EUROBASKET NEWS REPORT - 1/20/2008

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Men News

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ARGENTINA

Liga A round 13 -by Facundo Iatzky
Libertad won easily again, this time beat the last one Estudiantes with 16 pts 10 reb 3 as of Robert Battle (200-C-81, college: Drexel). Marcelo Richotti will coach Estudiantes from Monday. Jose Muruaga (198-G-84) made 24 pts in a losing effort.
Quimsa won in the road against Gimnasia with the excellent job of Cleotis Brown (198-G/F-77, college: Illinois) (29 pts 5 reb). Jimmy Boston (201-F-77, college: N.C.Central) shined in home team with 22 pts and 12 reb
Regatas Corrientes overcame Obras in the best game of the round and remains close to libertad. Roberto Lopez (199-F/C-76) 9 pts 12 reb and 6 st. In obras, Lazaro Borrell (202-F-72, agency: Interperformances) 26 pts 7 reb
Independiente Neuquen was one of the three teams who got a victory on the road this round. They defeated Ben hur-Zanella rafaela with a good game of Byron Johnson (201-F/C-80, college: Belm.Abbey) 19 pts 6 reb. Fabian Elias Saad (187-G-83) added 19 in BH.
Belgrano san nicolas got a huge victory in Mar del plata over Quilmes Marcus Fleming (204-F-78, college: Alcorn St.) was outstanding with 21 pts and 5 reb. Quilmes played very bad except Hernando Salles (188-G-79) (24 pts and 8 reb)
The rest of the round:
Sionista-penarol (suspended due to the games of Penarol in Liga de las americas)
El nacional-atenas ( 01/22) and Boca jrs-central entrerriano (01/23) will be the TV games of the next week.

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AUSTRALIA

Ebi Ere bullies Adelaide -by Eurobasket News
Brisbane - Adelaide 155:107

A potential season's MVP Ebi Ere (195-G/F-81, college: Oklahoma) added credits to his recent status as one of the most prominent performers in the NBL as he punished the Adelaide 36ers virtually singlehandedly today. Ebi Ere launched 51 points on a 15/21 field goal shooting to ensure a remarkable 155 points for Brisbane and left the 36ers wondering about their defensive intensity. The defending champs erupted for 78 first half points including 30 from Ebi Ere. Adelaide was also pretty consistent offensively piling up 62 points. But it was not quite a match for the Bullets' performance. Brisbane extended the lead using a 10:0 rally early in the third stanza. The margin grew to 30-point mark even without Ebi Ere on the court. Later CJ Bruton (188-G-75, college: Indian Hills CC) had to leave the court with a sprained ankle but it never slowed Brisbane down. Ebi Ere appeared on the court and drained 4 consecutive trebles to put the fans on their feet. The Bullets finished the onslaught with the final buzzer and celebrated one of the most impressive victories in recent years. Ebi Ere added 7 boards and 2 steals to his stats. CJ Bruton contributed 18 points and 6 assists in limited minutes of action. Craig Bradshaw (207-F/C-83, college: Winthrop) had 17 points and 10 boards for the winners. Darren Ng (189-G-83) answered with 20 points for Adelaide. Adam Ballinger (205-F/C-79, college: Michigan St.) secured 19 points and 11 rebounds in a losing clause. The hosts 52% of field goals and outrebounded their opponents 60:51. They also forced the 36ers to 22 turnovers.
The Bullets improved to 17-7 record and would face the Perth Wildcats on Friday. Adelaide slipped to 10-14 record and takes on the Melbourne Tigers at home.

Brisbane: Ebi Ere 51, CJ Bruton 18, Craig Bradshaw 19+11 boards
Adelaide: Darren Ng 20, Adam Ballinger 19+11 boards

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BRIT.V.ISLANDS

Trophy hope for Sharks -by David Edole
Sheffield Sharks 84
Birmingham Panthers 61

They say that where there is life there is hope. And the new blood for
Sheffield Sharks certainly made a difference last night at the EIS.

The Sharks kept their hopes alive of a BBL Trophy semi-final after a convincing 84-61 win against Birmingham Panthers with a much improved display that is only tempered by the fact it came against the BBL's worst club.

Justice Graham impressed once again with 21-points.

But key to the upbeat message coming from the Sharks locker room was the performance of new signings James Whyte and Nathan Niesler.

Whyte's appearance was no surprise, but the Sharks were boosted just hours before tip-off with news that Niesler was eligible to play.
And the 24-year-old Australian, who qualifies for a British passport through his Northern Irish mother, made the most of it by having an excellent match.

It was a much changed Sharks line-up. Regulars Alto Virgil and Atiba Lyons were out suspended and injured respectively with new signings Whyte and Niesler making their debuts.

Panthers looked sharp in the early exchanges to lead 19-24 at the end of the first quarter before the Sharks began to gel. Niesler looked particularly effective as they fought back to level the score at half time 39-39.

Whyte showed his ability in thethird quarter. His nine-points helped the Sharks move away from the Panthers 63-55.

A three-point barrage in the fourth quarter by guard Anthony Virgil and Niesler broke the match open for the home team with a 19-2 run. They must now beat Worcester Wolves by more than five-points tonight to go through to the last four.

Niesler said he was delighted with his debut: 'The first half we were a bit static but after the break we pushed the ball more a bit and made our shots. It was good to get out there and have a run.'
n Sharks scorers: Graham 21, Anthony Virgil 17, Whyte 14, Niesler 12, Randy George (200-F-81, college: Henderson St.) 11, Chaney 5, Okorie 2.

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BULGARIA

Levski alone in second place -by Lubomir Neshev
The team of Levski went alone in second place in the championship. This became a fact after The Blues defeated today their main opponent Balkan 69-60.
Levski started more motivated and took an 8-2 advantage. The guests cut the deficit a little but until the end of the quarter Levski retook a good lead and were up 22-14 after ten minutes.
Second quarter was different. In the beginning Levski was in front but by little and after a three pointer by Lyubomir Lilov Balkan took the lead for first time at 32-31. The hosts answered with a basket but then again the visitors took a lead and were in front 37-33 after the first half.
The third quarter's start was good for Levski. In the first eight minutes they made a run of 15-3 and again were ahead. After Radionov hit two free throws with twho seconds left Levski went up 55-45 before the decisive last ten minutes.
In that quarter the hosts kept their advantage which was 62-51 after triple by Zlatin Georgiev. Balkan answered with a 7-0 run but after Asen Velikov (188-G-86) made a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left the game was practically over.
Velikov was the best scorer for Levski with 13 points, as Slaveykov and Radionov added 11 each.
Dwayne Morton finished with 19 points and 7 rebounds and Ivan Lilov scored 12 for Balkan who felt to third place behind Lukoil Academic and Levski.

Rilski secured the 7th spot -by Lubomir Neshev
Rilski Sportist managed to beat Yambol 75-71 at home and after this win they secured the 7th place in A-1. Both teams can be happy, because Dunav 2007 losing to CSKA at home left both Yambol and Rileco in the first 8.
The game was tied in the begining, the two teams changed the leadership often and none managed to get a bigger lead. Anyway Rilski lead it 23-20 after 10 minutes of play.
The second quarter wasn't so good for them, as Yambol played better, and Rilski's shooting wasn't quite good. That took a mark on the score, and Yambol had a 31-36 lead at halftime.
In the second half the team from Samokov started playing press defense and that was a success, as the guest team fell in foul trouble, especially with their first PG Stanislav Govedarov on the line with personal fouls. The third quarter was won by the home side 27-18, and they were on top of the game again.
Early in the fourth Govedarov fouled out and that was really the key moment of the game for both teams, because it was a plus for Samokov, and Yambol were left without the team's best playmaker.
Branko Mirkovic (185-G-82, agency: Global Sports Plaza) had a good game with 26 points, 5 steals and 4 assists. Momchil Petrov addded 13 points, and Miko Golubovic had 11 and 7 rebounds. For Yambol Kirilo Skumatov scored 26 points, and Govedarov and Martin Horozov had 13 each.

10th win for Spartak in A-1 -by Valentin Anguelov
The team of Spartak Pleven is still in the fight for the 4th place after an easy win over Sliven - 103-86.

The game started with a 0-10 run for Sliven. Sabin Marinov's boys were very ambitious after winning against Rilski Sportist in the previous round, and they played perfect all first half. They played like equal against equal, besides playing without a few key figures like Nickolay Dinev, Todor Tsvetanov and Vasil Golov. From Spartak Hrisimir Dimitrov did not play due to a minor injury, suffered during the week. He'll be ready for the game in Yambol next week.

