglu* (9), Guduric* (7), Edwards (5), Akpinar (5) , Hayes (4), Booker (8), Pierre (6 + 10 rebounds), Calathes (4).
BC "Prometey": Kennedy* (16 + 6 assists), Stephens* (7), Clavell* (14 + 4 steals), Hogue* (9), Lukashov*, captain (3), Balvin (12 + 7 rebounds) , Sidorov (0), Agada (18 + 4 steals), Lypovyy (6), Sanon (6), Tkachenko (2).
On the second day of the traditional Pinar Cup pre-season tournament, our "Prometey" started in it. The "Red and White" played against the long-time giant of Turkish basketball "Fenerbahçe" from Istanbul, for whom this match was the second in the competition. The day before, the Istanbul club beat the hosts of the tournament "Pinar Karsiyaka" with a score of 98:87. The second success in a row automatically made Fenerbahce the winner of the Pinar Cup.
On the eve of the confrontation with the "yellow-blue" (Fenerbahce colours), the head coach of our team, Ronen Ginzburg, noted that at this stage of the pre-season training, it is still too early for the team to compete with classy Turkish opponents. Of course, no one knows the condition of his wards better than Ronen, but they managed not only to play decently against a regular participant of the Euroleague, but also to beat them. This victory, despite the fact that it was not snatched in an official tournament, undoubtedly only improved the basketball image of the "red and white" in Europe.
The most important thing is that this success, based on the entire logic of the game, was well-deserved and natural. Even with the strong support of their fans, "Fenerbahce" led the score for only a few game segments. "Prometey" in the debut match adopted an early attack, which turned out to be very effective. Already in the middle of the first quarter, Gian Clavell made our team's lead of double-digit. It was almost the same even after the end of ten minutes.
At the start of the second quarter, Ronen Ginsburg's team also firmly controlled the game. In the 15th minute, Caleb Agada, with his three-point shot, for the second time in the match established a 10-point handicap for our team (42:32). And then, "Prometey" did not hit the opponent's hoop for 3 minutes. The reigning champion of Turkey took advantage of this and made an 11-0 spurt. It was completed by Hazer's accurate three-pointer. Thanks to him, "Fenerbahce" took the lead after a long break (43:42), but the quarter still remained for our team.
After a long break, “Prometey” twice managed to make significant breakthroughs (8:0 and 10:3), thanks to which they managed to go to the last break with a comfortable handicap of 12 points. However, it was naive to believe that "Fenerbahce" would surrender in the presence of their fans. The team of the star Greek specialist Dimitris Itoudis began to actively use shots from the arc, and this tactic turned out to be justified. With the efforts of Birsen, Hazer, and Mahmutoglu, the "yellow and blue" gradually reduced their gap. 42 seconds before the end of the game, a shot from the perimeter by team captain Mahmutoglu put the Canaries ahead. However, in the most difficult moment of the match, Issuf Sanon and Oleksandr Lypovy played brilliantly. Issuf drew away several opponents and assisted to the free Oleksandr on the perimeter, who made no mistake - 91:89 in favour of "Prometey". There were still 29 seconds left to play – according to basketball standards, quite enough time to eliminate the "-2" deficit. However, one of the leaders of the Turkish team in this match, Khazer, unsuccessfully entered the individual passage. He was literally "robbed" by DJ Kennedy. Fenerbahce's tactical fouls in the last seconds were unsuccessful for the rival of "Prometey". The second foul in a row allowed Gian Clavell, from the penalty line, put an end to this match.
In less than 24 hours, "Prometey" will play their second match in the Pinar Cup. A victory with any score against "Pinar Karsiaka" will make our team the winner of the prestigious tournament.