Just for a few minutes after the halftime break the home side managed to build a 9-point lead - 55-46. The difference was like this until midquarter in the 4th when Spartak Pleven made another good run, and it was +20 for them That was the 10th win for Spartak this season, CSKA has 10 as well. The Reds have advantage in te direct clashes and that's why they are on the better position.

Spartak must defeat Yambol and count on CSKA to lose against Cherno More in the last round. Only in this way they will be fourth and have advantage in the Cup Of Bulgaria draw.

In today's game Iliya Stankov scored 6 threes out of 10 attempts, as he added 8 rebounds and 6 assists. One of his best games this year played Todor Todorov, who was shooting 100% - 12/12 and scored 24 points.

For the guest team Stoyan Petkov scored the most - 20 points, and the American duo from Athletes in Action - Jeremiah Boswell and Lawrence Sharrett both had 19.

FULL STATS FROM THE GAME SPARTAK PLEVEN - SLIVEN

INDIVIDUAL STATS OF SPARTAK PLEVEN

INDIVIDUAL STATS OF SLIVEN

by Aleksandar Sotirov - BulgarianBasket.com

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EUROLEAGUE

Luciano Capicchioni: We must work to develope basketball -by Jay

Dr. Luciano Capicchioni is widely regarded as the Number One Sports Agent in Europe. Lucky, as he is commonly known, speaks three languages. He is recognized as the father of the 'European Sports Revolution', an innovative period in the 1980s and 1990s when skilled European basketball players joined the NBA. When Toni Kukoc, Arvydas Sabonis, Sasha Danilovic, Zan Tabak and Zydrunas Ilgauskas wanted to play in the NBA, they hired Lucky to represent them. Lucky is a native of San Marino who was raised in the United States. He received his BA from Michigan State and his doctorate in International Relations from the University of Bologna in Italy and is certified as a player-agent by the National Basketball Players Association. Lucky maintains residences in Miami and in San Marino, where he heads Interperformances' World Headquarters.

Basketworld.info team speak Capicchioni.

BW: Mr. Capicchioni, You are leader in sport management in Europe. Let me tell us when do you start to work.
Capicchoni: I startyed working as an agent in 1970. I was in my early 20s.

BW: Wich is the main point in this business?
Capicchioni: The main point is to be ethical and professional. Money is important, but should not be a priority.

BW: Why you selected to work with basketball players?
Capicchioni: I came to Europe after living in the US (I graduated at Michigan State ). My family emigrated to the United States in the late 50s. I saw the potential that basketball when I came back to Europe and decided to invest my time and energy towards promoting this Sport. I was president/founder of the Basketball Federation of San Marino. Organized exhibition teams that toured Europe (Gillette All Stars,Chesterfield All Stars,Winston,Levi, San Marino,Larios etc. etc.)

BW: Do you played?
Capicchioni: I played Basketball at an amateur level in the US, Coached and Managed Basketball Clubs.

BW: As tendence in the world basketball a few years ago was to send Europeans into NBA. Do you think that this point has changed now?
Capicchioni: We were the first ones to bring European players to the NBA. I think that European players will continue to go to the NBA. I also see an NBA expanding worldwide. The time has come for this to become a reality. Maybe we should call it the IBA International Basketball Association.

BW: Is there in Europe most attractive basketball now. Is it become as result of your job.
Capicchioni: Everybody, involved with basketball, has had a role in the development of this Sport - owners, clubs, federations, leagues, players and why not…even agents!

BW: What about world tendences in basketball according to you?
Capicchioni: The tendency is the what we have already seen in soccer. National programs will continue to improve and the difference from country to country will become less and less.

BW: You are the first one who send players in NBA. What do you remember for this period in your career?
Capicchioni: Very interesting period as the European player was seen as some sort of ET (extra terrestial) but in a negative way… Now the NBA players is still looking at European players as ET's but many NBA teams think that they will resolve their problems by drafting Euro Players. Which is not correct either.

BW: What`s your advice to those people, wich want to start and make career into sport management?
Capicchioni: To be professional, respect other agencies/agent and become respected members of the worldwide basketball family.


Courtesy of Basketworld.info



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FINLAND

KORISLIIGA: Korihait won finally in Espoo -by Rauno Hurmalainen

Korisliiga, Round 26: Korihait (Uusikaupunki) succeeded finally. Visiting 16 years in a row without winning Honka (Espoo) on the road in 22 games.
That is history now. Korihait won tonight in Espoo, when hosting Honka was scoring only 22 pts during the second half. Korihait defense was working
so well and Glenn Stokes (170-G-76, college: American) took care of the rest during the last two minutes. First Stokes made a trey-pointer (62-65) and during the last minute Stokes made three of his four FTs. Korihait won by two 66-68!
In Joensuu local Kataja crushed visitor KTP (Kotka) 92-70. Mike King (201-F-74, college: Ill.-Chicago), who is replacing injured Terry Black, was the king of the court: 26 pts and 17 rbs. Old fox Martti Kuisma (208-C/F-70, college: Florida) scored his season high 18 pts. Steve Smith (200-F-81, agency: CAA Sports, college: Iona) led KTP with 25 pts. Anssi Kinnaslampi (191-G-82) was guarding sharpshooter Toni Ilmonen (187-G-77), who scored only four pts.

Honka - Korihait 66-68 (44-34) (Kimmo Muurinen 16/14, Jukka Matinen 16 - Kyle Shiloh 24, Darius Glover 13, Glenn Stokes 12).

Kataja - KTP 92-70 (46-34) (Mike King 26/17, Martti Kuisma 18 - Steve Smith 25, Jermaine Spivey 19).



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FRANCE

Round 15: Le Havre and Cholet will go to the AS. -by Maxime Lory
Adecco ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, Sluc Nancy Basket Pro, Le Mans Sarthe Basket, JA Vichy Val d'Allier Auvergne basket, Chorale de Roanne Basket, Hyeres-Toulon Var Basket, Cholet Basket and STB Le Havre are the 8 teams which will go to the 'semaine des AS' from 7/02 in Toulon. SIG is the loser of the day after his defeat in the game of the week versus Le Mans Sarthe Basket 85 to 69. At Antarès, Le Mans Sarthe Basket leaded the game from the beginning to the end, with the trio Nicolas Batum (201-F-88) (18p), Sam Clancy (201-F-80, college: USC) (12p) and Luka Bogdanovic (206-F-85, agency: Beo Basket) (22p) who scored 52 of the 85 points. Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez, after a defeat last week vs Toulon, beated BCM 91-85 in the game of fear. Antonio Graves (190-G-85, college: Pittsburgh) posted 30p at 12/18 from the field. For BCM, Jason Straight (180-G-83, college: Wyoming) who is tested, scored 13p. Entente Orleans 45, at home, won vs the host of the ' Semaine des AS ', Hyeres-Toulon Var Basket with 4 players at 10p. Sean Colson (182-G-75, college: Charlotte) scored 30p and dishes out 9 asts for Toulon. Cholet Basket won vs the last of the championship, Clermont, in a tight game 75-67. Nando De Colo and Jerry Johnson posted a game-high 20p. A last, STB Le Havre easily won vs JDA Dijon Bourgogne 95-78 with T.J. Thompson (178-G-82, agency: SportsTalent, college: George Washington) who scored 25p, grabbed 4rbs, dishes out 11asts and steals 4 balls. He finished the game with a top ranking of 33.

Round 15 Round up -by Sean Davis

Adecco ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne 86 Paris-Levallois 76

The game was tied going into the fourth quarter but Adecco ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne proved why
they are in first place moving their record to 12-3 by out scoring
Paris-Levallois by 10pts in the final quarter. Uche Nsonwu-Amadi had an
outstanding game recoding a double double with 20pts and 13 rebounds.
Adecco ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne had only 7 players score but 5 of the 7 had double figures.
Je'Kel Foster (191-G-83, agency: 540 Sports, college: Ohio St.) led Paris-Levallois in scoring for the third straight game with
22pts by hitting 6 three pointers.

JA Vichy Val d'Allier Auvergne basket 62 Sluc Nancy Basket Pro 76

Sluc Nancy Basket Pro took an early lead over JA Vichy Val d'Allier Auvergne basket and never looked back on their way
to a 14 point victory. Sluc Nancy Basket Pro kept pace with Adecco ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne by getting their
12th win of the season. Ricardo Greer (195-F/G-78, college: Pittsburgh) carried Sluc Nancy Basket Pro by scoring 20pts
and grabbing 10 rebounds. Jimmal Ball (178-G-78, college: Akron) led JA Vichy Val d'Allier Auvergne basket with 16pts and
Dounla Issa added a double double with 10pts and 14 rebounds.

BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral 85 Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez 91

Antonio Graves (190-G-85, college: Pittsburgh) had a sensational game carrying Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez to their 1st
road win of the season! Graves exploded for a game high 30pts and
5ast while shooting 12-18 from field and a perfect 5 of 5 from the 3pt
line. Jeff Trepagnier (192-G-79, college: USC) chipped in with 17pts while Maximilliano had a
solid game with 9pts, 7rebounds and 7ast. BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral was led by Joe
burn's double double with 21pts and 12rebounds. Tony Stanley (193-G-77, college: Dayton) also had
a nice game in the losing effort with 20pts.

Entente Orleans 45 80 Hyeres-Toulon Var Basket 75

Entente Orleans 45 defended their home court with a solid contributions from a
number of players. Aloysius Anagonye (203-F-81, college: Michigan St.) came off the bench to record a
double double with 14pts and 11rebounds. Zeb Cope (205-F-82, college: William & Mary) also scored 14pts
and grabbed 7rebounds. Sean Colson (182-G-75, college: Charlotte) continued his outstanding play and
did everything he could to keep his team in the game. He scored 30pts
and dished out 9asts but it was not enough to steal a victory on the
road.

STB Le Havre 95 JDA Dijon Bourgogne 78

JDA Dijon Bourgogne proved why they stand at the bottom of the league getting out
scored by 19pts in the 4th quarter. STB Le Havre were led to victory by
T.J Thompson and John Cox (196-G-81, college: USF) who played the entire game and combined for
58pts. David Simon had an outstanding game in a losing effort scoring
31pts while shooting 14-18 from the field.

Cholet Basket 75 Stade Clermontois Basket Auvergne 67

In a back and forth battle Cholet Basket earned a 7pt home victory. Nando De
Colo dropped in 20pts while Steed Tchicamboud (193-G-81) added 18pts and 7reb for
Cholet Basket. Jerry Johnson (183-G-82, agency: Hart Sports Mngm, college: Rider) led the way for Stade Clermontois Basket Auvergne with 20pts and

Tony Skinn (186-G-83, college: George Mason) added 15pts in the loss.

Le Mans Sarthe Basket 85 Strasbourg IG 69

The game of the week was far from a game. Le Mans Sarthe Basket jumped out to an
11pt lead in the 1st quarter and never looked back on their way to a
17pt victory. Luka Bogdanovic (206-F-85, agency: Beo Basket) dropped 22pts while shooting 9 of 11
from the field. Nicolas Batum (201-F-88) solid game also scoring 18pts and
handed out 7ast. Strasbourg IG only had 3 players in double digits led
by Derrick Obasohan (199-F-81, agency: Beo Basket, college: Texas Arlington) 15 pts.



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GEORGIA

Final of 2008 Memorial Tournament -by Levan Mikeladze
Avia is the winner of 2008 Memorial Tournament. 31 points and 10 rebounds by forward Jovan Stefanov (208-F-83, college: Ill.-Chicago) (13/19 for 2pt and 1/3 for 3pt) in the final game were not enough for Energy Invest to beat Avia, which was led by experienced point-guard Konstantine Tugushi 24 points and 9 rebounds (14-18 from the free-throw line). Energy played without their first point-guard Giorgi Gamqrelidze (sprained ankle), and led by much as nine points five minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Konstantine Tugushi used this absence to his advantage with aggressive play. 2 000 Rustavi fans packed the gym and enjoyed this exciting game. Score was tied five (5) times and there were fourteen (14) lead changes. This was great game in memory of Zurab Sakandelidze and Mikheil Korkia.

Energy: Stefanov 31 pts+10 reb, Babiashvili 13
Avia: Tugushi 24+9 reb, Khoshtaria 16, Nikoladze 12

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GERMANY

Venderbosch brothers leave Iserlohn -by Daniel Poerschke
According to the local Newspaper Westfalische Rundschau the NOMA Iserlohn Kangaroos of the Pro B and the brothers Christoph Venderbosch (200-F-78) and Sidney Venderbosch (208-C-86) parted ways before the game versus Essen. Christoph averaged 4.3ppg and 2.8rpg in 12 games this season and Sidney averaged 1.4ppg and 1.1rpg in 10 games so far.

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GREECE

A2: Week 16 - Ionikos Lamias beat Peristeri 65-59! -by Chris Mammides
Iraklis - MENT 88-81
Quarters: 26-17, 44-33, 68-51, 88-81.
Iraklis beat MENT quite difficult even though the difference went up to 27 points in the third quarter. Having an amazing Vukadin Mandic (200-F/G-82) in the fourth quarter, Coach Koukoulekidis team reached the three points difference 1.29' before the end but two false balls from Spanoulis and 5 consecutive points from Misic finished the positively for Iraklis
Top scorers:
Iraklis: Costas Totsios (191-G-78) 17 points, Apostolopoulos 18 and Symeonidis 16
MENT: Vukadin Mandic 29 points and Despos 16 points.

Dafni - Panerythraikos 64-56
Quarters: 14-11, 38-25, 57-41, 64-56.
Coach Sorotos team took an early lead and kept it until the end. From Coach Houhoulis team, only Costas Maglos (208-F/C-75, college: Boston Coll.) tried to do something positive for his team as the rest of Panerythraikos players were in a very bad shape.
Top scorers:
Dafni: Christos Petrodimopoulos (209-F/C-80, agency: FCM) 18 points, Sioutis 14 points and Sourlis 10 points
Panerythraikos: Costas Maglos 14 points

Ionikos Lamias - Peristeri 65-59
Quarters: 18-22, 40-29, 51-43, 65-59.
An A1 Derby took place in Lamia earlier on today, with Coach Prelevic's team reaching the victory after a wonderful game, showing that Lamia team will be definitely among the teams to compete for a place in A1. Coach Manouseli's team lost some very important ground as they loose twice this season from Ionikos.
Top scorers:
Ionikos Lamias: Pashalis 19 points, Spanos 14 points and Kekelis 15
Peristeri: Trybanski 10 points, Moshovitis 10 points and Margaritis 11 points

Trikala 2000 - Xanthi 105-64
Quarters: 26-17, 51-30, 77-48, 105-64.
Coach Tzimas team proves to be in a great form as his player thrashed Coach Zafiroudis team with 41 points difference. It is worth mentioning the fact that the top scorer and rebounder of Xanthi, Giorgos Loupos didn't play as he is in the injury list. Top performer for the winners was Anastasios Harismidis.
Top scorers:
Trikala 2000: Harismidis 20 points, Kaklamanos 17 points and Vardianos 15 points
Xanthi: Moulakis 23 points and Skara 12 points

Pagrati - Halkida 80-75
Quarters: 19-23, 35-41, 57-54, 80-75.
Anotehr derby took place in Pagrati when Coach Lykogiannis team turn the game from a 10 points difference in the first half with a great offensive crescent from Liakopoulos who lead his team to a vital victory.
Top scorers:
Pagrati: Liakopoulos 23 points, Voulgaris and Tsolatos 10 points each
Halkida: Psathas 19 points, Tomaras 17 points, Kantartzis 15 points and Xiarchos 12 points.

Apollon Patras - P. Faliro 68-57
Quarters: 14-15, 30-30, 47-41, 68-57.
In the derby of the lower level teams of the division, Coach Papadopoulos team beat P. Faliro's team and reach it in the 12th position of the league. From Coach Tsolakis team only Koronidis tried to do something good for his team the rest of the team were 'absent'. It is worth mentioned that the Israeli Kados didn't play
Top scorers:
Apollon Patras: Athanasiadis 22 points, Lianos 12 points and Georgitsis 11 points
P. Faliro: Koronidis 23 points Rodostoglou 11 points

ICBS - Panorama 73-70 (59-59 Regular time)
Quarters: 14-9, 25-29, 42-43, 59-59 (OT), 73-70.
In the best game of the week ICBS beat in the overtime Coach Takianos's Panorama with three points having Vardas in his best day this season.
Top scorers:
ICBS: Vardas 23 points, Maslarinos 20 points and Anagnostopoulos 11 points
Panorama: Kakaroudis and Kuburovic 15 points each and Orfanos 8 points

Another player left Olimpiada Patras -by Serafim Karaiskakis
After Luis Flores,Kelvin Gibbs,Tomas Nagys,Maurice Whitfield,Rod Brown, the next one is Danya Abrams (201-F-74, college: Boston Coll.) who is leaving Olimpiada Patras. Dwayne Jefferson went in Turkey to play for Darussafaka but they told him that they will not allow this transfer and he joined back the team.
Danya Abrams complained the last period for payment delays, the management told him to wait few days but Abrams wanted to be paid on time according his contract. Olimpiadas President Bogonikolos said in the media that he will take legal actions against Danya Abrams and his agent Costas Papadakis because they were blackmailing him.

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ITALY

Luciano Capicchioni: We must work to develope basketball -by Jay

Dr. Luciano Capicchioni is widely regarded as the Number One Sports Agent in Europe. Lucky, as he is commonly known, speaks three languages. He is recognized as the father of the 'European Sports Revolution', an innovative period in the 1980s and 1990s when skilled European basketball players joined the NBA. When Toni Kukoc, Arvydas Sabonis, Sasha Danilovic, Zan Tabak and Zydrunas Ilgauskas wanted to play in the NBA, they hired Lucky to represent them. Lucky is a native of San Marino who was raised in the United States. He received his BA from Michigan State and his doctorate in International Relations from the University of Bologna in Italy and is certified as a player-agent by the National Basketball Players Association. Lucky maintains residences in Miami and in San Marino, where he heads Interperformances' World Headquarters.

Basketworld.info team speak Capicchioni.

BW: Mr. Capicchioni, You are leader in sport management in Europe. Let me tell us when do you start to work.
Capicchoni: I startyed working as an agent in 1970. I was in my early 20s.

BW: Wich is the main point in this business?
Capicchioni: The main point is to be ethical and professional. Money is important, but should not be a priority.

BW: Why you selected to work with basketball players?
Capicchioni: I came to Europe after living in the US (I graduated at Michigan State ). My family emigrated to the United States in the late 50s. I saw the potential that basketball when I came back to Europe and decided to invest my time and energy towards promoting this Sport. I was president/founder of the Basketball Federation of San Marino. Organized exhibition teams that toured Europe (Gillette All Stars,Chesterfield All Stars,Winston,Levi, San Marino,Larios etc. etc.)

BW: Do you played?
Capicchioni: I played Basketball at an amateur level in the US, Coached and Managed Basketball Clubs.

BW: As tendence in the world basketball a few years ago was to send Europeans into NBA. Do you think that this point has changed now?
Capicchioni: We were the first ones to bring European players to the NBA. I think that European players will continue to go to the NBA. I also see an NBA expanding worldwide. The time has come for this to become a reality. Maybe we should call it the IBA International Basketball Association.

BW: Is there in Europe most attractive basketball now. Is it become as result of your job.
Capicchioni: Everybody, involved with basketball, has had a role in the development of this Sport - owners, clubs, federations, leagues, players and why not…even agents!

BW: What about world tendences in basketball according to you?
Capicchioni: The tendency is the what we have already seen in soccer. National programs will continue to improve and the difference from country to country will become less and less.

BW: You are the first one who send players in NBA. What do you remember for this period in your career?
Capicchioni: Very interesting period as the European player was seen as some sort of ET (extra terrestial) but in a negative way… Now the NBA players is still looking at European players as ET's but many NBA teams think that they will resolve their problems by drafting Euro Players. Which is not correct either.

BW: What`s your advice to those people, wich want to start and make career into sport management?
Capicchioni: To be professional, respect other agencies/agent and become respected members of the worldwide basketball family.


Courtesy of Basketworld.info



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NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand Breakers are tamed in Melbourne -by Eurobasket News
Melbourne Tigers - New Zealand Breakers 112:98

The Melbourne Tigers proved why they are considered one of the tournament's 'big players' as they held off the visiting Breakers today. Melbourne took some time in the first frame to adjust before taking over in this one. The Breakers missed veteran Tony Ronaldson (203-F/C-72) and had 9 players on the squad that limited their flexibility. It counted under the rims in the first place as Chris Anstey (213-C-75) dominated the paint and received little resistance inside. The hosts grabbed a 34:26 lead after the opening stanza but it was just the beginning. Chris Anstey and Sean Lampley (201-F-79, college: California) were well fad under the rim and kept posting easy baskets as Melbourne went on a 19:2 run to clear off to a 64:38 distance at the interval. Kirk Penney (194-G-80, college: Wisconsin) stepped up for the visitors early in the third frame as his consecutive trebles cut the margin to 17 points. Andrej Lemanis found a possible savior in Tall Blacks guard as most of the Breakers offensive possessions finished in Kirk Penney's shots. It worked pretty smoothly though as Kirk Penney sank 17 points in the third quarter and allowed the Breakers to trim the deficit to 15 points. The Breaker's sniper added another long range attempt to open the fourth term and the gap was clipped to just 10 points. Chris Anstey and Sean Lampley entered the court immediately and it had an effect pretty soon. The Tigers restored a safe distance and eased past their opponents in the dying minutes. Chris Anstey finished with 22 points, 12 boards, 4 blocks and 4 assists for the home team. Sean Lampley added 22 points and 7 rebounds in a winning case. Kirk Penney led the action with 27 points. Derrick Alston (208-C/F-72, college: Duquesne) contributed 21 points and 9 boards in a loss. The Breakers committed 18 turnovers and shot 48% from the field. Melbourne responded with 55% accuracy and just 12 mistakes down the stretch.
The Tigers accumulated a 17-6 record and would travel to Adelaide on Wednesday. The Breakers slipped to 12-12 record and would host West Sydney Razorbacks on Thursday.

Melbourne: Chris Anstey 22+12 boards, Sean Lampley 22, David Barlow (205-F-83, college: Metro St.) 19
NZ Breakers: Kirk Penney 27, Derrick Alston 21+9 boards

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NIGERIA

D.D Magic stage comeback with Ilupeju Classics -by Olusegun Ikuesan
Former premier league outfit D. D. Magic basketball club of Jos is staging a come back into the game with the 6th Ilupeju Classics billed for the Ilupeju leisure and sports centre from January 29 through February 2 this year.

Magic owned by Ibrahim Dallas an Officer of the Nigerian Air Force who is currently on foreign diplomatic mission to the People Republic of China told www.fiba-afrique.org on telephone that his desire to have the team takes part in the Ilupeju Classics was a way to re-launch the once vibrant team.

Magic who was relegated to the less fancied national division-one some years back has been in the doldrums due to the inability of the Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF to organized the division-one championship for close to five years running.

The Jos-based side whose owner is planning to relocate it to his home state, Nasarawa will compete against host Warriors Academy, Raptors, Sea Rovers, Whales, UNILAG all of Lagos; Royal Hoopers and Free Net from Port Harcourt and Bayelsa Waves of Yenogoa in the five-day Ilupeju Classics.

Dallas who once serves as head coach of defunct Armed Forces Dragons basketball club says he is optimistic that the team would bounce back strongly and contend for honours in the Nigeria flagship competition - Premier League in no distance future.

'D.D Magic will be back to take it rightful place in the comity of basketball clubs to reckon with in Nigeria and I want to assure the club teeming supporters that plans are underway to inject live back into the once robust but modest club-side, Dallas concluded.

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PBL

The Sea Dawgs win again -by Gianni Pascucci
The Wilmington Sea Dawgs opened the third PBL weekend prevailing over the Reading Railers 107-104, keeping alive their winning streak in the league. It wasn' t an easy job, however, because Wilmington had to came back from an 18 point deficit with around six minutes left on the clock. Alexander Harper (6'4''-G-82, college: Va Commonwealth) led all the scorers with 29 points, followed by Cedric McGinnis (6'9''-C-77, college: Georgia Southern) with 22 points and by Charles Ward (6'7''-F-79, college: St.Augustine) with 15 points. The day after, Wilmington prevailed over Maryland 105-89, and their record is now 5-0, the best in the PBL. The Sea Dawgs are at this point the only team undefeated in the league. The other weekend results in PBL were as follows:
Dallas - Arkansas 113-105
Jacksonville - Maryland 101-99
Rockford - Chicago 119-116 OT
Arkansas - Quad Cities 112-109

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PORTUGAL

Barreirense inks Alexander -by Sergio Silva
UZO Liga's team FC Barreirense has signed a new guard to replace Ricardo Gomes while he's injured. The player who has been choosed is Chris Alexander (186-G, agency: Profibasketball.de, college: Southern), a point guard who was with no club. Alexander played two succesfull seasons with Southern University (NCAA) and was teste at the beginning of this season by MAFC Budapest of Hungary's A Division.

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PUERTO RICO

BSN Players meet to hash out concerns -by Luis Ramirez
Not happy with what they consider a threat to their affiliated players the BSN Players Association met today with a great number of players attending the meeting. In question is the new community player which will be put to the test this year in the BSN. This Community Player can be selected from any country in the Americas except from the United States. According to the Players' association this would take up a place of a puertorican player and thus prevent local talent from participating in the upcoming tournament. In addition, the players association is not happy with the fact that players are only guaranteed half of their salaries if they are injured during the course of the tournament. The Association will meet this coming week with the BSN League President to make known their demands and they have not ruled out a players strike if there demands are not met.

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SERBIA

A league: Aleksandar Mladenovic leads Swisslions Takovo to 9th win -by Dragan Jankovski
In the first game of round 13 Swisslions Takovo grabbed the 9th win in A league beating Zdravlje Actavis at home 99-75. The hosts dominated during the entire game and totally deserved their plus 24 at the end. Siwsslions also totally out rebounded their rivals as they had 32 rebounds matched with only 19 by Zdravlje. Aleksandar Mladenovic (207-F-84), who came from Hemofarm on loan at the beginning of January, paced the hosts adding 19 points and 8 rebounds while Vladimir Vlaskovic (195-G-77) followed him with 15 points and 8 rebounds. Zdravlje got 16 points from Dusan Trajkovic (189-G-87).

With this win Swisslions improved to score 9-4 while problems for Zdravlje continues this season and they dropped on 4-9.


Swisslions Takovo - Zdravlje Actavis 99-75
(22-11,22-18,26-19,29-27)

Swisslions Takovo: Mladenovic 19 (8 rebs), Vlaskovic 15 (8 rebs), Jovanovic 13, Vukadinov 13, Mijatovic 13
Zdravlje Actavis: Trajkovic 16, Lucic 13, Bogavac 11 (6 rebs), Marojevic 11, Jereminov 11

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TURKEY

Transactions -by Serdar Ortakuyu
Darussafaka hired the experienced coach Halil Uner who took the Greens to the Turkish Cup final in the past, as a part of their second half plan to avoid relegation. The Greens also loaned Besiktas Cola Turka center Eren Beyaz (208-C-85) for the remainder of season.
On the other hand former Oklahoma St. big guy Mario Boggan (200-F/C-83, college: Oklahoma St.) who's rumored to have a multiple personality did not take the flight to Istanbul three times in a row although Darussafaka has a signed contract and his letter of clearence.
TED Istanbul of TB2L added former ITU forward Gokhan Gokceogullari (204-F-79) to its roster while ITU guard Berkan Dizici (188-G-79) moved to TB2L newcomers Bursa Basketbol.

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U.S.VIRGIN ISL.

Hofstra Defeats Drexel at the DAC, 67-58 -by David Edole
Frank Elegar (206-C-86) had his seventh double-double of the year, but Hofstra defeated Drexel at the Daskalakis Athletic Center, 67-58.

The Pride (4-12, 2-5 CAA) scored six straight points to break a 49-49 tie. Charles Jenkins scored all six of those points, four from the line and two on a driving lay-up to give the Pride a 55-49 lead. The Dragons (9-10, 2-5 CAA) could not get any closer than four points the rest of the game. Hofstra seasled the win by making six of its eight free throws in the final two minutes. It was the third straight time Hofstra has beaten Drexel (9-10, 2-5) in the DAC.

Elegar had 23 points, 13 rebounds and blocked three shots. He was 8-for-19 from the floor and committed six turnovers. Tramayne Hawthorne added 13 points, including four three-pointers, six assists and two steals. Scott Rodgers (Philadelphia, Pa./Central) was also in double figures with 10 points.

Hofstra shot 51 percent in the game and limited the Dragons to just 38 percent shooting. Drexel made just four three-pointers in 15 attempts. Jenkins led the way for Hofstra with 21 points. Dane Johnson added 17 points and a team-high eight assists. Drexel's defense, mainly Rodgers and Hawthorne held Antoine Agudio to just six points. Agudio entered the game ranked fifth in the nation in scoring with 24.6 points per game. The senior did manage to hand out six assists and grab six boards.

Bell's play, health improving -by David Edole
When asked if this is the healthiest he's felt during this injury-plagued season, Raja Bell (196-F/G-76, agency: Interperformances, college: Florida Intern.) briefly considered lying.
'I'm reluctant to tell you guys anything because I don't want to jinx it,' he said.

But Bell didn't need to say anything. His play on the court of late has done all the talking.

His scoring average is on the rise, his movement on the court is returning to normal and Friday's statistical line in an easy 115-95 win over Minnesota spoke volumes — Bell had 20 points in 35 minutes and made up for an 0-for-4 night from 3-point range by hitting all nine of his two-pointers, which ranged from step-in jumpers to fast-break layups.

'These are good nights,' said Bell, who is back to playing 40-plus minutes a game without pain in his back or ankles. 'Some nights when you have to sit outside and shoot volumes of 3s and you're really not feeling it — those are the games that get you down a little bit. But when you can substitute the 3s with a lot of good looks from 3-point range, it helps.'

Bell has pushed his scoring average to 11.7 a game over the last six games, averaging 16.5 points on .447 shooting from the field. After reaching the 20-point mark just twice in the first 28 games, he's now done it twice in the last six games.

Coach Mike D'Antoni said the Bell he saw running the floor effortlessly in the second half shows that one of his key cogs is getting back to normal.

'This is the best he's been, and he's going to be better as we go,' D'Antoni said. 'He's a huge key to who we are and it's great to see him coming out the other side of what's been a really tough stretch.'

Aska, another double double -by David Edole
Until Boyd Anderson-Blanche Ely II, all bragging rights belong to the Cobras.

Boyd Anderson, ranked No. 2 in 6A, got 16 points and 11 rebounds from senior 6-7 forward Ivan Aska and capitalized on the Tigers' poor shooting to defeat Ely 71-52 in front of a sold-out home crowd Friday night.

Left-handed Frank Gaines set the tone early with seven first-quarter points, including a tomahawk dunk off a steal from Bryan Bynes to help the Cobras open a 21-15 lead after the first quarter.

Gaines, who has emerged as one of the top shooters in Florida after tweaking his mechanics this past summer, said the victory served as revenge after losing three games to the defending 6A state champions last season.

''How they beat us three times last year played a large role in how we played tonight,'' Gaines said. ``That is what we focused on in the locker-room. This is the first of two, maybe three games we will have with them this year. We had to send a message.''

Point well taken.

The Cobras (19-1), who extended their winning streak to 15 games, took control in the second quarter. Gaines started the push with a three-pointer from the left corner and Aska hit a running hook shot on the next possession to help the Cobras build a 34-20 halftime lead.

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UAE

Day 2 of Dubai Int'l Tournament (18-26 January) -by Mohammed Malas
Mahram (IRI) 105 - UAE NT 75
MVP: Mehdi Kamrani (182-G-82, agency: Huss Sport Agency) (Mahram)

Gezira (EGY) 80 - Al Ittihad Aleppo (SYR) 75
MVP: Sharif Guneidi (Gezira)

Al Riyadi Beirut (LEB) 82 - Saba Battery (IRI) 77
MVP: Ali Mahmoud (182-G-83) (Al Riyadi)

Al Jalaa (SYR) 98 - Al Ahli (UAE) 80
MVP: Michel Madanli (Al Jalaa)

# Day 3 games schedule (UAE time +4 GMT):
- Sunday 20/1:
17:00 Mahram (IRI) - Gezira (EGY)
19:00 Zain (JOR) - Al Riyadi (LEB)
21:00 Sagesse (LEB) - Al Ittihad Aleppo (SYR)

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UKRAINE

Kyiv come up with wins against Sumy -by Alexei Naumov
BC Kyiv continued their Superleague march, having defeated Sumykhimprom 87:66 to claim their 15th win of the season.

The home side confidently won the first quarter 29:14. Josh Davis and Manu Markoishvili were scoring at will during the time frame.

Symy managed to slightly reduce the lead in the second, but Kyiv regained the comfortable 16-point lead at the end of quarter #3.

The Superleague vice-champions had no difficulty holding on to the lead and extending their winning record.

Markoishvili scored team-high 20 points, Artur Drozdov added 19, Josh Davis contributed with 14 points and 7 rebounds.

Sumy's Oleg Kozhenets had 23 points.

'I was glad to see my team perform the way the did during the first quarter', said Kyiv's head coach Tomo Mahoric after the game, 'but I was also dissatisfied with the players' effort in the second. We lost concentration and allowed Sumy to play the way they wanted. Still, we improved our game after the break, paid more attention to their center Kozhenents and started to control the boards'

Meanwhile, Kyiv's farm team cruised past Sumy's youngsters 115:61.

Led by Ruslan Otverchenko (24 points) and Vladislav Podolyan (23 points), Kyiv was ahead by as many as 60 points during the final quarter.

Scores and stat sheets from the rest of the game are available on the Official Website of the Ukrainian Basketball Federation

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URUGUAY

Welcome ask to quit the 2007/08 tournament -by Hector Lopez
Welcoime asked authorization to quit the LUB tournament for this year due to financial problems, announced the Ricardo Vairo, its president. Welcome has still seven games to play, without possibilities to advance to the playoff serie. Last nigth, the leader Bigua beat Welcome 99-75. It was the seventh straigth defeat for Welcome. Kevin Young (206-C-84, college: Missouri) scored 14 for Bigua and Mark Alan Bortz (208-F-82, college: Buffalo) added 6. Welcome played without import players. Wendell Gibson (201-F/C-83, college: Hofstra) scored 15 points for Atenas to beat Malvin 81-76, maintaining alive the possibility to advance to playoff. Hakeem Rollins (202-C/F-83, agency: CAA Sports, college: Washington) netted 9 and grabbed 11 rebounds. For Malvin Emilio Taboada (193-F-82) scored 22, Kim Adams (203-F/C-82, college: Arkansas St.) 13 and Alexander Blackwell (205-F/C-70, agency: Duran International, college: Monmouth) 2. and asked the LUB to be authorized to quit the tournament due to financial problems.



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Women News

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ARGENTINA - Women

Vega advanced to 1/8 of EuroCup with her team -by Eurobasket News
Gisella Vega (188-C-82) advanced to 1/8 of EuroCup with her Tarbes. Tarbes GB overcame BC Zeljeznicar 82:70 in France and after two games with the opponent had to let the latter to advance. Tarbes GB won the total 162:128 round and qualified to 1/8 finals. Liz Moeggenberg led the winners with 19 points. Gisella Vega collected 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Clemence Beikes added 14. Milena Vukicevic and Davis top-scored for Bosnian team with 22 points.
Tarbes GB moved themselves into the next round even after the first game in Bosnia. A close opening quarter brought 18:18 result in the end of it. The second period had the same scenario and only in the end of the half Gambiraza sent Bosnian squad with 40:39 advantage to the lockers.
A 18-12 burst opened the second half for Tarbes that took the score out to 57:52.The home side continued to press home their advantage as they restricted the guests to 12 points in the third period.
BC Zeljeznicar attempted to claw their way back into the game, but they could not close the deficit sufficiently as the home side ran out eventual winners. Gisella Vega scored last 6 points of the team to set up the final, 82:70 score. Tarbes will meet Turkish Galatasaray in 1/8 finals of the tournament.
Alejandra Chesta (187-F-82) scored already 111 points in 13 games for Italmoka Pozzuoli . Her squad is 4-10 in Serie A.

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AUSTRALIA - Women

Noni Wharemate propels the Sirens past Townsville -by Eurobasket News
Christchurch - Townsville 63:55

The Christchurch Sirens continued their impressive winning rally at the Cowles Stadium. Yesterday they registered the 7th win at the home court with overall 8 games played here. It was once again a well-built and balanced offense from the Leigh Gooding's outfit that played a key role in success. Christchurch coach bravely rotated the squad and keeping the pace up forced the Fire to surrender at the end. The visitors dominated the paint throughout the whole encounter but could not break through the tense defensive redoubts of the hosts. The Sirens built a 26:23 lead at the interval. The hosts' opened up a double digits lead in the third stanza and entered the fourth period with a 13-point cushion. The visitors finally shook it up offensively and found some open spaces late in the game to trim the deficit. But it was not enough though as Christchurch secured the winning outcome and finalized the win at the end. Noni Wharemate (171-G-82, college: UTEP) provided team-high 18 points for the Sirens. Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe (173-G-79, college: Buffalo) added 13 points, while Donna Wilkins contributed 10 points for the winners. Jennifer Crouse (192-C-77) led all scorers with 21 points and 17 boards for the Fire. Rohanee Cox (182-F-80) tallied 18 points and 12 boards in a losing case. The Sirens converted 38% from the field, while limiting their opponents to only 28%. Christchurch climbed to 7-12 record in the ladder and would take on Sydney Uni Flames at home next week. Townsville dropped at 8-11 and takes on Dandenong next.

Christchurch: Noni Wharemate 18, Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe 13, Donna Wilkins 10
Townsville: Jennifer Crouse 21+17 boards, Rohanee Cox 18+12 boards

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BOLIVIA - Women

Rivero and Porras are victorious with their teams -by Eurobasket News
Anna-Laura Rivero (169-G-85) enjoys the time in Sweden with her Brahe Basket. In the last round her team was the only one to win away from home. In a back-to-back game the visitors used a 7:16 in the last quarter to take 58:65 victory. Tatsiana Lavets top-scored with 21 points. Krita Rappahahm posted 15, while Anna-Laura Rivero scored 11. Vera Janjic ended up with 21 points for the hosts.

In the previous round Telge stayed closed to Solna Vikings in the Damligan ladder as they dispatched Brahe. Telge were dominant right from the start and mounted the pressure on the visitors. Telge nailed 25 points in the opening frame and accumulated an 11-point advantage after 10 minutes of action. The gap kept on growing as Swedish internationals Louice Halvarsson and Frida Eldebrink were consistent from the field. The complexion of the game changed after the break as the hosts concentrated on defense. It worked smoothly as Telge kept their counterparts scoreless in the third frame. The home side nailed 13 unanswered points and built a 27-point cushion heading into the fourth period. Brahe never recovered and suffered a stunning loss at the end. Louice Halvarsson drained 21 points and grabbed 6 boards to lead the action. Frida Eldebrink scored 17 points, while Cleopatra Forsman tallied 15 points and 14 rebounds for the winners. Anna-Laura Rivero and Jenny Rylander paced the visitors with 9 points apiece. Brahe fell to 3-9 record and would face EB in the next round. Telge improved to 11-1 record and head to Sundsvall on January 5.

Claudia Porras (188-F) netted 2 points in the last game for UTEP in NCAA. Trailing by 15 points UTEP women's basketball team came alive with a 31-13 run down the stretch to down UAB, 67:64.The Blazers had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer, but UAB's Diamond Rogers missed a contested three pointer. UTEP will be back in action against Memphis.

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BRAZIL - Women

Alessandra Santos played the leading role for Perfumerias -by Eurobasket News
USK Praha got their eighth-final stage views dimmed even more with a loss to Perfumerias in Spain. They slid to 2-7 record and the bottom of Group B, two wins shy of Perfumerias occupying the 4th spot. USK Praha entered the game ready to fight as this game was their Rubicon to cross. Lindsay Whalen scored 6 points in the opening frame, while Ferancikova and Elhotova capped it with long jumpers for USK Praha to hold an 18:16 lead after 10 minutes. LeDrean and Lindsay Whalen masterminded an 8:2 run midway through the second term as USK Praha grabbed a 36:27 advantage. But Ana Montanana provided 5 points for the home team late in the frame and Perfumerias trailed by just 3 points at the interval. Soon after the start of the second half Moreno connected from outside and gave Perfumerias a 42:40 advantage. Brazilian Alessandra Santos (200-C-73) scored 8 points in the third stanza for the hosts as they maintained the lead and headed into the final period with a 60:55 cushion. Spanish team were up by 8 points with under 3 minutes remaining. However Katerina Elhotova and Marketa Mokrosova pumped it up for USK Praha as they drilled straight trebles and clipped the deficit to 2 points. Alessandra Santos and Tracy Reid answered with back-to-back jumpers and Perfumerias restored an 8-point distance with a minute remaining. USK Praha were unable to answer and lost the key matchup.
Alessandra Santos nailed 17 points and 7 rebounds for Perfumerias. Ana Montanana and Isabel Sanchez scored 13 points apiece for the winners. Ferancikova produced 16 points and 11 rebounds in a losing clause. LeDrean had 12 points and 13 boards for USK Praha. Perfumerias host UMMC next week. USK Praha will play against Jolly Sibenik at home on January 23.
Graziane Coelho (192-C-83) nailed 12 points for Hungarian MiZo Pecs 2010 that climbed back into second place in Group D after beating Germano Zama Faenza 82:71. Pecs made just three of 13 (23%) from long range but were 21 of 37 (56.7%) from inside the arc.
In Group A of Euroleague TTT Riga and Brazilian Micaela Jacintho (180-F-79) were painfully beaten in Sopron. The loss dropped Latvian team to 3-6 record still in the 4th place in Group A of Euroleague. Olexandra Gorbunova his a jumper, while Albena Branzova added a three-pointer for the hosts to open the scoring line for the game. However soon Micaela Jacintho and Iciss Tillis found the touch from the field and trimmed the difference. The game turned into a close battle late in the first frame with teams finalizing it at 22. Iciss Tillis scored 4 consecutive points for TTT Riga to give them a 29:26 lead almost 6 minutes into the second term. But the hosts replied with a 10:2 run to ensure a 36:31 distance at halftime. Edit Ratkaine, Bernadett Nemeth, Andrea Karolyi and Olexandra Gorbunova all connected from downtown in mad 3 opening minutes of the third period to extend the margin up to 18 points. Stunned visitors could not convert for some time but found help from Olena Zherzherunova. She knocked down 6 points in a row to cut the deficit to 13 points. Albena Branzova and Honti however capped the third period with 4 points and entered the fourth quarter up by 16 points. Barbara Semsei and Jelena Milovanovic teamed up for another 5:0 run from the home side and TTT Riga lost heart as the gap grew to insurmountable 21 points. MKB Euroleasing completed the win at the late stages and climbed to 5-4 record in the ladder. Olexandra Gorbunova provided 22 points and 10 boards for Hungarian team. Albena Branzova added 13 points for the winners. Iciss Tillis had 14 points for TTT Riga. Olena Zherzherunova dropped 11 points in defeat. Micaela Jacintho produced 10 points and made 3 rebounds.

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BWBL - Women

Arvi chases Tim Scuf with 9-0 record -by Eurobasket News

Lithuania turned out to be rather unwelcoming place for Barsy Atyrau as they were painfully beaten in Marijampolė and Vilnius. The team from Kazakhstan however gets experienced from game to game and probably this is the goal for this year. Two losses dropped Barsy Atyrau to 0-7 record and left them the only winless team.

In the first game Arvi smashed Barsy Atyrau 120:42 to take 9-0 record. Lithuanian team is one win behind the leader Tim-Scuf that is on top with 10-0. Ela Briedyte (176-G-79) led the winners with 21 points. Andrea Bills (188-C-83, agency: LBM Management, college: Oregon) netted 19, while Raugaite scored 16. Anastasiya Sevastyanova (168-G-87) top-scored for the team from Kazakhstan with 9 points.
In the game tonight LTU team won a good game against Barsy Atyrau 73:69. that was the game for the first win in BWBL and Lithuanian team grabbed it at home. Sigita Galdikaite (183-F-90) paced the winners with 30 points. Autukaitė nailed 19, while Zintikaitė scored 14. Skorobagatova ended up with 22 points in defeat.

Barsy Atyrau will have two more games with Lithuanian representatives in the next two days. Tomorrow the team will fave Laisve and on Monday Lemminkainen.

Arvi - Barsy Atyrau (Marijampolė) 120 : 42 ( 34 : 7, 26 : 10, 30 : 5, 30 : 20 )
Arvi: Ela Briedyte 21, Andrea Bills 19, Raugaite 16
Barsy Atyrau: Anastasiya Sevastyanova 9, Krosovskaja 7

LTU j. team -Barsy Atyrau (Vilnius) 73 : 69 ( 16 : 15, 14 : 21, 16 : 12, 27 : 21 )
LTU j. team: Sigita Galdikaite 30, Autukaitė 19, Zintikaitė 14
Barsy Atyrau: Skorobagatova 22, Dvorskaya 15, Serdukova Svetlana 12



Standings
BWBL Standings
1. Tim-Scuf 10-0
2. Arvi 9-0
3. Berezina 8-2
4. Cesis 6-3
5. RGUOR 6-4
6. Laisve 5-2
7. Audentes 4-4
8. TLU/AJ 3-5
9. Olimpia 3-6
10. Lemmink. 2-5
11. Ol.-NAEK 2-5
12. Avantis T. 2-6
13. Lintel 118 1-8
14. TTT/Rapa 1-8
15. Barsy Atyr. 0-7


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FINLAND - Women

SM-SARJA: BC Nokia scored 103 pts -by Rauno Hurmalainen

SM-sarja, Round 20-21: BC Nokia scored 103 pts, when defeating PuHu (Vantaa) by 29 pts today. Tiia Huuhka (175-F-86) (BC Nokia) scored her season high 26 pts.
Heli Roukanoja netted 38 pts for PuHu, but visitors had only two players in double figures. PuHu missed all eight three-pointers in the game. BC Nokia made
their treys 60,0% (12/20). Catz (Lappeenranta) beat YMCA Helsinki 70-57 and HoNsU (Jyvaskyla) won on the road in Forssa 54-76 over FoA.

FoA - HoNsU 54-76 (33-36) (Jamie Hawkins 15, Caitlin Chiaramonte 10 - Charlee Underwood 17/12, Breanne Watson 16).

Catz - YMCA Helsinki 70-57 (46-27) (Elena Reshetko 21, Tamara Tatham 16 - Niina Laaksonen 16/17, Laura Toivonen 12).

BC Nokia - PuHu 103-74 (50-34) (Tiia Huuhka 26, Joanna Rhoads 18 - Heli Roukanoja 38, Aneta Kausaite 12).



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HUNGARY - Women

Victory for Sopron -by Tamas Palko
SAVARIA BC-Szombathely - MKB Euroleasing Sopron 48-91 (18-33, 4-19, 15-13, 11-26)

SAVARIA BC-Szombathely: Billy Jonee (186-F/C-84, college: Mount Holyoke) 15 (12 rebs), Diana Takacs (171-G-85) 9/3.
MKB Euroleasing Sopron: Iva Sliskovic (196-F-84, college: S.Carolina) 26, Katalin Honti (178-G-87) 19, Jelena Milovanovic (191-F/C-89) 14/12, Zsofia Horvath (191-C-82) 11/3.

2 pointers: 11/38 29%; 30/59 51%.
3 pointers: 6/19 32%; 7/12 58%.
Free throws: 8/18 44%; 10/12 83%.
Lepattano: 33; 37.

56 point victory for BSE -by Tamas Palko
Today's match between Cegledi EKK and BSE Budapest was exciting. In the first period Cegledi EKK leads with 2 points, but after it BSE Budapest hits 71 points in the next two periods while gets 23 points. So it was an easy victory.

Cegledi EKK - BSE Budapest 60-116 (20-18, 15-31, 8-40, 17-27)

Cegledi EKK: Tiffani Williams (200-C-84, college: N.Carolina A&T) 24, Coronado 11/3, Zsofia Ruttner 11.
BSE Budapest: Anna Vida (184-F-85) 28/12, Zuleira Aties (190-F-80) 23/3, Licet Castillo (175-G-73) 16/12, Orsolya Zsovar (182-G/F-84) 14/3, Diana Furesz (174-G-84) 10/3.

2 pointers 19/41 46%; 34/54 63%.
3 pointers 1/12 8%; 11/23 48%.
Free throws 19/27 70%; 15/20 75%.
Rebs: 20; 28.

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IVORY COAST - Women

Christelle's team advanced to the next round of EuroCup -by Eurobasket News
Christelle N'Garsanet (191-C-83, agency: Merit Sports, college: Missouri)''s team advanced to the next round of EuroCup. Ivoirian player scored 4 points, made 2 rebounds and two assists as Gorzow notched their another impressive victory of Eurocup to win the Polish battle. With 76:50 Gorzow overcame CCC Polkowice last night. Carrie Moore top-scored for the winners with 19 points. Katarina Ristic produced 13, while Malgorzata Babicka added 8. Ndeye Ndiaye led the way for CCC Polkowice with 15 points and 7 rebounds. Gorzow won the campaign with 147:114 total win.

The hosts opened the game with 8-0 run and after 71:64 road win were more then comfortable in the game. Ndeye Ndiaye was the one who scored first 4 points for the visitors to reduce at 13:4. The first quarter ended up when the hosts had 25:12 advantage. Christelle N'Garsanet scored her first two points in the beginning of the second quarter after assist from Zurowska.With 19:18 Gorzow increased to 44:30 at the half time. Katarina Ristic from a free throw line sent both teams to the lockers.
When Carrie Moore made 57:37 in the third quarter the game was done for both squads. Even though Ndeye Ndiaye started the fourth quarter with a jump shot at 60:45, there was nothing they could catch. A 8-0 run in the last quarter buried all hopes for CCC Polkowice.

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KAZAKHSTAN - Women

Barsy Atyrau were too close to win -by Eurobasket News
Lithuania turned out to be rather unwelcoming place for Barsy Atyrau as they were painfully beaten in Marijampolė and Vilnius. The team from Kazakhstan however gets experienced from game to game and probably this is the goal for this year. Two losses dropped Barsy Atyrau to 0-7 record and left them the only winless team.

In the first game Arvi smashed Barsy Atyrau 120:42 to take 9-0 record. Lithuanian team is one win behind the leader Tim-Scuf that is on top with 10-0. Ela Briedyte (176-G-79) led the winners with 21 points. Andrea Bills (188-C-83, agency: LBM Management, college: Oregon) netted 19, while Raugaite scored 16. Anastasiya Sevastyanova (168-G-87) top-scored for the team from Kazakhstan with 9 points.
In the game tonight LTU team won a good game against Barsy Atyrau 73:69. that was the game for the first win in BWBL and Lithuanian team grabbed it at home. Sigita Galdikaite (183-F-90) paced the winners with 30 points. Autukaitė nailed 19, while Zintikaitė scored 14. Skorobagatova ended up with 22 points in defeat.

Barsy Atyrau will have two more games with Lithuanian representatives in the next two days. Tomorrow the team will fave Laisve and on Monday Lemminkainen.

Arvi - Barsy Atyrau (Marijampolė) 120 : 42 ( 34 : 7, 26 : 10, 30 : 5, 30 : 20 )
Arvi: Ela Briedyte 21, Andrea Bills 19, Raugaite 16
Barsy Atyrau: Anastasiya Sevastyanova 9, Krosovskaja 7

LTU j. team -Barsy Atyrau (Vilnius) 73 : 69 ( 16 : 15, 14 : 21, 16 : 12, 27 : 21 )
LTU j. team: Sigita Galdikaite 30, Autukaitė 19, Zintikaitė 14
Barsy Atyrau: Skorobagatova 22, Dvorskaya 15, Svetlana Serdukova (175-F) 12

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LITHUANIA - Women

Arvi chases Tim Scuf with 9-0 record -by Eurobasket News

Lithuania turned out to be rather unwelcoming place for Barsy Atyrau as they were painfully beaten in Marijampolė and Vilnius. The team from Kazakhstan however gets experienced from game to game and probably this is the goal for this year. Two losses dropped Barsy Atyrau to 0-7 record and left them the only winless team.

In the first game Arvi smashed Barsy Atyrau 120:42 to take 9-0 record. Lithuanian team is one win behind the leader Tim-Scuf that is on top with 10-0. Ela Briedyte (176-G-79) led the winners with 21 points. Andrea Bills (188-C-83, agency: LBM Management, college: Oregon) netted 19, while Raugaite scored 16. Anastasiya Sevastyanova (168-G-87) top-scored for the team from Kazakhstan with 9 points.
In the game tonight LTU team won a good game against Barsy Atyrau 73:69. that was the game for the first win in BWBL and Lithuanian team grabbed it at home. Sigita Galdikaite (183-F-90) paced the winners with 30 points. Autukaitė nailed 19, while Zintikaitė scored 14. Skorobagatova ended up with 22 points in defeat.

Barsy Atyrau will have two more games with Lithuanian representatives in the next two days. Tomorrow the team will fave Laisve and on Monday Lemminkainen.

Arvi - Barsy Atyrau (Marijampolė) 120 : 42 ( 34 : 7, 26 : 10, 30 : 5, 30 : 20 )
Arvi: Ela Briedyte 21, Andrea Bills 19, Raugaite 16
Barsy Atyrau: Anastasiya Sevastyanova 9, Krosovskaja 7

LTU j. team -Barsy Atyrau (Vilnius) 73 : 69 ( 16 : 15, 14 : 21, 16 : 12, 27 : 21 )
LTU j. team: Sigita Galdikaite 30, Autukaitė 19, Zintikaitė 14
Barsy Atyrau: Skorobagatova 22, Dvorskaya 15, Serdukova Svetlana 12



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MALI - Women

Maiga netted 14 points to the defending champion of Euroleague -by Eurobasket News
Hamchetou Maiga (185-G/F-78, college: ODU) netted 14 points to the defending champion of Euroleague however as it became clear that was not enough for her Gambrinus. Lauren Jackson shook off her questionable form on the weekend against CSKA and came out firing to carry Spartak MR past Gambrinus in Czech Republic. Jackson scored game-high 33 points and pulled down 9 rebounds as Spartak improved to 8-1 record in Group C. Gambrinus lost their second game at the tournament and both defeats were the doing of Spartak. The teams traded baskets throughout the first term with neither side leading by more than 5 points. Hamchetou Maiga did not started in the first five, but immediately aftre the joined the team she scored a basket. Hamchetou Maiga made a jump-shot to give her team 19:18 lead. Tamika Whitmore scored first 5 points in the second period to give the hosts a 34:29 lead. But Lauren Jackson responded with 6 points and Ivana Matovic added two more as Spartak gained a 35:34 advantage. Gambrinus managed to retain the lead soon and Ivana Vecerova capped the first half with a three-pointer to put the home side up 50:45 at the break. Lauren Jackson and Diana Taurasi combined for 19 points in the third period and allowed Russian team to claim a 68:67 lead after 30 minutes of action. Gambrinus scored 6 unanswered points to open the fourth quarter but Spartak reacted with tightening their defense and keeping the hosts scoreless for almost 5 minutes. Spartak piled up a 78:72 cushion at the time and worked hard to protect it at the dying stages. Hana Machova hit two free throws to pull Gambrinus within 5 points but Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi executed the sentence with accurate free throws. Diana Taurasi scored 21 points for Spartak. Sue Bird dropped 13 points, while Tatiana Shchegoleva added 10 points for the winners. Tamika Whitmore and Zuzana Zirkova notched 15 points apiece in a losing case. Spartak knocked down 50% from the field, while limiting the home side to 41%. They also outrebounded Gambrinus 34:31.
Spartak MR will play against Valenciennes on January 23. Gambrinus will visit Belgium to take on Dexia the same day.

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NCAA2 - Women

Delta State marches across the season undefeated -by Eurobasket News
Delta State ranked #2 in the season extended their winning streak to 14 games on Thursday. They overcame Harding 70:58 to improve also to 2-0 record in the Gulf South Conference play. Harding got to a better start and were up by 6 points midway through the first half. But the Statesmen ignited a 15:7 run to cap the half and grabbed a 31:29 lead. Delta State imposed a high tempo and soon saw the gap grow to 9 points. Bug Cooper and Lamaesha McAdory then added baskets for the Statesmen as they claimed a 55:40 lead with under 10 minutes left in regulation. The Bison however refused to surrender. Stacey Owens connected from beyond the arc and Harding trimmed the deficit to 6 points. But Delta State tightened defense in the final minutes and ensured the winning outcome. Jennifer Rushing (5'8''-G) and Lakira Boyd (6'2''-F-86) scored 15 points each to pace the Statesmen. Jessica Boyd dropped 12 points for the winners. Stacey Owens answered with 15 points for the Bison. Delta State finished the game shooting 38.8 percent from the floor on 26/67 attempts. Harding was 19-of-45 from the field for 42.2 percent. Harding connected on 6-of-17 three pointers, while Delta State was 5/20 from three.
Meanwhile Le Moyne collected a 68:64 overtime win over ranked #15 Franklin Pierce. Franklin Pierce were up by 6 at halftime and seemed to control the game. However Le Moyne stepped up with near-perfect defense in the second half. They limited their opponents to just 26% from the field and denied the deficit. Tori Ahrens' jumper allowed the Dolphins to send the game into overtime. Courtney Coryea delivered 5 quick points for Le Moyne as they accumulated an 8:4 rally in the extra period and celebrated a tough win. The Dolphins were led by Courtney Coryea with 16 points, 10 boards, 4 blocks and 4 steals. Kathlen Gladstone and Vanessa Holden added 11 and 10 points respectively for the winning side. The Ravens responded with 13 points from All-American Johannah Leedham (5'10''-G-87). Toby Martin contributed 12 points for Franklin Pierce in defeat.

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NEW ZEALAND - Women

Noni Wharemate propels the Sirens past Townsville -by Eurobasket News
Christchurch - Townsville 63:55

The Christchurch Sirens continued their impressive winning rally at the Cowles Stadium. Yesterday they registered the 7th win at the home court with overall 8 games played here. It was once again a well-built and balanced offense from the Leigh Gooding's outfit that played a key role in success. Christchurch coach bravely rotated the squad and keeping the pace up forced the Fire to surrender at the end. The visitors dominated the paint throughout the whole encounter but could not break through the tense defensive redoubts of the hosts. The Sirens built a 26:23 lead at the interval. The hosts' opened up a double digits lead in the third stanza and entered the fourth period with a 13-point cushion. The visitors finally shook it up offensively and found some open spaces late in the game to trim the deficit. But it was not enough though as Christchurch secured the winning outcome and finalized the win at the end. Noni Wharemate (171-G-82, college: UTEP) provided team-high 18 points for the Sirens. Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe (173-G-79, college: Buffalo) added 13 points, while Donna Wilkins contributed 10 points for the winners. Jennifer Crouse (192-C-77) led all scorers with 21 points and 17 boards for the Fire. Rohanee Cox (182-F-80) tallied 18 points and 12 boards in a losing case. The Sirens converted 38% from the field, while limiting their opponents to only 28%. Christchurch climbed to 7-12 record in the ladder and would take on Sydney Uni Flames at home next week. Townsville dropped at 8-11 and takes on Dandenong next.

Christchurch: Noni Wharemate 18, Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe 13, Donna Wilkins 10
Townsville: