Eurobasket Daily News Report:

EUROBASKET NEWS REPORT - 12/28/2011

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Men News

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ABA

Gwizzlies unveil new website - by Gianni Pascucci
The Georgia Gwizzlies have just sent to Usbasket.com the link of their brand new official website at http://www.wix.com/gogwizzlies/proball The Embry Malone -led Gwizzlies are competing in the ABA Atlantic South Division and featuring 2011 All-star Ramar Smith (6'3''-G-87, college: Tennessee) as the leading scorer at 40pts and 12asst and front court man Adam Yeoman (6'8''-C-87, college: Genesee CC) dramatically improving his performing. He had 24 pts and 16 rebs against Atlanta on Dec.17. 'Adam will be an All-star' states coach Malone...

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ADRIATIC LEAGUE

AFRICAN CHAMPIONS CUP

ACC Standings

African Champions Cup Standings

Group A
1. Ahli Benghazi			0-0
2. ASS Sale			0-0
3. Libolo			0-0
4. Mazembe			0-0
5. Union Bank			0-0
6. Urunani			0-0
Group B
1. 1 De Agosto			0-0
2. CRA Hoceima			0-0
3. ES Sahel			0-0
4. Malabo King			0-0
5. Petroleos			0-0
6. Royal Hoopers			0-0

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ANGOLA

National Junior Basketball Championship Happens in January - by Eurobasket News
Luanda The national senior males junior basketball championship for the year 2012 will take place from 5 to 15 January, in Benguela Province, with the participation of eight teams.

The competition will happen in the all play all system in one round and will include the teams Petro de Luanda (title holders), 1 de Agosto, Vila Estoril, ASA, Vila Clotilde, Progresso do Sambizanga, misto do Huambo and Sporting de Benguela.

ANGOP has also learnt that at the same time the female competition will so be taking place with the teams Interclube, 1 de Agosto (title holders), Desportivo do Maculusso and Juventude de Viana.
Courtesy of: Angola Press

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ARGENTINA

Ginobili scores 24 as Spurs beat Memphis 95-82 and get early payback for playoff ouster - by Eurobasket News
Emanuel Ginobili (6'6''-G-77, agency: Interperformances) never saw the Memphis Grizzlies play that badly in the playoffs, and is pretty sure he wont again.

But the San Antonio Spurs will take it.

Ginobili scored 24 points and San Antonio ran away from what barely resembled the up-and-coming Memphis team that stunned the 61-win Spurs in the first round last season, beating the Grizzlies 95-82 on Monday night.

San Antonio began what could be Tim Duncan's final season with a satisfying bit of payback but otherwise didnt read much into the victory. Take Zach Randolph (6'9''-C-81, college: Michigan St.) and Marc Gasol (7'0''-C-85, agency: Interperformances), who utterly bullied the Spurs in that playoff series but combined for just 23 points this time.

Zac was off. He didnt have of these games in the playoffs, Ginobili said. That happens the first game of the season. We all need time to get back in shape.

Rudy Gay (6'9''-F/G-86, college: Connecticut) led Memphis with 19 points and 10 rebounds in his first game in nearly 10 months. Gay missed the end of last season with a bad left shoulder, including when Memphis knocked out the top-seeded Spurs.

Yet even with the full starting lineup that Memphis wouldve preferred in last years playoffs, the Grizzlies still remained winless on opening night since the franchise left Vancouver in 2001.

Not quite the start the NBAs breakout team of last season had in mind.

We didnt play very well. We did turn the ball over alot, but we didnt guard, Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. We didnt guard them in the pick in roll. We gave up transition points. It was not a very well-played game by us at all.

The Grizzlies committed 24 turnovers. Randolph had 10 points and six rebounds and Gasol had 13 and six. In the playoffs series against the Spurs, Randolph averaged 21.5 points.

Its not like the Spurs got any bigger to defend the Grizzlies big frontline. DeJuan Blair, the 6-foot-7 center deemed too ineffective by coach Gregg Popovich to even play Games 5 and 6 against Memphis, was back in the starting lineup.

The Spurs have precious few alternatives: forward Antonio McDyess officially retired in training camp, and they havent added a big man to replace him. Yet San Antonio was helped by 7-footer Tiago Splitter, who didnt look as lost as he did as rookie against Memphis last season.

He was really solid, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. He stayed in good position, he blocked shots and he rebounded. He was real special tonight.

Mike Conley had 11 points and seven assists for the Grizzlies. Memphis led by one at halftime but were blown out in the third quarter after shooting just 29 percent from the floor.

Despite the loss, Gay was satisfied with his return.

Its kind of bittersweet we lost, but it good that Im healthy and I can get out there and play, he said.

Richard Jefferson, once thought to be a goner in San Antonio under the NBAs new amnesty clause, added 14 points for the Spurs. Duncan had 10 points in 22 minutes as the challenge of rationing the 35-year-olds minutes in a compressed, grueling schedule began.

Duncan is playing in the final year of his contract but hasnt said whether this will be his last run for a fifth title.

If Duncan and the Spurs have one last championship run left in them, there was no better first test than Memphis. The bigger and quicker Grizzlies gave the aging Spurs fits in the playoffs last April even without Gay, who had been Memphis second-leading scorer.

For opening night, at least, San Antonio showed it can still keep up.

Leonard can take some credit for that. The 15th overall pick brought a jolt off the bench in the third quarter when the Spurs opened up a 19-point lead despite trailing at halftime. Leonard had six points during the stretch, including hitting a corner 3-pointer after catching a nifty behind-the-back pass from Ginobili.

Leonard is the centerpiece of what the Spurs are calling their youth movement seven of their 13 players have fewer than three years of experience. But the face and fortunes of the franchise still firmly belong to Parker, Ginobili and Duncan, who started their 10th season together.

Notes: Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III watched the game with some of his Baylor teammates. The Bears are in town to play Washington in the Alamo Bowl on Thursday...Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones, who owns a home in San Antonio, sat courtside with Spurs owner Peter Holt. ...The Spurs remain without G Gary Neal after the second-year backup had his appendix removed during training camp.

Courtesy of www.washingtonpost.com

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AUSTRALIA

QBL: Caboolture Suns 2012 QBL Program Decision - by Eurobasket News
It is with great regret that the Caboolture Suns will not be participating in the 2012 Queensland Basketball League (QBL). After much deliberation and discussion, the QBL committee for the Suns have decided that it is within the best interests of the Association and its members to forgo our position in the competition largely due to financial reasons. Many other logistical factors have also come into play and it is for this reason that the committee saw no feasible and beneficial reason to nominate teams.

Caboolture Suns will however be nominating both a Mens and Womens team for the D League competition. We feel that it will be more beneficial to the association in the long term to focus all out efforts into this program. Our D-League programs have had some success over the past few years and our plan is to develop the players that we have within our system to create a culture that will want players to be a part of; to establish an identity within the community.

Caboolture Suns see this as an opportunity to grow and develop as an association to a point where we can re-enter the QBL not just as a team, but as a competitive force within the league in future years.

We would like to assure you that the effort of all our volunteers and members has been greatly appreciated. We would not have been able to participate in the league without their continued support and we will certainly not continue in the future without them. Also to our sponsors, who have been with us over the years, we have and always will appreciate the support that you have given us. I would also like to assure you that whilst we will not have a QBL program in the short term, CBI will be embarking upon a project to improve our D League players, improve the quality of competition in the D League and improve the profile of our team and players within the Caboolture community. Thus our sponsors will have the opportunity to promote their products and services, as well as being a part of the development of the competitive force in D League and QBL that Caboolture Suns will become.
Courtesy of: QBL

QBL: Pop tips more wins next year - by Eurobasket News
RETURNING Toowoomba Mountaineers coach Pop Dickerson believes the team can continue to improve on its breakthrough 2011 season.

The Mountaineers finally achieved some success under Dickerson after enduring two winless seasons in the QBL.

Led by star imports James Legan (190-G-87, agency: Court Side, college: E.Carolina) and Rashad Chase (201-F/C-87, agency: Promotex, college: Georgia St.), Toowoomba transformed from basket case to genuine competitors this season, finishing 10th on the ladder with five wins.

The Mountaineers are in training ahead of next season and Dickerson said he expected the team to continue their roll into the 2012 season.

'I think that we can better that run that we had last year,' Dickerson said.

'There's just a few more pieces to the puzzle to fit in.

'I think we're going to have a good year.'

Dickerson has achieved a lot in his short time at the helm of the Mountaineers, helping to establish a winning culture among the former QBL cellar-dwellers.

While a finals appearance isn't out of the question, Dickerson said the most important thing was for the side to keep taking positive steps forward in 2012.

'We will know come mid-season if we are title contenders, but right now we just want to continue improving,' he said.

'We're a year older now. We should play a lot better and with a lot more maturity.

'There's a few younger guys who will have another year's experience under their belt.

'I think we can play better than we did last year.'

Preparations for next season have already begun with the players training Tuesday nights at Water St Basketball Stadium.

While Dickerson expects the nucleus of the squad to return in 2012, he said it was still too early to comment the final make-up of the side.

'It's a good roll-up but we're just getting ready,' he said.

'I don't want to say who's on the team and who isn't. Nothing is official at the moment.

'We're just out there scrimmaging but I think we've got a good bunch of guys.'

Dickerson encouraged any aspiring Mountaineers to come along to a training session and display their skills.

'If they think they've got the tools, come down and give it a go,' he said.
Courtesy of: QBL

QBL: Bears beef up talent - by Eurobasket News
BUNDABERG Radiology Bears coach Dean Page believes he has filled the last two pieces of their playing roster puzzle for 2012 perfectly.
He will rest comfortably over the Christmas break after signing Rachel Maenpaa (185-C-84, college: Indiana St.) as their second American import and also recruiting Leeara Creet from Brisbane.

The Bears had their best season in 2011, making it all the way to the QBL women's grand final and leading at half-time in that game before being blown away by hosts Gladstone Port City Power.

Page said Maenpaa, 27, a 1.85m athletic power forward, was a native of Wisconsin who had a brilliant career at Indiana State University where she averaged 13.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in her senior season.

She has since played with distinction in first divisions in Portugal, Switzerland, Australia and Slovakia.

'Rachel has played out here the last two years for Brisbane Capitals and Northside Wizards and she is a very versatile player,' Page said.

'Leeara comes from Brisbane and she played in several Queensland state junior teams and also went to Newberry College in America.

'She is a forward as well but is a defensive specialist and in her three years with Brisbane in the QBL has averaged 15 points and eight to 10 rebounds per game, which are good enough numbers for me.

'Leeara is only 21 and she is very athletic.'

The duo spent this week in Bundaberg but will move here late next month, and Page is confident they will give the team the extra edge necessary to go all the way next year.

'They settled in well this week and got to know the town and the people a bit and they will move to Bundy at the end of January to get a good pre-season in,' he said.

Page said Maenpaa would be a perfect replacement for fellow American Kisha Lee who has been a star for the team for the past two seasons.

'We are not bringing Kisha back - we just want to play a different style and we thought Rachel would be a better fit for that style,' he said.

'Kisha did a good job but we have to go a different direction to close the gap between us and Gladstone.

' (Fellow American import of past two seasons) Vonnie Turner will be back, along with Hayley Munro and Alice Honnery and captain Kylie Giles, absolutely, and all the other girls, apart from Lucinda Doughty who has retired.

'Kylie will suit up for her 18th season for the Bears and despite the birth of her second child earlier this year, she has trained the house down. She is in fantastic shape and is the fittest out of all the girls here and she is working hard at getting better and better.'

With their two recruits, Page said they would 'certainly be better than last season'.

'We will be more well rounded, athletic and quicker and I think we will be more talented as well than what we were. So hopefully it could be the Bears' season,' he said.

While in Bundaberg this week, Maenpaa and Creet assisted Page and other Bundaberg Basketball coaches to conduct a junior clinic at WIN Stadium, also proving to be a hit.
Courtesy of: QBL

SEABL: Theron Wilson joined theSupercats - by Eurobasket News
St Laurence Geelong Supercats announced the signing of Theron Wilson (195-F-87, college: Bradley) for the upcoming season. The 195cm forward lead the Braves in scoring with 14.1ppg and added 7.4 rpg as a senior at Bradley in 2009. Wilson has played in the Ukraine Superleague and Finland Division 1 the past two years where he has posted similar numbers.
He appeared first in 2005-2006 for Seward County CC (JUCO). In 30 games Wilson avearged 12.0ppg, 6.2rpg, 1.6spg, FT: 59.4%, FGP: 41.2%. In 2006-2007 for Seward County CC (JUCO) he improved to19.4ppg, 10.8rpg, 1.4bpg, 2.4spg, FT: 64.8%, FGP: 46.4%.
In 2007-2008 moved to Bradley (NCAA) and in 2009-2010 started for Gryfony Symferopil (Ukraine-Superleague). In 12 games his stats read 12.8ppg, 6.4rpg, 2.0apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 42.2%, 3PT: 17.4%, FT: 62.9%. The season 2010-2011 started for Salon Vilpas Vikings (Finland-Korisliiga, starting five), but left in Dec.'10. In 19 games he avearged 13.5ppg, 7.6rpg, 1.1apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 43.7%, 3PT: 31.0%, FT: 60.0%.

Standings - NBL

NBL Standings

1. Breakers		10-4
2. Wildcats		9-5
3. Tigers		8-6
4. Blaze		6-5
5. Crocodiles		6-5
6. Taipans		6-7
7. Kings		6-8
8. 36ers		4-9
9. Hawks		3-9

Stats Leaders - NBL

Points Per Game

Cameron TRAGARDH
  Tigers
  (209-C/F-83)
  Avg: 18.9

1. Tragardh, Tigers	18.9
2. Mills, Tigers	18.6
3. Khazzouh, Kings	18.5
4. Crawford, Croco.	17.6
5. Lisch, Wildcats	17.2
6. Wilson, Taipans	16.9
7. Johnson, 36ers	16.8
8. Wilkinson, Breakers	16.4
9. Simpsons, 36ers	16.2
10. Warren, 36ers	16.1

Rebounds Per Game

Julian KHAZZOUH
  Kings
  (209-C-86)
  Avg: 11.1

1. Khazzouh, Kings	11.1
2. Holmes, Crocodiles	9.6
3. Crosswhite, Taipa.	8.6
4. Simpsons, 36ers	8.4
5. Grant, Kings	8.2
6. Rychart, Taipans	7.5
7. Johnson, 36ers	7.3
8. Worthington, Blaze	6.5
9. Vukona, Breakers	6.5
10. Saville, Hawks	6.4

Assists Per Game

Cedric JACKSON
  Breakers
  (191-G-86)
  Avg: 5.9

1. Jackson, Breakers	5.9
2. Mills, Tigers	5.0
3. Bruce, Kings	5.0
4. Gill, Crocodiles	4.8
5. Crosswell, 36ers	4.7
6. Gibson, Blaze	4.7
7. Martin, Hawks	3.9
8. Martin, Wildcats	3.5
9. Warren, 36ers	3.4
10. Ubaka, Tigers	3.3

Steals Per Game

Cedric JACKSON
  Breakers
  (191-G-86)
  Avg: 2.4

1. Jackson, Breakers	2.4
2. Martin, Wildcats	2.0
3. Robbins, Wildcats	1.9
4. Mims, Crocodiles	1.8
5. Gibson, Blaze	1.5
6. Crawford, Croco.	1.3
7. Tovey, Wildcats	1.3
8. Gill, Crocodiles	1.1
9. Grant, Kings	1.0
10. Rychart, Taipans	1.0

Blocks Per Game

Julian KHAZZOUH
  Kings
  (209-C-86)
  Avg: 2.2

1. Khazzouh, Kings	2.2
2. Grant, Kings	1.5
3. Simpsons, 36ers	1.3
4. Johnson, 36ers	1.3
5. Worthington, Blaze	1.2
6. Knight, Wildcats	1.1
7. Martin, Wildcats	1.0
8. Nevill, Wildcats	1.0
9. Crosswhite, Taipa.	0.9
10. Abercrombie, Brea.	0.9

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AUSTRIA

Standings - A Bundesliga

A Bundesliga Standings

1. Gmunden		12-2
2. Klosterneub.		11-2
3. Wels		10-3
4. Kapfenberg		8-5
5. Oberwart		8-6
6. Gussing		7-7
7. BC Vienna		6-7
8. UBSC Graz		4-9
9. Furstenfeld		4-10
10. Arkadia		3-10
11. St.Polten		0-12

Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Stjepan STAZIC
  BC Vienna
  (199-G-78)
  Avg: 27.2

1. Stazic, BC Vienna	27.2
2. Wade, Arkadia	24.4
3. Booker, St.Polten	23.0
4. Reed, Oberwart	21.3
5. Shavies, Furstenf.	19.2
6. Djuric, Gussing	19.1
7. Drenovac, Arkadia	18.9
8. Bobb, Klosterneub.	18.4
9. Vay, Arkadia	18.3
10. Rakocevic, BC Vi.	17.6

Rebounds Per Game

Zarko RAKOCEVIC
  BC Vi.
  (204-F-84)
  Avg: 13.8

1. Rakocevic, BC Vi.	13.8
2. Vay, Arkadia	8.8
3. Werner, Wels	8.8
4. Reed, Oberwart	8.1
5. Oppland, Gmunden	8.0
6. Skurdauskas, Arkad.	7.8
7. Ware, Furstenfeld	6.9
8. Suljanovic, Kloste.	6.9
9. Trmal, St.Polten	6.6
10. Nelson, Kapfenbe.	6.5

Assists Per Game

Jeremy FEARS
  Kapfenberg
  (196-G-85)
  Avg: 6

1. Fears, Kapfenberg	6.0
2. Vay, Arkadia	5.8
3. Danek, Arkadia	5.5
4. Klepeisz, Gussing	5.4
5. Lanegger, Klostern.	4.9
6. Schreiner, Kapfe.	4.9
7. Stazic, BC Vienna	4.8
8. Rakocevic, BC Vi.	4.6
9. Shavies, Furstenf.	4.6
10. Curry, Gmunden	4.0

Steals Per Game

Fabricio VAY
  Arkadia
  (206-F-86)
  Avg: 2.5

1. Vay, Arkadia	2.5
2. Pryor, Wels	2.5
3. Fears, Kapfenberg	2.4
4. Shavies, Furstenf.	2.3
5. Schreiner, Kapfe.	1.9
6. Scott, Gussing	1.9
7. Brown, Wels	1.9
8. Arnold, Gmunden	1.5
9. Wade, Arkadia	1.5
10. Stazic, BC Vienna	1.5

Blocks Per Game

Zarko RAKOCEVIC
  BC Vi.
  (204-F-84)
  Avg: 3.2

1. Rakocevic, BC Vi.	3.2
2. Ware, Furstenfeld	1.3
3. Scott, Gussing	0.9
4. Brown, Wels	0.8
5. Skurdauskas, Arkad.	0.7
6. Shaw, Oberwart	0.6
7. Greimeister, Klost.	0.6
8. Francois, BC Vienna	0.6
9. Nelson, Kapfenberg	0.5
10. Moric, UBSC G.	0.5

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BELARUS

Stats Leaders - Premier League

Points Per Game

Kiril SITNIK
  SBK O.
  (190-G-89)
  Avg: 20.7

1. Sitnik, SBK O.	20.7
2. Rutkauskas, Minsk.	19.6
3. Knox, Minsk-2006	15.7
4. Ignatchik, Minsk-.	14.8
5. Zakhar, BG.	14.2
6. Hawkins, Minsk.	14.0
7. Patupchyk, Sozh G.	13.3
8. Krisevich, Minsk-.	13.3
9. Kojenets, Minsk.	13.0
10. Yafremov, Grodn.	12.3

Rebounds Per Game

Pavel BLIZNETS
  Sozh Gomel
  (205-C-94)
  Avg: 10.4

1. Bliznets, Sozh Gom.	10.4
2. Zakhar, BG.	9.7
3. Rutkauskas, Minsk.	9.6
4. Kojenets, Minsk.	8.1
5. Krisevich, Minsk-.	7.1
6. Hlebovich, Grodn.	7.0
7. Knox, Minsk-2006	6.6
8. Ovsepian, Rubon	6.5
9. Zaitsev, SBK O.	6.3
10. Drobyshevski., So.	6.1

Assists Per Game

Dzmitry KUZMIN
  Grodno-93
  (196-G-75)
  Avg: 5.9

1. Kuzmin, Grodno-93	5.9
2. Hodge, Minsk-2006	5.3
3. Akulich, Rubon	4.4
4. Kudrautsau, Minsk.	3.8
5. Papruha, BG.	3.6
6. Volk, SBK O.	3.0
7. Ignatchik, Minsk-.	3.0
8. Sitnik, SBK O.	3.0
9. Korzh, Grodno-93	2.9
10. Konuyshenko, Gro.	2.7

Steals Per Game

Julius HODGE
  Minsk-2006
  (201-G-83)
  Avg: 2.3

1. Hodge, Minsk-2006	2.3
2. Zakhar, BG.	2.2
3. Akulich, Rubon	2.1
4. Malkov, Rubon	2.1
5. Sitnik, SBK O.	2.0
6. Patupchyk, Sozh G.	1.9
7. Yafremov, Grodn.	1.9
8. Sapegin, Rubon	1.9
9. Ovsepian, Rubon	1.8
10. Korzh, Grodno-93	1.8

Blocks Per Game

Aliaksandr KUZMITSKI
  BG.
  (198-F-92)
  Avg: 0

1. Kuzmitski, BG.	0.0
2. Akulich, Rubon	0.0
3. Kuzmin, Grodno-93	0.0
4. Strukov, BG.	0.0
5. Kurapau, Minsk-20.	0.0
6. Soloviev, Rubon	0.0
7. Kudrautsau, Minsk.	0.0
8. Sofaniuk, Minsk-20.	0.0
9. Krisevich, Minsk-.	0.0
10. Sivalko, Rubon	0.0

Standings - Premier League

Premier League Standings

1. Minsk-2006		10-0
2. Grodno-93		9-1
3. Rubon		6-5
4. Minsk-2006 II		4-6
5. SBK Osipovichi		4-7
6. BGUIR-RTI		3-7
7. Sozh Gomel		0-10

*****************************************************

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS

Hoop It Up closes Xmas Camp with a party! - by David Edole
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI --With unrivalled tidings of comfort and joy, not to mention excitement and skill, the Hoop It up Foundation concluded its inaugural Christmas Camp yesterday December 23 , 2011 at the Multi Purpose Sports Complex.
Well over 120 boys, girls, young men and women took part in the Camp, which catered for ages rising 5 to 17.

At the week-long camp, all the participants received coaching in basic basketball skills and Coach Mike Knolls, from Delaware, USA, was on hand to give tips and deliver more technical coaching to the older groups.

Steve Parillon, founder of the foundation, said he was a tired man but that it had been a good week. Feeling kind of tired, its been a long day He said We had games, gave out prizes and put the Tola kids up against the VG kids. 4 great short games and they all showed their new skills and confidence.

The younger participants then took part in a shoot out skills challenge, the level of ability shown was quite extraordinary and testament to the hard work put in by all the coaches during the week.

At the closing ceremony the Kids of Tortola took on their VG counterparts in a series of short games, with VG coming out victorious.

All the coaches have worked hard this week commented Parillon We had Mike knolls from Delaware, who was instrumental in getting Dion Edwin, Norville Carey and those guys into high school. Kennedy Bass, Eustace Freeman, myself and Kelroy Thomas. We did a lot of work on skills; some of the kids were experiencing basketball for the first time so we tried to make sure they left with a good introduction to the sport and also an interest in the sport.

The day involved 4 matches between participants from Virgin Gorda and Tortola withVG running out overall winners. The younger participants took part in the Shoot Outs with Stefan Wilson winning a skate board, Acacia Williams a motorised car, Tyree Campbell a TV video plug in game and Wayne Campbell a dart board
One great component of the camp and especially the closing party was the involvement of the parents. We had a lot of great parents helping out during the week, commented Parillon. I asked the parents to come out and see what was going on. At a lot of the previous camps the Parents hadnt had the time to come out so it was encouraging to see them get involved and support their Kids, the Kids really appreciated it too, he added.

Up next for Hoop it Up is the premier of a documentary on the basketballers whom the foundation was instrumental in getting college placements during 2011.
The show will be aired on JTV and includes live footage and interviews with the seven basketballers, who are now attending various colleges from Sauk Community College to Warner University in Florida.

The show is scheduled to air on New Years Day at a time to be confirmed.

Hoop It Up closes Xmas Camp with a party - by David Edole
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI-- Despite Ray Victor (186-G) connecting on a pair of free throws to put the No. 18 Warner University Royals in front 29-28 at the break, No. 13 Jamestown College hit back to win the matchup of NAIA Division II Mens Basketball teams, 60 56 on December 19, 2011.

The loss drops the Royals to 7-4 heading into the Christmas break while the Jimmies (12-3) pick up their second Top 20 victory in three days following their win over No. 15 Southeastern University on Saturday night.

Despite those two free throws, overall, Victor had an off night with his shooting. He recorded just 1 of 7 field goals, 1 of 6 attempted 3s, picked up 1 offensive rebound , turned the ball over once and added 1 block in 21 minutes playing time.
Victor and his team mates get to rest up over the Christmas break and return to action on December 30 for the start of the Holiday Inn Express Invitational Tournament hosted by Warner University. The Royals first game will be against Geants St. Jean Collegial (Canada) at 5 p.m.

In their first game of the Crooked Lake Classic in December the no. 18 Warner University mens basketball team was upended by Reinhardt University (Ga.) 96-81.
The Royals lacked any perimeter threat the entire game and could not overcome a two-point halftime deficit in their first regular season game in 13 days.

Victor finished the first half with 10 points and 5 rebounds, going onto finish the game with a double of 14 points and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes playing time.
On day two the Royals bounced back cruising past Union University (Ky.) 89-62. The Royals made up for their lack of three point shooting against Reinhardt, connecting on 13-of-21 three pointers in the victory.

Ray Victor had a double-digit performance, scoring a hard fought 15 points including 6 of 7 field goals. He added a 75 % success rate from the free throw line and recorded 1 rebound in 23 minutes on the court.

The Bulldogs were no match for the Royals hot shooting; for the game the Royals shot 60.3% from the field and a sizzling 61.9% from three point range.

So far this season Victor has averaged 25 minutes playing time, starting all 10 of the games played. He has made 36 off 55 field goal attempts for an average of 55%, made 7 of 20 attempted 3s and has a 68.4% success rate from the free throw line.
Unfortunately he has also fouled out 3 times in the 10 games.

In total he has scored 105 points and also recorded 44 rebounds, 11 assists, 4 blocks and 13 steals.

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BULGARIA

Zahariev's double-double lands him Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
21-year old swingman Hristo Zahariev (200-G/F-90) put on an amazing game in the last round for Rilski Sportist and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 11.
He had a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds, while his team edged out Balkan (#6, 3-8) 77-75. Rilski Sportist maintains the 3rd position in Bulgarian league. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Rilski Sportist will need more victories to improve their 7-4 record. It was one of impressive evenings for Zahariev as usually he does not deliver so high stats. Zahariev has impressive league stats. He is in league's top in rebounds (9th best: 5.8rpg) and averages solid 61.4% FGP.

Second best performed player last round was Dimitar Marintchechki (201-F/C-90) of Balkan. He is a forward in his first season at Balkan. In the last game Marintchechki recorded impressive double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds. Bad luck as Balkan was edged by the higher-ranked Rilski Sportist (#3, 7-4) 77-75. Balkan is still second from the bottom in the standings. 8 lost games are too many comparing to just three victories Balkan managed to get this year. Marintchechki is a newcomer at Balkan and despite he is not a team leader yet, every game he becomes more reliable player. Hopefully performances like the last one will happen more often.

Third place about best performers goes to another Rilski Sportist's star - guard Branko Mirkovic (190-G-82, agency: Global Sports Plaza). Mirkovic scored 18 points and passed six assists. He was another key player of Rilski Sportist, helping his team with a 77-75 win against the lower-ranked Balkan (#6, 3-8). Rilski Sportist needs these victories very badly if they think about getting closer to top teams. Their record at this point is 7 victories and 4 lost games. Mirkovic has a great season in Bulgaria. After 10 games, he made it on the list of the league's leaders in assists with 5.0apg (4th best). He also has 2.1spg and FGP: 60.0%.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Stoyan Petkov (198-F-85) of Tundja Yambol - 12 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists
5. Stanislav Govedarov (185-G-80) of Tundja Yambol - 20 points and 2 rebounds
6. Martin Durchev (200-G-87) of Tundja Yambol - 22 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists
7. Todor Todorov (198-F-82) of Spartak Pleven - 20 points and 7 rebounds
8. Ilia Stankov (198-F-76) of Spartak Pleven - 25 points and 5 assists
9. Kiril Pavlovski (210-C-85) of Chernomorets - 15 points and 11 rebounds
10. Zlatin Georgiev (195-G-85) of Levski Sofia - 12 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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CHILE

Stats Leaders - LIBSUR

DIMAYOR Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

1. Michael Smith 23.8
2. Bayo Arigbon 22.0
3. Marcus Elliot 21.5
4. Decorey Young 20.8
5. Jeremiah Wilson 20.0

Rebounds Per Game

1. Jeremiah Wilson 12.6
2. Bayo Arigbon 11.4
3. Jason Keep 10.2
4. Howard Wilkerson 8.1
5. Adrian Hill 7.4

Assists Per Game

1. Patrick Saez 6.0
2. SebastianFigueroa 4.9
3. Eduardo Marechal 4.3
4. Diego Cabanez 4.2
5. Francisco Bravo 3.5

Steals Per Game

1. Franco Morales 2.7
2. Decorey Young 2.4
3. Patricio Briones 2.2
4. Marcus Elliot 2.2
5. Diego Cabanez 2.1

Blocks Per Game

1. Decorey Young 1.7
2. Jeremiah Wilson 1.6
3. Adrian Hill 1.4
4. Eduardo Marechal 1.3
5. Patricio Briones 1.2

Dimayor: roster changes for Espanol de Talca - by Daniel Valencia
After the first half of the regular season, Deportivo Espanol de Talca decided to part ways with the american player Adrian Hill (203-F-84, college: Rutgers). Hill played 14 games with Espanol with averages of 13.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game.

To replace Hill, the leaders of Deportivo Espanol de Talca agreed to terms with the american-dominican Rome Sanders (203-F/C-84, college: Florida A&M). Sanders is a 27 year old forward with playing experience in the NCAA, Portugal, Poland and the Dominican Republic. Rome should arrive this friday to Talca.

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CYPRUS

Round 10: Keravnos keep going! - by Chris Mammides
Keravnos and APOEL proceeded with road wins
Keravnos Strovolou and CytaVision APOEL succeeded road wins in the openers of the 10th week of the Cyprus Mini league of the first Division
Keravnos Srovolou beat Ydra Asfalistiki ENAD in Agios Dhometios while CytaVision APOEL beat Proteas Danoi AEL in Melfors Arena in a game which AEL played with the under 21 team with Georgios Palalas (185-PG-81) as nor Radunovic neither Liatsos played in the specific game.

Ydra Asfalistiki ENAD - Keravnos Strovolou 84-104
The game was a derby in the first period which found the home team of Coach Argyrou to have a small lead of three points 24-21 mainly due to the duet of Wells and Matic who were leading their team. On behalf of the Keravnos who got by surprise mainly from the passion of the Agios Dhometios team; Strahinja Dragicevic (203-F-86) and Frazier were the top performers for the Strovolos team.
The 2nd period started with Keravnos being more aggressive and with the key players of the Agios Dhometios team not being able to escape from the defensive chains that Coach Yiannaras ordered his players with the right tactic to put in ENADs main figures. So, Keravnos with an amazing 19-37 by the half time of the game found the visiting site of Coach Yiannaras to be leading the game with as many as 15 points (43-58) and Frazier and Trisokkas leading their team while the newcomer Kojadinovic was among the standouts of the team as his 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assists showed from the early beginning that he will be able to assist the Strovolos team in the short term future.
In the 3rd period and just two minutes from the start of the period Moore scored 4 personal points to extent his teams deficit to 47-62 the biggest difference in the game but the home team with Reeds short awaking and Djurasovics three pointer close the gap to 58-66 with less than three minutes to go. In the mean time the 4th personal foul made by Trisokkas helped ENAD to play in the post with Aleksandar Damjanovic (206-C/F-73) having an easier job in the paint as Chan and Veselovs were not able to stop the veteran and ex player of Keravnos. The third period ended with 62-74 as Moore and Chan scored 4 unanswered points in the end before the Djurasovics last basket of the period shape up the score.
The 4th and final period was a monologue for Keravnos as with an amazing 4-22 reshaped the score to 66-96 with less than 3 minutes to go and with Strahinja Dragicevic, Manatache and Moore in the leading roles put a tombstone on the dreams of the home team. The last three minutes were typical for both teams with ENAD trying to cut the deficit mainly with the ex Keravnos player Aleksandar Damjanovic and with Keravnos simply keeping its paste. The final score was 84-104. That was the best 4th period (or at least the best 7 minutes of the period) for Keravnos since last August which shows (probably) that the team is getting better and better, week by week. The 10th official game of the top performer of ENAD, Dewayne Reed was his worst on the productive area as his 12 points (6 of which in the last 3 minutes) were not his best productivity even though his 3 rebounds and 5 assist could be registered in his positives. MVP of the game was the 25 years old Serbian forward Strahinja Dragicevic

Ydra Asfalistiki ENAD: Aleksandar Damjanovic 19, Wells 17, Reed and Matic 12 per head
Keravnos Strovolou: Strahinja Dragicevic 21 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal, Marcus Moore (198-G-80, college: Washington St.) 17 points, 9 assists and 3 rebounds, Frazier 14, Mandache 13, Trisokkas 12, Chan 10

Proteas Danoi AEL - CytaVision APOEL 70-86
The team of Coach Asonitis not only played with only Cypriot players but also without Liatsos, so Georgios Palalas was all alone among the kids from the Academies of AEL.
The first period was a real derby as Georgios Palalas was scoring from all over while APOEL seems to be more surprised than the usual as they expected at least Radunovic and Liatsos in the game, never the less APOEL took a small lead at the end with one point ending the period with 19-20
The same goes in the 2nd period too as AEL with Georgios Palalas mostly and Christos Loizidis (207-C-91) in the second leading role had the passion and the mood to fight against the foreigners of APOEL. Michael Cuffee (193-F-83, college: Middle Tenn.St.) was the leading player on behalf of APOEL in the productive area while the veteran Lewis Sims (203-F/C-73, college: New Orleans) was the top performer in an overall role and especially in the rebounds. The 2nd period ended with 35-38 but one minute before the end the home team with Georgios Palalas took a lead of a basket 35-33 before a 0-5 came from visitors and Michael Cuffee.
The 3rd period we had only one team in the court as Georgios Palalas got tired and the players of Coach Gavriel had much more choices than Coach Asonitis so with an 18-26 by the end of the 3rd period the score went to 53-64.
The 4th period it was obvious that AEL and Georgios Palalas were knock out and Adegboye with Michael Cuffee and Mandic gave the final heat to the poor youngsters of AEL who stood up very well against the professional players of APOEL. The final score was 70-86.
Top scorers:
AEL: Georgios Palalas 28, Christos Loizidis 18 points and 9 rebounds, Marios Georgiou 11 and 7 rebounds
APOEL: Michael Cuffee 22 and 9 rebounds, Lewis Sims 12 and 15 rebounds, Mandic and Johnson 13 per head and Adegboye 14 points and 8 assists. Beaves also scored 8 points and dashed down 12 rebounds

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CZECH REPUBLIC

CEZ Nymburk Releases Sime Spralja after Try-Out Period - by Surujh Roopnarine
Croatian big man Sime Spralja (206-F/C-83, agency: Court Side) has been released after not impressing the management of CEZ Nymburk over the last two months. Signed in mid-October to fill in for the injured Andrew Naymick, the 28-year old forward/center will return to his former club Zadar. Spralija appeared in a total of 11 games for Nynburk, six NBL games, four VTB United League games and one Eurocup contest. His best performances came in domestic league play, where he averaged 8.5 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 54.5% on two-point field goals while connecting on 4-10 from three-point territory.

Complete NBL All-Star Rosters Announced - by Surujh Roopnarine
Last week the names of the starters and head coaches for the 2012 NBL All-Star game were announced. Well today the coaches have named the remaining players and one assistant coach who will play in Pardubice on Saturday January 7th.

EAST

Keaton Grant (193-G-86, college: Purdue) (Astrum Levice)
Maurice Hampton (188-G-84, college: Austin Peay St.) (ICU BK Pardubice)
Corey Muirhead (198-F-83, college: W.Carolina) (ICU BK Pardubice)
Michael Bernard (205-C-78, college: S.Florida) (Astrum Levice)
Marcus Arnold (207-C/F-84, college: Illinois) (ICU BK Pardubice)

Radim Klecka (190-G-90) (BK Opava)
Jamar Smith (191-G-87, college: S.Indiana) (BK Prostejov)
Riley Luettgerodt (196-G/F-85, college: Hawaii) (NH Ostrava)
Boris Meno (203-F-83, college: Davidson) (Bovinae Svitavy)
Travis Peterson (208-C-85, college: Samford) (BK Prostejov)

Coaches: Jan Slowiak (main, BK Pardubice ICU) and Zbynek Choleva (BK Prostejov)

WEST:

Eugene Lawrence (184-G-86, college: St.John's) (CEZ Basketball Nymburk)
Pavel Pumprla (196-G-86) (CEZ Basketball Nymburk)
Tomas Pomikalek (200-F-89) (BK Decin)
Petr Benda (203-F/C-82) (CEZ Basketball Nymburk)
Pavel Houska (201-F-84) (BK Decin)

Rashaan Ames (184-PG-78, college: Shaw) (BC Cologne)
Rob Lowery (188-G-87, college: Dayton) (Leopards Chomutov)
Vojtech Hruban (202-F-89) (USK Prague)
Stanislav Zuzak (206-F/C-80, college: Cal-Irvine) (BC Cologne)
Peter Sedmak (207-C-85) (USK Prague)

Coaches: Pavel Budinsky (main, BK Decin) and Ronen Ginzburg (agency: Avi Zilberman ) (CEZ Basketball Nymburk)

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D-LEAGUE

Blake Ahearn Leads Reno Bighorns to 120-98 Victory Over Idaho Stampede - by Surujh Roopnarine
Blake Ahearn (6'2''-PG-84, college: Missouri St.) scored a game-high 35 points as the Reno Bighorns (5-6) knocked off the host Idaho Stampede 120-96 last night at the CenturyLink Arena in Boise. Reno converted an astonishing 38-49 from the free-throw line while dominating the glass to the tune of 54-36, as the dominated from start-to-finish last night.
Seth Tarver (6'5''-G/F-88, college: Oregon St.) scored a team-high 19 points for Idaho, while former NBA All-Star Antoine Walker (6'9''-F-75, college: Kentucky) notched a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds in defeat.
RENO: Blake Ahearn (35pts+7reb+5to), Terrance Thomas (19pts+9reb), Zach Graham (17pts+5reb), Chris Davis (16pts)
IDAHO: Seth Tarver (19pts), Antoine Walker (12pts+12reb), David bailey (17pts+5ast), Eric Devendorf (13pts)

Bighorns top the Stampede - by Eurobasket News
The Idaho Stampede never led Monday night, starting in an early hole and eventually falling 120-98 to the Reno Bighorns in front of 2,306 fans at CenturyLink Arena in Boise.

A pair of free throws by Terrance Thomas (6'6''-F-80, agency: Prossin Sports Management, college: Baylor) capped a 15-1 run in the opening quarter, which helped the Bighorns (5-6) build a 24-9 lead they pushed to as much as 66-44 late in the second quarter.

Idaho (5-7) whittled the lead down to 78-73 on a David Bailey (5'8''-PG-81, agency: Priority Sports, college: Loyola, IL) 3-point play, and got as close as four points, 81-77, on an Antoine Walker (6'9''-F-75, college: Kentucky) free throw, but never managed to grab the lead as Reno closed out the win with a 17-5 run.

Seth Tarver (6'5''-G/F-88, college: Oregon St.) led Idaho with 19 points while Bailey added 17 and Walker had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Blake Ahearn (6'2''-PG-84, college: Missouri St.) led all scorers with 35 points for Reno.

Courtesy of www.idahopress.com

Standings

D-League Standings

East Conference
1. Iowa E.		8-4
2. Springfield A.		7-5
3. Canton C.		5-5
4. Sioux Falls S.		5-7
5. Maine RC		4-6
6. Dakota W.		4-6
7. Ft.Wayne MA		4-6
8. Erie Bay H.		4-8
West Conference
1. Los Angeles D.		8-6
2. Austin T.		7-3
3. Bakersfield J.		7-4
4. Tulsa 66ers		7-4
5. Rio Grande VV		7-6
6. Reno B.		5-6
7. Idaho S.		5-7
8. Texas L.		4-8

Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Courtney PIGRAM
  Maine RC
  (185-G-85)
  Avg: 27

1. Pigram, Maine RC	27.0
2. Ahearn, Reno B.	25.9
3. Costner, Los A.	25.1
4. Sloan, Erie Bay H.	24.8
5. Millsap, Los A.	23.2
6. Dentmon, Austin T.	22.4
7. Biggs, Canton C.	21.6
8. Famous, Iowa E.	21.0
9. Jones, Ft.Wayne MA	20.5
10. Moses Randal., Io.	20.4

Rebounds Per Game

Marcus LEWIS
  Tulsa 66ers
  (203-F/C-86)
  Avg: 13

1. Lewis, Tulsa 66ers	13.0
2. Butch, Bakersfi.	12.5
3. Famous, Iowa E.	12.2
4. Daniels, Erie B.	11.4
5. Milligan, Canton C.	11.0
6. Brown, Springfield	9.9
7. Thomas, Reno B.	9.6
8. Ojougboh, Tulsa	9.2
9. Palmer, Bakersfi.	9.0
10. Reid, Tulsa 66ers	8.9

Assists Per Game

Walker RUSSELL
  Ft.Wayne.
  (183-G-82)
  Avg: 10.8

1. Russell, Ft.Wayne.	10.8
2. Sloan, Erie Bay H.	8.4
3. Cooksey, Texas L.	8.0
4. Tinsley, Los A.	7.6
5. Coleman, Sioux F.	7.2
6. Ewing, Iowa E.	7.0
7. Ahearn, Reno B.	6.8
8. Bozeman, Reno B.	6.2
9. Curry, Springfield	6.0
10. McLeod, Canton C.	5.8

Steals Per Game

Elijah MILLSAP
  Los A.
  (198-G-87)
  Avg: 3.5

1. Millsap, Los A.	3.5
2. Curry, Springfield	2.8
3. Tinsley, Los A.	2.4
4. Russell, Ft.Wayne.	2.4
5. Fortson, Los A.	2.1
6. Harris, Rio G.	2.1
7. Coleman, Sioux F.	2.1
8. Smith, Springfield	2.0
9. Hamilton, Los A.	2.0
10. Dentmon, Austin	2.0

Blocks Per Game

Gregory STIEMSMA
  Sioux F.
  (211-C-85)
  Avg: 4.5

1. Stiemsma, Sioux F.	4.5
2. Foster, Idaho S.	3.5
3. Daniels, Erie B.	2.2
4. Thompson, Erie B.	2.0
5. Gladness, Dakota	1.8
6. Ojougboh, Tulsa	1.8
7. Dove, Dakota W.	1.7
8. Kent, Maine RC	1.7
9. Major, Bakersfi.	1.7
10. Anderson, Dakota	1.6

NBA D-League Alum MaJic Dorsey Finishes off Career Season in Mexico - by Surujh Roopnarine
NBA D-League alum Daryl 'MaJic' Dorsey (6'1''-PG-81, college: S.Indiana) was named this year's 2011 FIBA LNBP Sponsor Caliente Player Of The Year. The 6'1' Point Guard put on an amazing show this season for the people of San Juan del Ro and Latin America. Based on his stunning and oftentimes spectacular play this season, the award makes perfect sense. Daryl Dorsey ranked #1 in points per game with 31.4, #1 in assists with 9.2, #1 in total assists for the season with 242, #1 in free throws made, #1 in free-throw percentage with 86.8, #1 in credits (value) with an average of 29.4, #1 in minutes averaged, and Top 5 in three-pointers made, Top 5 in two-point field goals made, Top 3 in fouls received, Top 5 in steals, #1 in 30+ point games with 14, #1 in 40+ point games with 6, #1 for most assists in a game with 23, and also broke league record for free-throws made in a game, making 14 of 16.
The Baltimore, MD native was also voted LatinBasket.com Player of the week three times this season. Daryl Dorsey, who has started 72 of his 147 career D-League games over five seasons, holds career averages of 9.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 43.2% from the field and 83.0% from the free-throw line.

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EUROCUP

Interview with BC Donetsk head coach Sasa Obradovic - by Greg
Sasa Obradovic (agency: Beo Basket ) had very successful coaching stints in Germany and Ukraine. After leading Rhein Energy Koeln to Bundesliga Champions title in 2006 he took German Cup the next season. With BC Kyiv Serbian tactician has made an impressive run in the 2008-09 EuroChallenge. Ukrainian club that didnt have any foreigner was very close to reach Final Four of the tournament. This season, as a BC Donetsk head coach, Obradovic has won 5 from 6 Eurocup regular season Group A games. At the same time his squad looks like a team that has a real chance to capture Ukrainian Superleague trophy this time.

Sasa, lets start with congratulations. Donetsk is the only Ukrainian club that goes on competing in Eurocup. More than that, your team booked the place in Eurocup LAST-16 beforehand.

Its really a great success for us, because the group wasnt so easy. Achievements of Cibona are well-known. And the fact that they defeated KRKA, Hemofarm, Union Olimpija and Red Star in current Adriatic League season just confirms its high class. Hapoel Jerusalem is the club with good financial support and roster, the club that had an aim to reach LAST-16. And its not a secret how hard it is to play in Israel. I am must pay contribute to my team for that character that they showed in Jerusalem. Its pity that we lost first game in France against BCM Gravelines with such a big score. That time we still didnt find our rhythm, Darnell Jackson just arrived and Ramel Curry was injured. And Gravelines showed unbelievable game on the level of Euroleague team. And after this I am really glad that it is Donetsk team that managed to beat pirates in Eurocup regular season.

Today Donetsk is doing well, but start of the season one can hardly call successful. Lost games against Goverla, Nikolaev and Ferro, as well as unconvincing games against Dnipro and Dnipro-Azot sparked a lot of rumors: staring from speculations about changes in roster and finishing coachs resignation

I really esteem trust relations between me and clubs management. In the beginning of the season I was told: Your work will be valued in May, and after bad start again: We dont change our mind, nobody wants to change the coach. Same judiciousness was with possible changes in roster. Believe me, a lot of times I was a witness when rushed decision was making only worse. It is easy answer: if we dont have result right here right now, we have to find the guilty one and say him good-buy. No way! You have to read the situation, analyze it what provoked such course of events.
Believe me, with that number of injures that we faced in the beginning of the season to start championship on high level was absolutely impossible. You have to remember that national championship consists of three rounds so we have time catch-up and we already proved that. And now just imagine if after bad start we said good-buy to Vule Avdalovic for instance, because he didnt find his game from the very beginning and was criticized a lot. And now Vule is one of the key players brain and engine of the team.

After all, the only player with whom the Club part ways was DeMarcus Nelson. Officially it was made to give more game time to Alexander Lypovyy. In fact his game time didnt grow too much.

Leaving of DeMarcus Nelson could not automatically increase Lypovyy minutes on court. But Oleksandr received a good chance to prove himself. In my team everyone receives the time he really deserves. Nobody will get time artificially. Now Lypovyy receives about 15 minutes in the game in average. But Im sure, that desire he shows at our practices will help him prove that he is ready to play more.
Nelsons disadvantage was absence of stable shot. In Ukrainian championship where teams mostly play zone its the biggest problem. Thats why I understood that some day we would say good-buy to Demarcus. So, whats the point to wait? Its better to give an opportunity to Lypovyy to prove himself and not to spoil the season for Nelson, especially that his former club Cholet was interested in him coming back.

In home Eurocup game against Hapoel Lypovyy showed a very good game, but in re-game in Jerusalem you didnt give him a minute. Why?

Usually I use Sasha to play against point guards in defense and to play like a shooting guard in offense. In Kiev game Lypa mostly played against Darryl Strawberry who played a role of playmaker. Second guard in that game was not tall Yuval Naimy who Avdalovic and Curry could cope with. But in Jerusalem game Naimy was injured and second guards were taller and stronger Brian Randle and Dan Grunfeld who automatically would have an advantage playing against Vule or Ramel. Thats why I didnt risk to play Lypovyy in that game, I used Pustozvonov and Gliebov on position two instead.

You are one of the most emotional coaches in Superleague. Is it easy to get on well with your team leaders, who probably didnt use to face such way of communication with coach?

While searching for the players for my team, I made an accent not just on the players skills, but also on their human qualities. I do agree that Sasa Obradovic (agency: Beo Basket ) is not an easy coach; basis of my philosophy is every-day work on the highest possible level. I demand of the players to fight till the end. Thats why selecting players for the team I pay attention to the character of the player, I try to understand does he have a core that will give him enough strength to stand the pressure. Believe me, this summer there were a lot of famous names who wanted to come to Donetsk, but I refused them because of the fact I wasnt sure that they would be ready for that kind of pressure, that they had spirit of the fighters and character of the winners.
Now we are almost in the middle of the season and I can say without any doubts that I made no mistakes in my choice. We have true fighters in BC Donetsk. It can be either Curry or Kovalenko, all of them do their best both at practice and in game.

You used to say a lot of times that for you most important thing in game is defense. Will you agree that well-known phrase Offense wins games and defense wins titles is now getting out of date? It was offense that brought Eurobasket title to Spain national team and even Gravelines is known as typical fast-break team

Modern basketball is universal, and I really doubt that you will disagree that offense starts with good rebound and rebound is a result of good defense. I accept that maybe last year my teams offense was not like somebody wanted to see it. This summer while building new season roster I kept that in mind and now we are one of the most scoring teams in Superleague.

Can you say that you are satisfied with the roster you have today? Or you still dont refuse the idea to have six foreign players in your team?

You will never find a coach who would mind to have one more player in roster. Me and teams management constantly keep under control players market and we will make a decision to take one more foreigner only in case of top level player appear on market.

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EUROLEAGUE

Dimitris Diamantidis (3D) is the player of the season 2010-2011 - by Chris Mammides
Dimitris Diamantidis (196-G-80) or else 3D have added another personal trophy in his tremendous career when he was voted by Europeague as the Top player and the MVP of the season 2010-2011 by Euroleague, last May.
Dimitris Diamantidis in his best shape and most productive part of his career won this title in a year which ends (in a couple of days) 100% sucessfully for the Greek guard and his team Panathinaikos Athens. Diamantidis who consider being among the most low profile player / stars in the European courts remains a trully hard working player who is working every single day for the best of his team.
According to Euroleague's today's article, Dimitris Diamantidis is the A-Z of Coach Zeljko Obradovic 's team.
Following the specific article, we have selected some parts and we are reprint them right now
The reigning Euroleague champion, Panathinaikos Athens, followed its game plan to perfection in the regular season and enters the Top 16 ready for the next challenges. Despite injuries and integrating a handful of new faces into the lineup, the Greens won 7 of 10 games to place second in competitive Group B. But as has become the norm for clubs coached by the legendary Zeljko Obradovic , the expectations are to see Panathinaikos Athens only get better from stage to stage as it looks to do the one thing the storied Greek side has yet to accomplish win back-to-back Euroleague titles!
In 1996, legends Panagiotis Giannakis, Dominique Wilkins and the youngster Fragiskos Alvertis came together and secured the first Euroleague title by a Greek team.

In 2000 Panathinaikos Athens lifted its second Euroleague trophy in Thessaloniki with a win over Maccabi Tel Aviv.
The Greens won it all again in 2002, upsetting Virtus in Bologna. At home in Greece, its trophy collecting continued with a new string of domestic crowns.

Since 1998, the Greens have won 13 Greek League titles out of a possible 14 to give the club an unprecedented total of 32. Panathinaikos Athens went back to the Euroleague Final Four in Moscow 2005, but eventual champ Maccabi stood on its way to the title. The team was one win away from reaching the 2006 Final Four, but it all clicked in the 2006-07 campaign, which would prove to be one for the history books as Panathinaikos Athens stormed into Final Four, held at the club's home court in Athens, and knocked off defending champ CSKA Moscow 93-91 in an instant classic. Two years later the Greens put their name on the title again in Berlin with Vassilis Spanoulis earning Final Four MVP honors in one of the most exciting finals in basketball history.
Last season Euroleague MVP and Final Four MVP Dimitris Diamantidis shined as the Greens turned away defending champ Regal FC Barcelona in the playoffs, then downed Maccabi Electra in Barcelona in the Euroleague title game and finally kept its streak of Greek League championships alive now nine in a row by seeing off archrival Olympiacos in the finals. Already one of the modern heavyweights of basketball with five crowns since the turn of the century and the third-most Final Four appearances (10) in competition history, all signs point to Panathinaikos Athens remaining a perennial challenger for years to come. And that means seeing the Greens fighting for a ticket to Istanbul and a shot at Euroleague glory again this season

(Article was taken by the official site of Euroleague)

December MVP: Nikola Mirotic of Real Madrid - by Eurobasket News
December 2011 may go down in history as the month that Nikola Mirotic (209-F/C-91) completed his upgrade from prominent role player to a bonafide ace. The Real Madrid forward has long been seen as a promising talent, hence his choice as the 2011 Rising Star Trophy winner. But in four games in December, Mirotic dominated like never before in leading his team to a perfect record with wins over three other Turkish Airlines Euroleague Top 16 teams to clinch first place in Group C and a No. 1 seed in the Top 16 Draw. For his outstanding performances in leading his team to outstanding results, Mirotic has become Euroleague Basketball's choice as bwin MVP for December. In a month that saw the Whites go through upheaval with injuries as well as players coming and going, Mirotic remained solid as a rock and he led the team in both scoring and rebounding. Among those performances, he recorded his first career Euroleague double-double, set career highs in index rating, scoring and steals and earned weekly MVP honors for the first time. His 18.5 points per game in December have come with uncanny shooting accuracy 16 of 25 two-pointers (64%), 8 of 13 threes (61.5%) and 18 of 20 free throws (90%). Moreover Mirotic averaged 6.8 rebounds per game even though only once before did he ever grab more than 7 rebounds in a single Euroleague game. The level of play Mirotic displayed in December is reserved for the true elite and this month may signify that Mirotic has officially reached that status.

The bwin MVP of the Month honor is now in its eighth season. Although statistics and performance index ratings are taken into consideration for the award, they alone do not determine who is honored. The winner is named by Euroleague Basketball based on his and his team's performance. The award for December was decided based on the four regular season games that all teams played between Wednesday, November 30 and Thursday, December 22, the final date of the regular season. Euroleague Basketball partner bwin is the sponsor of the MVP of the Month award. Just as the best Euroleague player each month combines performance and leadership for success, so does bwin's sponsorship communicate its conviction to be the best betting brand in European basketball.

Mirotic and Madrid opened December in second place in Group C heading into a pivotal road game in Milan, Italy, against EA7 Emporio Armani in which the young forward was to duel one of Europes leading power forwards, three-time Euroleague champion Antonis Fotsis. After 40 minutes, Mirotic amassed 11 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double, Fotsis was held scoreless in a game he started for the first time in over five years and Madrid went home with a 65-72 victory. A week later Madrid hosted Maccabi Electra in the Spanish capital in a showdown for first place. Mirotic took charge from the start with 12 first-quarter points and 10 more in the second as his team raced ahead en route to an 88-64 victory. He finished with a career-high 26 points on 4-of-5 three-point shooting plus 8 rebounds, an assists and 3 steals en route to a performance index rating of 33, which earned him Week 8 bwin MVP honors. Week 9 featured a chance to wrap up first place in Group C against Partizan mt:s. And Mirotic against came out ready with 8 first-quarter points as Madrid went ahead for good and rolled to a 101-83 victory. His final line was 21 points with just 2 missed shots and 10-for-10 shooting from the charity stripe plus 8 rebounds. A Week 10 matchup against Anadolu Efes was for protocol only, but with the chance to attack the rims at Sinan Erdem Arena, the site of the 2012 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four, Mirotic came ready. This time Madrid trailed early, so Mirotic scored 7 of his team-high 16 in the third quarter including the game-tying basket as the Whites rallied for a come-from-behind 66-75 victory.

Mirotic finished the regular season as Madrids leader in free throws made (33) and second in points scored (126), rebounds (43) and fouls drawn (31). It is interesting to note that despite his brilliant December, Mirotic ranks among the top 20 in the Euroleague this season in just one statistical category: performance index rating, where he is 19th with an average of 14.9 per game. Two things can be deciphered from that. One is how great of an all-around contribution Mirotic makes to winning. The second is that in the weeks and months to come, it is safe to expect to see his name climb higher and higher on all lists. Mirotic will soon get a chance to celebrate his new award when he receives the bwin MVP for December trophy at a Top 16 game in Madrid.

Courtesy of Euroleague

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FYR MACEDONIA

Dahlman's double-double lands him Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
22-year old forward Noah Dahlman (200-F-89) put on an amazing game in the last round for second-ranked MZT Skopje and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 16.
He had a double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds, while his team outclassed Kumanovo (#6, 5-9) with 29-point margin 104-75. MZT Skopje maintains the 2nd position in FYR Macedonian league. They are still close to the very top. MZT Skopje would have been even better if they kept winning the games like in the last round. They have a solid 12-3 record. Dahlman turned to be MZT Skopje's top player in his first season with the team. Wofford College graduate has very impressive stats this year. Dahlman leads league in rebounds with 9.2rpg. Dahlman is in league's top in and averages solid 73.6% FGP.

Second best performed player last round was Justin Reynolds (204-F/C-88) of Torus Skopje. He is American forward in his first season at Torus Skopje. In the last game Reynolds recorded impressive 20 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists. Bad luck as Torus Skopje lost that game 83-92 to slightly lower-ranked Rabotnicki (#5, 7-7). Torus Skopje managed to keep the same 3rd spot in the standings. His team's 10-4 record is not bad at all. Reynolds is a newcomer at Torus Skopje and quickly became one of team's most reliable players.

Third place about best performers goes to swingman Vladimir Georgievski (194-G/F-82) of Vardar (#7). Georgievski scored 26 points and grabbed six rebounds. He was a key player of Vardar, leading his team to a 85-75 win against slightly lower-ranked ABA Strumica (#9, 2-13). Vardar can only dream about fighting for top spots in the league. They have rather bad season and 4-10 record places them close to the bottom of the standings. Too bad for Georgievski he does not play for a better team. But maybe if he did, his season stats would not be that high. Georgievski has a very solid season. In 13 games in FYR Macedonia he scored 13.8ppg.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Todor Gecevski (209-C-77) of MZT Skopje - 22 points and 4 rebounds
5. Nenad Zivcevic (204-F-87) of Lirija - 26 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists
6. Dimitar Karadzovski (190-G-84) of Torus Skopje - 15 points and 8 assists
7. Vladimir Filipovic (195-G-85) of Lirija - 24 points and 5 rebounds
8. Milan Janjusevic (196-F-83) of Kumanovo - 22 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists
9. Igor Mijajlovic (193-G-84) of MZT Skopje - 16 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists
10. Darko Radulovic (194-G-80) of Vardar - 22 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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GERMANY

BBL Round 14 of Regular Season - by Eurobasket News
Seventeenth-ranked TBB Trier (4-10) used its home court advantage to challenge second ranked Brose Baskets (11-2) on Tuesday. The visitors from Bamberg managed to secure only five-point victory 75-70. However their fans expected much easier game. Anton Gavel orchestrated the victory by scoring 20 points. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Brose Baskets have a solid four-game winning streak. Defending champion keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Ratiopharm. TBB Trier lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the seventeenth place with ten games lost. Brose Baskets will face EnBW Ludwigsburg (#16) at home in the next round which should be an easy win for them. TBB Trier will play against Walter Tigers in Tuebingen.

There were no big surprises in other games of round 14: Phoenix Hagen beat EnBW L'burg on the road 94-81. Bottom-ranked Goettingen lost to Fraport SKY on its own court 65-78. B.Muenchen unfortunately lost to s.Oliver Baskets in Wuerzburg 55-64. Bayreuth managed to beat Bremerhaven at home 90-86. ALBA was defeated by Art.Dragons on the opponent's court 97-89. EWE Baskets smashed Walter Tigers in a home game 91-69. Ratiopharm won against Telekom Baskets on the road 101-84. LTi 46ers unfortunately lost to NY Phantoms on its own court 62-63.
The most impressive performance of 14th round was 17 points and 5 rebounds by Jacob Burtschi of Fraport SKY.

EnBW L'burg - Phoenix Hagen 81-94

There was a small surprise when seventeenth ranked Phoenix Hagen (5-9) beat on the road 14th ranked EnBW Ludwigsburg (4-9) 94-81 on Thursday. The guests trailed by 4 points at the halftime before their 55-38 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. Phoenix Hagen made 20-of-23 free shots (87.0 percent) during the game. Canadian guard Tristan Blackwood (183-85) orchestrated the victory by scoring 27 points and 5 assists. American guard Marc Antonio Carter (191-85, college: NC-Wilmington, agency: Limelight Hoops) contributed with 17 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists for the winners. Phoenix Hagen's coach Ingo Freyer used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. American forward John Bowler (206-84, college: E.Michigan, agency: Limelight Hoops) replied with 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists and his fellow American import guard Alex Harris (196-86, agency: Interperformances) added 17 points in the effort for EnBW Ludwigsburg. Four Phoenix Hagen and five EnBW Ludwigsburg players scored in double figures. Phoenix Hagen moved-up to twelfth place, which they share with 3 other teams. EnBW Ludwigsburg lost third consecutive game. They dropped to the sixteenth position with nine games lost. Phoenix Hagen will face bottom-ranked BG Goettingen (#18) at home in the next round where they are favorite. EnBW Ludwigsburg will play against the league's leader Brose Baskets and will have a slim chance for a victory.
Top scorers:
EnBW L'burg: A.Harris 17+1ast, D.Zavackas 12+3reb, J.Lischka 11+5reb+1ast, J.Bowler 11+5reb+4ast, J.Greer 10+4reb+4ast, M.Dorris 9+4reb+2ast
Phoenix Hagen: T.Blackwood 27+2reb+5ast, Z.Jonusas 23+5reb, M.Antonio Carter 17+8reb+5ast, B.Kruel 10+2reb, J.Hasquet 9+3reb, E.Seward 4+3reb

Goettingen - Fraport SKY 65-78

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 18th ranked BG Goettingen's (2-12) home loss to seventeenth ranked Deutsche Bank Skyliners (5-9) 65-78 on Monday. The guests trailed by 8 points after first quarter, but they stormed back and won the game by 13 points. Deutsche Bank Skyliners dominated on the defensive end, holding BG Goettingen to just 7 points in second quarter. It was a great shooting night for Deutsche Bank Skyliners especially from behind the arc, where they had solid 53.3 percentage. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Deutsche Bank Skyliners made 7 blocks. American players dominated the game. Forward Jermareo Davidson (208-84, college: Alabama) orchestrated the victory with a double-double by scoring 18 points, 11 rebounds and 6 blocks. Guard Jimmy McKinney (192-83, college: Missouri, agency: Strategic Sports) contributed with 21 points for the winners. Four Deutsche Bank Skyliners players scored in double figures. Power forward Raymond Sykes (206-86, college: Clemson) replied with 24 points and guard Paris Horne (191-87, college: St.John's) added 10 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for BG Goettingen. Deutsche Bank Skyliners moved-up to twelfth place, which they share with 3 other teams. BG Goettingen at the other side stay at the bottom position with 12 games lost. Deutsche Bank Skyliners will face higher ranked Artland Dragons (#3) in Quakenbrueck in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. BG Goettingen will play on the road against Phoenix Hagen (#15).
Top scorers:
Goettingen: R.Sykes 24+4reb, J.Allen 11+2reb, P.Horne 10+5reb+3ast, M.Bauscher 7+3reb+6ast, S.Evans 6+7reb, M.Weber 6+3reb+2ast
Fraport SKY: J.McKinney 21+3reb+2ast, J.Davidson 18+11reb+2ast, J.Burtschi 17+5reb+3ast, J.Herber 16+2reb+1ast, Q.Robertson 4+5reb+5ast, M.Nolte 2+1reb+1ast

s.Oliver Baskets - B.Muenchen 64-55

There was a small surprise when seventh ranked s Oliver Baskets (8-6) won against 5th ranked Bayern Muenchen (8-6) in Wuerzburg 64-55 on Friday. Bayern Muenchen was tied after three quarters but could not keep up in the last quarter eventually losing the game. American power forward Ivan Elliott (203-86, college: UCSB, agency: Limelight Hoops) orchestrated the victory by scoring 12 points and 7 rebounds. The other American import guard Ricky Harris (188-87, college: Massachusetts) contributed with 15 points for the winners. International guard Steffen Hamann (194-81) replied with 9 points, 5 assists and 4 steals and American-Bulgarian center Jared Homan (206-83, college: Iowa St.) added 9 points and 7 rebounds in the effort for Bayern Muenchen. s Oliver Baskets moved-up to fifth place, which they share with NY Phantoms and B.Muenchen. s Oliver Baskets will face Eisbaeren Bremerhaven (#10) on the road in the next round where they are favorite. Bayern Muenchen will play against BBC Bayreuth (#9).
Top scorers:
B.Muenchen: J.Homan 9+7reb+1ast, J.Wallace 9+3reb, S.Hamann 9+4reb+5ast, A.Nadjfeji 8+3reb, R.Benzing 7+3reb, D.Greene 6+2reb
s.Oliver Baskets: R.Harris 15+2reb+1ast, I.Elliott 12+7reb, J.Boone 8+8reb, C.Kramer 8+6reb+1ast, C.Frazier 8+4reb, B.Jacobson 8+6reb+2ast

Bayreuth - Bremerhaven 90-86

There was a minor upset when 8th ranked Eisbaeren Bremerhaven (7-7) lost on the road to eleventh ranked BBC Bayreuth (7-7) 90-86 on Tuesday. The hosts trailed by 11 points after three quarters before their 34-19 charge, which allowed them to win the game. BBC Bayreuth made 18-of-21 free shots (85.7 percent) during the game. American players dominated the game. Guard Danny Gibson (180-84, college: S.Indiana, agency: Limelight Hoops) orchestrated the victory by scoring 19 points and 4 assists. Forward Tyler Smith (201-86, college: Tennessee) contributed with 6 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists for the winners. BBC Bayreuth's coach Marco van den Berg used a ten-player rotation in such tough game. Forward Jason Cain (208-85, college: Virginia) replied with 18 points and guard Terrell Everett (193-84, college: Oklahoma, agency: Z.A.G. - Law Offices) added 10 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists in the effort for Eisbaeren Bremerhaven. Four Eisbaeren Bremerhaven players scored in double figures. BBC Bayreuth moved-up to ninth place, which they share with Telekom Baskets and Bremerhaven. BBC Bayreuth will face higher ranked Bayern Muenchen (#6) on the road in the next round and it may be quite challenging game.
Top scorers:
Bremerhaven: J.Cain 18+4reb+3ast, A.Smith 17+3reb+2ast, C.McNaughton 16+5reb+1ast, T.Everett 10+5reb+7ast, Z.Peacock 10+1reb, M.Smith 8+1reb+2ast
Bayreuth: D.Gibson 19+1reb+4ast, O.Jeanty 13+1reb+2ast, B.Hunter 12+4reb, C.Stokes 9+2reb+3ast, E.Ibekwe 8+1reb+1ast, B.Wyrick 8+4reb+1ast

Art.Dragons - ALBA 97-89

We could consider it a predictable result in the game between close teams when fourth ranked Artland Dragons (10-4) defeated one of their biggest challengers ALBA Berlin (9-3) in Quakenbrueck 97-89 on Tuesday. The hosts trailed by 12 points after first quarter, but they rallied back winning next two quarters and won the game by 8 points. It was a great shooting night for Artland Dragons especially from behind the arc, where they had solid 52.6 percentage. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. ALBA Berlin was plagued by 24 personal fouls down the stretch. American guard David Holston (170-86, college: Chicago St.) orchestrated the victory by scoring 25 points and 5 assists. American-Puerto Rican forward Nathan Peavy (203-85, college: Miami, OH) contributed with 19 points and 4 assists for the winners. American forward Derrick Allen (203-80, college: Mississippi, agency: Pro One Sports) replied with 18 points and 6 rebounds (on 9-of-11 shooting from the field) and his fellow American import guard DaShaun Wood (185-85, college: Wright St.) added 15 points in the effort for ALBA Berlin. Four ALBA Berlin players scored in double figures. Artland Dragons have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to third place. ALBA Berlin at the other side dropped to the fourth position with three games lost. Artland Dragons will face Deutsche Bank Skyliners (#12) in Frankfurt in the next round and are hoping to win another game. ALBA Berlin will play at home against Telekom Baskets (#11) in Bonn.
Top scorers:
ALBA: D.Allen 18+6reb, B.Taylor 16+3reb, D.Wood 15+4reb+3ast, M.Simonovic 12+2reb, K.Weaver 10+6reb+4ast, H.Schaffartzik 8+8ast
Art.Dragons: D.Holston 25+2reb+5ast, N.Peavy 19+3reb+4ast, B.Thomas 18+2reb+2ast, G.Gruenheid 9+4reb+1ast, J.Strasser 9+3ast, A.King 7+9reb+1ast

EWE Baskets - Walter Tigers 91-69

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 12th ranked Walter Tigers' (5-9) road loss to eleventh ranked EWE Baskets (7-6) in Oldenburg 69-91 on Tuesday. The game without a history. EWE Baskets led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They shot the lights out from three sinking 13 long-distance shots on high 56.5 percentage. American players dominated the game. Guard Kenny Hasbrouck (191-86, college: Siena) orchestrated the victory by scoring 23 points. Forward Ronald Burrell (204-83, college: NC-Greensboro, agency: Pro One Sports) contributed with 17 points and 6 rebounds (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field) for the winners. Four EWE Baskets players scored in double figures. Guard Louis Campbell (190-79, college: Buffalo, agency: Pro One Sports) replied with 16 points and guard Reggie Redding (196-88, college: Villanova) added 7 points and 8 rebounds in the effort for Walter Tigers. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. EWE Baskets moved-up to eighth place. Walter Tigers at the other side keep the twelfth position with nine games lost. EWE Baskets will face LTi 46ers (#14) in Giessen in the next round where they are favorite. Walter Tigers will play at home against TBB Trier.
Top scorers:
Walter Tigers: L.Campbell 16+3reb+3ast, T.Nash 11+6reb, P.Cukinas 10+1reb, V.Duggins 10+2reb+3ast, J.Young 9+2reb+3ast, R.Redding 7+8reb+3ast
EWE Baskets: K.Hasbrouck 23+3reb+3ast, R.Paulding 19+3reb, R.Burrell 17+6reb+1ast, M.Majstorovic 12+5reb+1ast, A.Chubb 7+4reb+2ast, B.Brown 7+5reb+9ast

TBB Trier - Brose Baskets 70-75 OT

Seventeenth-ranked TBB Trier (4-10) used its home court advantage to challenge second ranked Brose Baskets (11-2) on Tuesday. The visitors from Bamberg managed to secure only five-point victory 75-70. However their fans expected much easier game. The guests trailed by 1 point at the halftime before their 24-14 charge in the third quarter, which allowed them to tie the game at the end of regular time. They were better in overtime eventually winning that period 12-7. TBB Trier was plagued by 27 personal fouls down the stretch. Slovakian guard Anton Gavel (189-84, agency: Pro One Sports) orchestrated the victory by scoring 20 points. American guard Brian Roberts (188-85, agency: Interperformances) contributed with 16 points and 4 assists (was perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line) for the winners. The former international center Maik Zirbes (205-90) replied with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 13 rebounds and American forward Nate Linhart (201-86, college: Akron) added 16 points and 9 rebounds in the effort for TBB Trier. Four TBB Trier players scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Brose Baskets have a solid four-game winning streak. Defending champion keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Ratiopharm. TBB Trier lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the seventeenth place with ten games lost. Brose Baskets will face EnBW Ludwigsburg (#16) at home in the next round which should be an easy win for them. TBB Trier will play against Walter Tigers in Tuebingen.
Top scorers:
TBB Trier: N.Linhart 16+9reb+1ast, M.Zirbes 15+13reb, D.Joyce 15+2reb+3ast, P.Zwiener 12+4reb+1ast, A.Seiferth 4+2reb, J.Bynum 3+2ast
Brose Baskets: A.Gavel 20+1reb+3ast, B.Roberts 16+4ast, J.Jenkins 9+3reb+3ast, A.Leon Tucker 7+6reb+3ast, C.Jacobsen 7+5reb, M.Slaughter 6+8reb

Telekom Baskets - Ratiopharm 84-101

No shocking result in a game when second ranked ratiopharm Ulm (11-2) beat 9th ranked Telekom Baskets (7-7) in Bonn 101-84 on Tuesday. The game without a history. ratiopharm Ulm led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They dominated down low during the game scoring 70 of its points in the paint compared to Telekom Baskets' 42. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when ratiopharm Ulm made 7 blocks. American center John Bryant (208-87, college: Santa Clara) orchestrated the victory by scoring 21 points and 9 rebounds (on 9-of-11 shooting from the field). The other American import forward Dane Watts (203-86, agency: Pro One Sports) contributed with 18 points and 9 rebounds for the winners. American center Chris Ensminger (209-73, college: Valparaiso, agency: Limelight Hoops) replied with a double-double by scoring 12 points and 12 rebounds and Croatian forward Zvonko Buljan (206-87, college: TCU) added 15 points and 10 rebounds in the effort for Telekom Baskets. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. ratiopharm Ulm have an impressive six-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with Brose Baskets. Telekom Baskets at the other side keep the ninth place with seven games lost. ratiopharm Ulm will face New Yorker Phantoms (#5) in Braunschweig in the next round. Telekom Baskets will play on the road against ALBA Berlin (#4).
Top scorers:
Telekom Baskets: B.Veikalas 16+2reb+1ast, Z.Buljan 15+10reb, T.Battle 13+2reb+1ast, C.Ensminger 12+12reb+3ast, J.Jordan 11+5reb+4ast, T.Gaffney 8+5reb+1ast
Ratiopharm: J.Bryant 21+9reb+1ast, I.Swann 18+7reb+3ast, D.Watts 18+9reb+3ast, T.Mason-Griffin 11+5reb+3ast, S.Esterkamp 10+3reb+3ast, R.Trice 8+1ast

LTi 46ers - NY Phantoms 62-63

Very expected game when 13th ranked LTi 46ers (5-9) were edged by sixth ranked New Yorker Phantoms (8-6) in Giessen 63-62 on Thursday. The guests trailed by 1 point at the halftime before their 22-10 charge in the third quarter, which allowed them to win the game. American power forward Rich Melzer (203-79, college: Wisc.-RiverFal., agency: Court Side) saved the victory by scoring 15 points. The other American import center Kyle Visser (211-85, college: Wake Forest) contributed with 7 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. American guard Barry Stewart (191-88, college: Mississippi St.) replied with 16 points and Bosnian power forward Elvir Ovcina (211-76, college: Syracuse, agency: Interperformances) added 11 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for LTi 46ers. Both coaches tested many bench players in such tough game. New Yorker Phantoms moved-up to fifth place, which they share with B.Muenchen and s.Oliver Baskets. LTi 46ers at the other side dropped to the twelfth position with nine games lost. New Yorker Phantoms will face league's second-placed ratiopharm Ulm at home in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. LTi 46ers will play against EWE Baskets (#8) in Oldenburg.
Top scorers:
LTi 46ers: B.Stewart 16+3reb+3ast, E.Ovcina 11+5reb, M.Nikagbatse 8+3reb, K.Archibong 6, M.Perl 5+2reb, W.Bernard 4+6reb+3ast
NY Phantoms: R.Melzer 15+4reb, L.Greer 13+1reb+2ast, B.Jorovic 9+4reb+2ast, M.Umeh 7+2ast, K.Visser 7+8reb+2ast, I.McElroy 6+6reb+2ast

Standings - 1. Bundesliga

1.Bundesliga Standings

1. Brose Baskets		11-2
2. Ratiopharm		11-2
3. Art.Dragons		10-4
4. ALBA		9-3
5. NY Phantoms		8-6
6. B.Muenchen		8-6
7. s.Oliver Baskets		8-6
8. EWE Baskets		7-6
9. Bayreuth		7-7
10. Bremerhaven		7-7
11. Telekom Baskets		7-7
12. Fraport SKY		5-9
13. Walter Tigers		5-9
14. LTi 46ers		5-9
15. Phoenix Hagen		5-9
16. EnBW L'burg		4-9
17. TBB Trier		4-10
18. Goettingen		2-12

Standings - Pro B

ProB Standings

Group North
1. Hannover		11-3
2. Vechta		11-4
3. SU Medien		10-5
4. Schwelm		9-6
5. Stahnsdorf		9-6
6. Herten		8-6
7. Dorsten		8-7
8. Wulfen		7-8
9. Wolfenbuettel		7-8
10. Bayer Giants		5-9
11. Rist Wedel		5-10
12. ALBA Berlin II		4-10
13. Bernau		1-14
Group South
1. Gotha		11-3
2. Noerdlingen		11-3
3. BSW Sixers		10-4
4. Leipzig		10-4
5. Dragons		9-4
6. Langen		8-6
7. Hanau		7-7
8. Licher Baeren		7-7
9. TSV Troester		5-9
10. Fraport SKY II		3-11
11. Giessen		2-12
12. BG Illertal		1-13

Stats Leaders - 1.Bundesliga

Points Per Game

David HOLSTON
  Art.Drag.
  (170-G-86)
  Avg: 18.7

1. Holston, Art.Drag.	18.7
2. Brown, EWE Baskets	18.0
3. Carter, Phoenix	17.4
4. Gray, Fraport SKY	16.0
5. Wood, ALBA	15.6
6. Foster, B.Muenchen	15.5
7. Swann, Ratiopharm	15.3
8. Jonusas, Phoenix	15.0
9. Ensminger, Teleko.	14.9
10. Leuer, Fraport SKY	14.8

Rebounds Per Game

John BRYANT
  Ratiopharm
  (208-C-87)
  Avg: 9.8

1. Bryant, Ratiopharm	9.8
2. Ensminger, Teleko.	8.4
3. Evans, Goettingen	8.0
4. Leuer, Fraport SKY	7.8
5. Chubb, EWE Baskets	7.7
6. Davidson, Fraport	7.7
7. Troutman, B.Mue.	6.9
8. Sykes, Goettingen	6.9
9. Zirbes, TBB Trier	6.9
10. Watts, Ratiopharm	6.8

Assists Per Game

Jared JORDAN
  Telekom .
  (188-PG-84)
  Avg: 7.4

1. Jordan, Telekom	7.4
2. Holston, Art.Drag.	5.8
3. Wood, ALBA	5.3
4. Brown, EWE Baskets	5.3
5. Joyce, TBB Trier	5.2
6. Brewer, Bremerha.	5.1
7. Hamann, B.Muenchen	4.5
8. Campbell, Walter T.	4.4
9. Gibson, Bayreuth	4.4
10. Greer, EnBW L.	3.7

Steals Per Game

Nate LINHART
  TBB Trier
  (201-F-86)
  Avg: 1.9

1. Linhart, TBB Trier	1.9
2. Dorris, EnBW L.	1.8
3. Holston, Art.Drag.	1.5
4. Carter, Phoenix	1.5
5. Crowe, Phoenix	1.4
6. Wood, ALBA	1.4
7. Redding, Walter T.	1.3
8. Tucker, Brose B.	1.3
9. Kramer, s.Oliv.	1.2
10. Burrell, EWE B.	1.2

Blocks Per Game

Ekenechukwu IBEKWE
  Bayreuth
  (206-F-85)
  Avg: 2.1

1. Ibekwe, Bayreuth	2.1
2. Gaffney, Teleko.	2.0
3. Slaughter, Brose B.	1.8
4. Looby, EnBW L.	1.8
5. Davidson, Fraport	1.7
6. Pleiss, Brose B.	1.5
7. Constantine, Phoen.	1.3
8. Bryant, Ratiopharm	1.2
9. King, Art.Dragons	1.2
10. Redding, Walter T.	1.1

Jamison Brewer Departs From The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven And Alex Gordon Comes Aboard - by Miles Schmidt-Scheuber
Some Eisbaeren Bremerhaven fans who might not have digested their Christmas dinner yet, may get an additional uneasy feeling today as the club announced that ex NBA player Jamison Brewer has left the club. Brewer who is a 32 year old 193 cm point guard joined the Eisbaeren last season playing 13 games: 8.2ppg, 3.4rpg, 4.7apg, FGP: 45.3%, 3PT: 29.2%, FT: 79.4%. He returned this season playing 13 games and averaging 4,9ppg and 5,1apg has asked the team to terminate his contract on account of personal reasons. 'We have to respect his decision. We thank him for his engagement and wish him all the best', stressed Eisbaeren manager Jan Rahjen. 'The decision was easy for me, because I felt very comfortable with the team and in Bremerhaven. I want to thank them for their trust and will cross my fingers for them the rest of the season', added Jamison Brewer.

The Eisbaeren Bremerhaven didn't wait long to find a replacement as they brought in Alex Gordon (184-G-85, college: Vanderbilt) who recieved a two week try out contract and will suit up tonight in Bayreuth. Gordon is a 26 year old 184cm guard from Pensacola, Florida who displays great speed and quickness along with tremendous range from the perimeter. Brings a competitive flavor to the floor. He played at Vanderbilt (NCAA) from 2004 to 2008 and in his senior year played 34 games: 10.8ppg, 2.4rpg, 3.1apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 40.4%, 3PT: 40.1%, FT: 78.4%. He reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2007. He started his professional basketball career in 2008 for Oyak Renault Bursa (Turkey-TBL) playing 30 games: Score-2 (20.9ppg), 3.6rpg, 4.4apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 43.3%, 3PT: 36.3%, FT: 79.5%. In 2009-2010, he played for Kepez Bld Antalya (Turkey-TBL, starting five): 6 games: 13.2ppg, 2.7rpg, 4.0apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 52.5%, 3PT: 23.5%, FT: 92.9%; in Dec.'09 moved to Erdemirspor Belediyesi (Turkey-TBL) playing 24 games: 9.9ppg, 2.1rpg, 3.2apg, FGP: 45.1%, 3PT: 25.7%, FT: 76.5%. Last season he played for Chorale de Roanne Basket (France-ProA): EuroCup: 6 games: 5.2ppg, 1.2rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 30.0%, 3PT: 38.9%; Euroleague Qualifying Round: 2 games: 15.5ppg, 1.5rpg, 2.5apg, left in Feb.'11; French League: 19 games: 7.9ppg, 1.6rpg, 2.7apg, FGP: 28.1%, 3PT: 42.1%, FT: 86.0%. This season, he started the year with Hyeres-Toulon Var Basket (France-ProA, starting five), left in pre-season, then signed at JSF Nanterre (France-ProA) playing three games and averaging 4,7ppg, and 1,3apg.

Source: Eisbaeren Bremerhaven

The Fraport Skyliners Play Point Guard By Committee Perplexing BG Goettingen 78-65 - by Miles Schmidt-Scheuber
For some teams performing well and wining in the past in the Lok Halle was equal to basketball cruelty as for some it was as difficult to to deny that actress Lindsay Lohan doesnt have the arsenal be called a Playboy success to win there as it is for basketball superstar Kobe Bryant to deny his women exploits to the basketball wives of America or Tim tebow supporters recovering after Tom Brady and the New England Patriots brought him the Denver broncos back to reality after the crushing 41-23 loss last weekend. For the Skyliners in the past, winning in the Lok Halle wasnt always tough as they finished there with a 2-2 record the last four years. Who could forget the 74-67 victory in 2008, where half the team was sick and Maksym Shtein was the hero for 24 hours mowing down the opposition in Ukrainian train style with 24 points or last season their 70-58 win as Dashaun Wood and Roger Powell took control with 18 points a piece. The Lokhalle era came to an end last season as this season, the team moved into the Sparkassen arena and The Fraport Skyliners wanted to send a positive new trend as they left the new home of BG Goettingen with a big 78-65 win. For injured BG Goettingen guard Louis Dale leaving the Lok halle wasnt easy, but the Sparkassen halle is already stirring up a lot of noise. We have many new players, so there really wasnt any adjustment for them as they never played in the Lok Halle. This arena is brighter, but the atmosphere is still good. When the game is on the line, it can get very loud in here, stressed BG Goettingen American Louis Dale. After the big win, new Skyliner Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force) was all smiles and didnt boast about his hot three point shooting, but was drilled about the new arena. This is a good arena and can get loud. This arena can be very intimidating, because the ceiling is low and you seem to be packed in. It is more intimidating playing in a smaller packed arena than in Berlin where it is more of an open arena, warned ex Phoenix Hagen forward Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force).

On the second German Christmas holiday, the Beko BBL only had one game on the schedule with a real cellar duel as 18th placed BG Goettingen had to play a very injury plagued Fraport Skyliners team who were without Justin Gray, Tim Ohlbrecht and Danilo Barthel. The team also got a rude surprise as only point guard Michael Thompson hurt his shoulder recently in practice and had to sit out the game. The Fraport Skyliners had to play a six man rotation as Johannes Herber, Jimmy Mckinney and Quantez Robertson played the full 40 minutes and the team had no classic point guard. JimmyMckinney had to play the point and did a fine job as the team continues to do an excellent job taking care of the ball as it only had eight team turnovers. Skyliner team captain was ecstatic after the win in Hagen, was a bit more calm after the win in Braunschweig and even more composed after the third road win in a row in the Beko BBL in Goettingen. This was a great win. We had no point guard as Thompson had hurt his shoulder. We fought for 40 minutes and every one stepped up. I have a lot of respect for our team. Johannes Herber wasnt even supposed to play, but he wanted to play so bad and not let the team down. Mckinney had a great game, Tez as always gave so much energy and Burtschi hit big three pointers when we needed them most in the fourth quarters and just made great decisions. We showed so much moral today, stressed Marius Nolte. For BG Goettingen, they continue to be on a steep roller coast ride deeper and deeper into the beko BBL cellar as they showed a strong first quarter, but couldnt match the overall intensity of the Fraport Skyliners in the last 30 minutes as they fought and fought, but couldnt get over the hump and recover the lead. We had too many lapses. We have to play well for 40 minutes. We played well in Bayreuth and against Ulm, but couldnt play well the whole 40 minutes. When we suffer a drought, it costs us the game. We werent as aggressive in the last 30 minutes. We didnt get to the free throw line enough and should of sped up the tempo more, because they had injuries. It was the little things that cost us the game, stressed 2009 top scorer in Holland Matt Bauscher. We played point guard by committee. We all had to step up to be better and showed what we were capable of doing, warned Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force).

It is always fascinating to see what interesting things can be observed before the jump ball is served and the game finally starts. The first thing that really stood out in the Sparkassen arena was the traces of purple around the floor as the color of BG Goettingen was still very much alive even if the Lokhalle was dark an din basketball retirement. Jermareo Davidson was already pumped before the game smiling and singing along to the rap music that was blaring out of the speakers, Skyliner PRO B player Tim Oldenburg was on the roster and was as focused in warm ups as if he was ready to play for 40 minutes, Paris Horne was displaying acrobatic dunks and ex teammates Jimmy Mckinney and Max Weber had a friendly get together at center court. When the game finally started, German national player Johannes Herber quickly hit his first two shots as the Fraport Skyliners led 5-2. Herber had also had aquick start in Braunschweig a week earlier and had something in his eyes that seemed to forecast something good happening on this day for his team. However the quick momentum quickly changed hands BG Goettingen sped out on a 11-1 run to lead 13-6 as Raymond Sykes was hurting Frankfurt inside and American Jerel Allen was hitting seemingly from every where outside except from the Goettingen train station.Sykes was getting inside often getting put backs and taking advantage of the soft Frankfurt defense inside. Frankfurt needed a quick spark and found it with St Louis native Jimmy Mckinney who nailed two pull up jumper to cut the BG Goettingen lead to 13-10. However BG Goettingen continued to score finishing the first quarter with a 9-6 run to lead 24-16. BG Goettingen was sparked by two three pointers by Allen and got production from St Johns star Paris Horne who hit a bomb. It took ex NBA player Jermareo Davidson to get going as he slowly started to find his rhythm in the last two minutes registering four points. We had a good first quarter. We found our shooters who were open and we hit our shots which gave Frankfurt problems, stressed BG Goettingen CEO Marc Franz. We werent rebounding well and they hit many three pointers. We may have been playing good defense, but they hit all their shots, commented Skyliner center Marius Nolte. BG Goettingen was shooting 59% from the field and 67% from outside while the Fraport Skyliners were shooting 40% from the field and 25% from outside. BG Goettingen was totally dominating the boards 11-4, but had three turnovers while Frankfurt only had one turnover.

For anyone to say that basketball is not a game of runs is a liar, because runs happen on a regular basis and after BG Goettingen had their turn in the first quarter, it was time for the Fraport Skyliners in the second quarter as they jumped on their opponent going on a 14-3 run to retake the lead 30-27. Even though Jermareo Davidson started to slowly heat up, it was the Davidson show, but the Fraport Skyliners show as the team got support from five players. Herber got the run going with another three pointer which was followed by two Davidson buckets as Frankfurt still trailed 24-23. Horne then nailed a three pointer, but Frankfurt remained consistent on offense. Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force) got on the score board with a lay up with his left hand, Mckinney dropped a bomb from downtown and Quantez Robertson came speeding from the wing getting an extra pass from Davidson and lay the ball in the hole. Frankfurt had increased their defensive intensity as Davidson was going on a block festival as he finished with six in total and Frankfurt was defending well as a team for example a Johannes Herber coming to help out forcing a turnover. Davidson is very athletic and long and we get beat on the drive, he steps up and blocks shots, stressed Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force). Sykes then hit a step up jumper, which was followed by a nifty play by Robertson who drove and did a fake pass movement to Nolte and finished himself. Both teams traded hoops again as Sykes and Nolte scored. The Fraport Skyliners had the slim 34-31 lead at halftime. We had problems finding our game and Frankfurt did a good job finding guys as Herber hit shots and Davidson was scoring in the paint, added BG Goettingen CEO Marc Franz. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 44% from the field and 38% from the three point line while BG Goettingen was shooting 43% from the field and 42% from the three point line. BG Goettingen still dominated the glass 19-13, but had 10 turnovers while Frankfurt only had four turnovers.

In the third quarter, the Fraport Skyliners quickly jumped out on a 7-2 run to lead as they led 41-33. Jermareo Davidson scored five of the seven points as he scored on a mid distance jumper and lay in all the while also continuing to be a force block Max Weber and Raymond Sykes shots. Sykes who was the go to man for BG Goettingen continued to pose big problems for Frankfurt inside as he created havoc inside making a tip in off a Bauscher miss and scoring inside as Davidson was a step to late as BG Goettingen trailed only 45-40. Mckinney then hit two consecutive shots making a nice cross over against Weber who stayed with the American as he hit the fade away and the St Louis native them made a catch and pop from the wing. Sykes then hit two free throws as Frankfurt led only 47-44. However whenever BG Goettingen threatened to retake the lead, they always came up with an answer as Frankfurt continued to find different ways tos core as Nolte played match maker finding Herber speeding into the lane and finding him with a perfect pass and easy layup. Sykes split the defense again with a massive dunk as BG Goettingen trailed 49-46, but Mckinney took advantage of the lax BG Goettingen defesne penetrating and scoring and Burtschi nailing a big three pointer. Sykes finished the scoring in the third quarter with an easy lay up as the Frankfurt defense was sleeping. After three quarters, the Fraport Skyliners were leading 54-48. Bg Goettingen stayed resilient and fought back. We gave up easy layups, but always had an answer to keep the lead, stressed Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force). Frankfurt hit many contested shots and when we made apush, they answered with big shots, expressed Matt Baucsher. The Fraport Skyliners were shooting 48% from the field and 40% from the parking lot while BG Goettingen was shooting 41% from the field and 38% from the parking lot. BG Goettingen still had the 25-21 rebound edge, but had suffered 12 turnovers while Frankfurt had only six turnovers.

The Fraport Skyliners seemed to improve as the game wore on and in the fourth quarter, everything seemed to totally fall in place on offense and defense as they were able to shut the door on BG Goettingen. Davidson got the Fraport Skyliners on the board first with a lay in, but BG Goettingen continued to pressure Frankfurt as they continued to battle with the heart of a lion German PhilipNoch made a free throw and Sykes scored as BG Goettingen trailed only 56-51. However, the Fraport Skyliners got timely shots the whole fourth quarter which was started by a Burtschi three pointer and one Davidson free throw as BG Goettingen trailed 60-51. Scoring guard Matt Bauscher that was playing the point had declined many shots, but then he chose a difficult penetrationand reverse lay up that he hit as BG Goettingen trailed only 60-53, but then it was time again for the cool and calm Mr Top Gun Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force) who connected with another three pointer giving Frankfurt the 63-53 lead. I finally showed that I am capable of making shots, but everybody stepped up with Herber and Mckinney making shots and Davidson blocking shots, stressed Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force). Frankfurt then displayed blocking power as Davidson and Burtschi had back to back blocks. Mckinney and Bauscher then traded three pointers as the Fraport Skyliners still led 66-56. Herber then made a jumper and Sykes scored inside as BG Goettingen was behind 68-58 with three minutes to play. The Fraport Skyliners then sealed the win with a 5-0 run to lead 73-58 as Herber dropped a three pointer and Burtschi scored inside. The last minute displayed free throws as the Fraport Skyliners won their fourth road game of the season. This was a great team performance. It was tough playing without Juice, but guys stepped up in his place. We showed a lot of determination. We played great at times when we needed to. We held our composure, commented Jimmy Mckinney. Frankfurt was very composed. We lost the game with our defense. We let them drive too much. We should of pressured them more, but we let them get too comfortable as we got lazy on defense. They also made big plays when they needed to and we didnt, warned BG Goettingen guard Jerel Allen.

The Fraport Skyliners were led by Jimmy Mckinney with 21 points. Jermareo Davidson had 18 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and six blocks. Jacob Burtschi (198-F-84, college: Air Force) chipped in with 17 points, five rebounds and three assists. Johannes Herber contributed 16 points. BG Goettingen was led by Raymond Sykes with 24 points. Jerel Allen produced 11 points and Paris Horne had 10 points. The Fraport Skyliner have had problems this season finding their shooting accuracy, but had a field day shooting 49% from the field and 53% from outside. Frankfurt did lose the rebounding battle, but considering Frankfurt played with a six man rotation and were without big men Tim Ohlbrecht and Danilo Barthel, any type of criticism about the play of the Fraport Skyliners should be held back. The Fraport Skyliners have been defending very well in recent weeks and as soon as the offense starts to roll, then this is a totally different team with potential success. In the last seven games, the Fraport Skyliners may only be 3-4, but have let up only 66 points per game. We are starting to find out our identity on defense. We give a lot of effort and are playing well. We are rotating well and with Davidson we have a guy who is always redirecting shots and Nolte gives us so much under the boards, stressed Jimmy Mckinney. However something that is always difficult to form is team chemistry and that seems to be growing. Our team chemistry is developing well. Nobody on this team likes to lose. We talk so much on the court. The atmosphere was always great. It took longer for the chemistry to grow, but we are on a good way, warned Marius Nolte. The Fraport Skyliners host the Artland Dragons on December 30th at 19:30.

Statistical leaders of the 1. Regionalliga South-East - by Moritz Korff
While the players are enjoying the christmas break and a couple of days of rest, let's take a look at the statistical leaders of the 1. Regionalliga South-East. Only players who appeared in at least six games so far this season have been listed.

Efficiency per game:
1. Kenny Jones (198-F-84, college: Kentucky St.) - Dachau: 32.5
2. Justin Smith (201-F/C-87, agency: Scorers 1st Sportmanagement, college: Hawaii-Hilo) - Weiden: 29.4
3. Jason Boucher (180-G-80, college: Grand Valley St.) - Dresden: 24.5
4. Stefan Schmoll (196-F-89) - Treuchtlingen: 24.2
5. C.J. Trotter (190-G, college: S.Indiana) - Zwickau: 23.8
6. Johannes Richter (203-F/C-93) - Regnitztal: 23.6
7. Georg Doelle (194-G/F-85) - Dresden: 23.4
8. Webster Moreland (198-F, college: Warner Pacific) - Rattelsdorf: 22.3
9. Pavel Novak (199-F-83) - Weiden: 21.2
10. Michael Hoffmann (203-F/C-89) - Deisenhofen: 16.2

Scoring:
1. Kenny Jones (198-F-84, college: Kentucky St.) - Dachau: 27.6ppg
2. Stefan Schmoll - Treuchtlingen: 26.2ppg
3. C.J. Trotter - Zwickau: 24.3ppg
4. Jason Boucher (180-G-80, college: Grand Valley St.) - Dresden: 24.0ppg
5. Webster Moreland - Rattelsdorf: 22.9ppg
6. Pavel Novak - Weiden: 22.8ppg
7. Justin Smith - Weiden: 21.2ppg
8. Matthias Meinel (195-F-77) - Ansbach: 20.6ppg
9. Georg Doelle (194-G/F-85) - Dresden: 20.0ppg
10. Goran Petrovic (185-G-77) - Ansbach: 19.2ppg

Rebounding:
1. Kenny Jones (198-F-84, college: Kentucky St.) - Dachau: 12.2rpg
2. Justin Smith - Weiden: 11.8rpg
3. Johannes Richter (203-F/C-93) - Regnitztal: 10.9rpg
4. Stefan Schmoll - Treuchtlingen: 9.4rpg
5. Johannes Thiemann (203-F/C-94) - Regniztal: 9.2rpg
6. Ross Allsop (210-C-88, agency: Scorers 1st Sportmanagement, college: Nova SE) - Vilsbiburg: 8.9rpg
7. Lars Grubler (211-C-80, college: Hofstra) - Zwickau: 8.1rpg
8. Niklas Jungbauer (201-G/F-91) - Baunach: 7.8rpg
9. Karim Aw (204-C-65) - Ansbach: 7.5rpg
10. Webster Moreland - Rattelsdorf: 7.4rpg

Assists:
1. Goran Petrovic (185-G-77) - Ansbach: 5.9apg
2. Dean Jenko (188-G-67) - Ansbach: 4.6apg
3. Florian Boerstler (185-G-91) - Muenchen: 4.4apg
4. Jason Boucher (180-G-80, college: Grand Valley St.) - Dresden: 4.0apg
5. Nico Probst (188-G-81) - Ansbach: 3.8apg

Steals:
1. Jason Boucher (180-G-80, college: Grand Valley St.) - Dresden: 3.6spg
2. Pavel Novak - Weiden: 3.5spg
3. Lukas von Gierke (184-G-89) - Leipzig: 3.2spg
3. Webster Moreland - Rattelsdorf: 3.2spg
5. Tim Schnitzler (190-G/F) - Leipzig: 2.5spg

Blocked Shots:
1. Karim Aw (204-C-65) - Ansbach: 1.2bpg
1. Justin Smith - Weiden: 1.2bpg
3. C.J. Trotter - Zwickau: 1.0bpg
4. Ross Allsop - Vilsbiburg: 0.9bpg
5. Webster Moreland - Rattelsdorf: 0.8bpg
5. Johannes Thiemann - Regnitztal: 0.8bpg
5. Kenny Jones (198-F-84, college: Kentucky St.) - Dachau: 0.8bpg
5. Niklas Jungbauer - Baunach: 0.8bpg
5. Joel Nganko (200-C-78) - Ansbach: 0.8bpg

Source: www.basketball-bund.net

*****************************************************

GHANA

NLA Hands Over Basketball Court to Adentan - by Eurobasket News
As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility, the National Lotteries Authority has undertaken social investment in the Adentan Municipality by constructing an ultra modern basketball court for the youth of the community.

It has been long coming since 2008, when the basketball court was finally constructed by the NLA. The youth of the community have been denied access to playing basketball games on the court.

It took the efforts of some concerned youth of the Municipality to approach Rite Multimedia, organizers of Sprite basketball among second cycle institutions to rescue the youth of Adentan.

The management and maintenance of the basketball has been given to Rite Multimedia, to ensure a long lifespan for the court.

Speaking at the recent handing over ceremony, the Municipal Chief Executive, Madam Nubly Kraka Vanlur has observed that the youth should avoid negative social vices and rather channel their youthful energy into sporting activities, such as basketball.

On the part of Managing Director of National Sport Authority, Mr. Wolanyo Agra, he pleaded with the corporate bodies within the community to aid in the growth of basketball as a sport in the community.

Mr. Agra charged the youth of Adenta to frequent the court and ensure that the facility is maintained.

The Director of Speacial Projects of NLA, Mr. George Gyamfi Osew said the facility would help promote unity among the youth in and around catchment areas.

He said, the basketball court is an avenue to utilize energies of the youth positively, whiles promoting the game to enhance their skills.
Courtesy of: The Chronicle

*****************************************************

GREECE

HUNGARY

Derasimovic is back to Hungary - by Tamas Deri
The 200 cm tall Marko Derasimovic (200-F/G-84) will replace Goran Radonjic and finish the season with KKSE for the rest of the season. The serbian wingman is a well known player in our country as he started the season with Eurochallenge team Szolnok and played two games in the qualification round averaging 13.0 points and 6.5 rebounds against Pyrinto. He also helped the team to win the Super Cup against the team of Albacomp but the management decided to release him before the season started.

A Division Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Justin INGRAM
  FS Debre.
  (185-PG-85)
  Avg: 25.7

1. Ingram, FS Debre.	25.7
2. Ivosev, Szedeak	24.3
3. Timberlake, Falco-.	22.9
4. Raivio, Kaposvari	22.5
5. Ciric, PVSK P.	22.1
6. Jones, Jaszberenyi	20.2
7. Doyne, PVSK P.	19.3
8. Wilson, Kaposvari	19.2
9. Townes, Kormend	18.4
10. Bell, Kormend	18.3

Rebounds Per Game

Jonathan JONES
  Jaszberenyi
  (211-C-79)
  Avg: 12.6

1. Jones, Jaszberenyi	12.6
2. Szabo, FS Debrecen	10.6
3. Miskovic, Marso N.	9.8
4. Ivosev, Szedeak	9.5
5. Pantelic, Falco-Sz.	9.1
6. Townes, Kormend	9.1
7. Hines, ZTE K.	8.6
8. Raivio, Kaposvari	8.2
9. Egemonye, Soproni	7.9
10. Fey, Kaposvari	7.9

Assists Per Game

Laszlo KALMAN
  Falco-Sz.
  (186-G-72)
  Avg: 6.8

1. Kalman, Falco-Sz.	6.8
2. Wilson, Kaposvari	6.2
3. Fekete, Marso N.	5.6
4. Trotter, Szolnok	5.5
5. Simon, Albacomp	5.4
6. Ingram, FS Debre.	5.2
7. Williams, Atomeromu	5.2
8. Drahos, Szedeak	4.4
9. Thomas, Soproni	4.3
10. El Amin, Albacomp	4.3

Steals Per Game

Stefan FEKETE
  Marso N.
  (188-G-86)
  Avg: 3.3

1. Fekete, Marso N.	3.3
2. Drahos, Szedeak	3.0
3. Ivosev, Szedeak	2.6
4. Raivio, Kaposvari	2.5
5. Kelley, Kecskemeti	2.4
6. Doyne, PVSK P.	2.3
7. Ingram, FS Debre.	2.3
8. Trotter, Szolnok	2.3
9. Wilson, Kaposvari	2.3
10. Wittmann, Kecsk.	2.2

Blocks Per Game

Darian TOWNES
  Kormend
  (208-F/C-84)
  Avg: 2.1

1. Townes, Kormend	2.1
2. Pantelic, Falco-Sz.	1.9
3. Levy, Szedeak	1.4
4. Jones, Jaszberenyi	1.4
5. Morgen, Atomeromu	1.2
6. Chism, Albacomp	1.2
7. Fey, Kaposvari	1.1
8. Ivosev, Szedeak	1.1
9. Cole, Atomeromu	1.0
10. Hines, ZTE K.	1.0

Standings - A Division

A Division Standings

1. Albacomp		11-1
2. Falco-Szova		11-2
3. Kormend		10-2
4. Szolnok		9-3
5. Atomeromu		7-5
6. Kecskemeti		6-6
7. Kaposvari		6-6
8. PVSK Pannon		6-6
9. Szedeak		4-8
10. Soproni		4-8
11. Marso NYKK		4-9
12. FS Debrecen		3-9
13. Jaszberenyi		3-9
14. ZTE KK		1-11

*****************************************************

IRAN

Mahram keep the top undefeated - by Eurobasket News
Mahram keep the top undefeated with 13-0 record. In the latest round the favorites overcame Petrochimi 94:74. Samad Nikkhah (198-G/F-83, agency: SportsList Inc.) stepped up with 24 points and Nikoloz Tskitishvili (212-C/F-83) followed him with 18.
Foolad Mahan and Azad follow the leader with 10-3 records each. Foolad Mahan beat Zanjan 86:50 while Azad edged M.H.Ahvaz 72:61.

Standings - Superleague

Superleague Standings

1. Mahram		13-0
2. Foolad Mahan		10-3
3. Azad		10-3
4. Zob Ahan		9-4
5. Petrochimi		8-5
6. Sanaye Petrochimi		6-7
7. M.H.Ahvaz		5-8
8. Shiraz a.s Pipe		4-9
9. Pouya		4-9
10. Gorgan		4-9
11. Zanjan		3-10
12. Jahesh		2-11

*****************************************************

ISRAEL

Standings - National League

National League Standings

1. Macc.B.Yaakov		10-2
2. Hapoel T-A		10-2
3. Elitzur Yavne		8-4
4. Hapoel Afula		7-5
5. Kiryat Tivon		7-5
6. Ironi Nahariya		6-5
7. Hod Hasharon		6-6
8. Ironi K-A		6-6
9. Elitzur Ramla		5-7
10. Lev Hasharon		5-7
11. Ironi Nes-Ziona		4-7
12. Ironi Ramat Gan		4-8
13. Hapoel Y/M		3-9
14. Hapoel K/S		2-10

Stats Leaders - National League

Points Per Game

Errick MCCOLLUM
  Hapoel K.
  (185-G-88)
  Avg: 28.8

1. McCollum, Hapoel K.	28.8
2. Sanders, Hapoel Y.	22.6
3. Moragne, Elitzur	22.3
4. Hall, Macc.B.Y.	22.3
5. Miller, Macc.B.Y.	22.2
6. Clemente, Kiryat T.	22.0
7. Ginyard, Ironi N.	21.8
8. Thondique, Hapoel	21.6
9. Bet-Yosef, Macc.B.	20.6
10. Daniel, Ironi K-A	20.4

Rebounds Per Game

Ramon CLEMENTE
  Kiryat T.
  (200-PF-85)
  Avg: 15.5

1. Clemente, Kiryat T.	15.5
2. Thondique, Hapoel	13.8
3. Rosefelt, Lev H.	11.4
4. Moses, Hapoel K/S	10.6
5. Daniel, Ironi K-A	10.3
6. Blair, Ironi N.	9.5
7. Bacon, Elitzur Ram.	9.4
8. Webb, Ironi R.	9.4
9. McCollum, Hapoel K.	9.3
10. Traimel, Ironi N.	9.1

Assists Per Game

Ilan NANIKASHVILI
  Ironi K.
  (187-G-79)
  Avg: 7.9

1. Nanikashvili, Iron.	7.9
2. Eliyahu, Ironi N.	7.9
3. Segev, Kiryat Tivon	7.8
4. Berkowitz, Elitzu.	6.5
5. Sukar, Hod Hashar.	6.0
6. Bannister, Ironi R.	5.0
7. Assaf, Ironi N.	4.5
8. McCollum, Hapoel K.	4.0
9. Gonzalez, Hod H.	3.9
10. Bet-Yosef, Macc..	3.8

Steals Per Game

Lior SEGEV
  Kiryat Tivon
  (190-PG-83)
  Avg: 3.9

1. Segev, Kiryat Tivon	3.9
2. Bet-Yosef, Macc.B.	3.5
3. Hofman, Elitzur	3.0
4. Miller, Macc.B.Y.	2.8
5. Tolbert, Hapoel K/S	2.8
6. Eliyahu, Ironi N.	2.7
7. Gonzalez, Hod H.	2.6
8. Housman, Macc.B.Y.	2.3
9. Zigdon, Ironi R.	2.2
10. Sztarkman, Hapoel	2.1

Blocks Per Game

Lenny DANIEL
  Ironi K-A
  (201-F-87)
  Avg: 3

1. Daniel, Ironi K-A	3.0
2. Blair, Ironi N.	2.3
3. Kelly, Hapoel T-A	2.1
4. Clemente, Kiryat T.	2.0
5. Webb, Ironi R.	1.8
6. Johnson, Hod H.	1.8
7. Jackson, Hapoel Y.	1.8
8. Thondique, Hapoel	1.6
9. Younger, Ironi K-A	1.2
10. Rosefelt, Lev H.	1.2

Hapoel Jerusalem to Fire Oded Katash? - by David Pick
After suffering another embarrassing road lose last night to B.C. Habikaa, sources close to situation exclusively inform Eurobasket that Hapoel Jerusalem's Head Coach Oded Katash will part ways with the team within the next few hours. The main candidate to take the sidelines of Malha Arena is Jerusalem's former coach Sharon Drucker, who led the team to an historic European (then ULEB cup) title in 2004.

Despite the loss, Katash scheduled a team practice this afternoon and will attend a general staff meeting right after where he will likely receive his pink slip. Jerusalem, who failed to make it passed the EuroCup's first round now back-to-back seasons is currently ranked 4th in the Israeli Lotto League holding a 6-4 record. Last night Jerusalem fell to Habikaa 81:59, in what was their new PG Demetri Mccamey's debut finishing with 9 points, 5 assists & 2 rebounds.

Injured scoring guard Yuval Naimy told Eurobasket he's expecting to return to action and help his team within the next two weeks.

Follow David Pick on Twitter: @DubiPick

National League Round 12: Hapoel Afula defeats leader Beer Yaakov - by Eurobasket News
The most surprising game was a loss of top-ranked Beer Yaakov (10-2) at the home court on Tuesday night. Hosts were defeated by fifth ranked Hapoel Afula (7-5) 108-100. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Beer Yaakov. The guests trailed by 2 points after first quarter, but they rallied back to get the 3-point lead at the halftime and eventually won the game 108-100. Hapoel Afula dominated down low during the game scoring 78 of its points in the paint compared to Beer Yaakov's 58. They outrebounded Beer Yaakov 33-16 including a 22-10 advantage in defensive rebounds. Hapoel Afula looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists. It was a good game for American forward Gregg Thondique (201-F-87, college: Virginia Union) who led his team to a victory with 21 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. Swingman Elad Eliyah (193-85) contributed with 25 points for the winners. Guard Yoad Bet-Yosef (182-87, agency: Avi Zilberman) replied with a double-double by scoring 24 points and 13 assists for Beer Yaakov. Hapoel Afula have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Kiryat Tivon. Beer Yaakov at the other side still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Hapoel T-A. Hapoel Afula is looking forward to face Ironi Nahariya (#6) at home in the next round. Beer Yaakov will play against Lev Hasharon (#10) and is hoping to win this game.
An interesting game for Elitzur Yavne (8-4) which played road game in Kiryat Ata against 4th ranked Ironi Kiryat Ata (6-6). Third ranked Elitzur Yavne had an easy win 100-81. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Nir Golan (180-86) who helped to win the game recording 19 points and 4 assists and Elad Hofman who added 21 points during the contest. The best for the losing side was American forward Tony Younger (200-80, college: Spring Hill, agency: Gross Zeev ISA) with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Elitzur Yavne maintains third position with 8-4 record having just two points less than leader Macc.B.Yaakov. Newly promoted Ironi Kiryat Ata dropped to the seventh place with six games lost. They share the position with Hod Hasharon. Elitzur Yavne will play against league's second-placed Hapoel Tel-Aviv at home in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Ironi Kiryat Ata will play against Hod Hasharon (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
A very close game took place in Nes Ziyona between Ironi Nes-Ziona and Hod Hasharon. Eleventh ranked Ironi Nes-Ziona (4-7) got a very close home victory over higher ranked Hod Hasharon (6-6). Ironi Nes-Ziona managed to escape with a 3-point win 95-92 on Tuesday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Hod Hasharon. The winners were led by Bilal Benn who scored that evening 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Even a double-double of 16 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists by Avi Sukar did not help to save the game for Hod Hasharon. Hod Hasharon's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Ironi Nes-Ziona maintains eleventh position with 4-7 record. Loser Hod Hasharon keeps the seventh place with six games lost. They share the position with Ironi K-A. Ironi Nes-Ziona will meet higher ranked Elitzur Ramla (#9) on the road in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Hod Hasharon will play against Ironi Kiryat Ata and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
The game between eighth ranked Ironi Nahariya (6-5) and 9th ranked Elitzur Ramla (5-7) in Nahariya ended with biggest points difference. Ironi Nahariya outscored guests from Ramla 103-78. The best player for the winners was Jeron Roberts who scored 19 points and 5 assists. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Ironi Nahariya moved-up to sixth place. Elitzur Ramla at the other side keeps the ninth position with seven games lost. Ironi Nahariya's next round opponent will be higher ranked Hapoel Afula (#4) on the road and it may be quite challenging game. Elitzur Ramla will play against Ironi Nes-Ziona (#11) in Nes Ziyona and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

There were no big surprises in other games of round 12: Hapoel Y/M was smashed by Hapoel T-A on the road 84-60. Bottom-ranked Hapoel K/S lost to Ironi Ramat Gan on its own court 71-82. Lev Hasharon was outscored by Kiryat Tivon in Kiryat Tivon 80-104.
The most impressive performance of 12th round was 33 points (!!!) and 22 rebounds by Ramon Clemente of Kiryat Tivon.

Ironi Nahariya - Elitzur Ramla 103-78

The game between eighth ranked Ironi Nahariya (6-5) and 9th ranked Elitzur Ramla (5-7) in Nahariya ended with biggest points difference. Ironi Nahariya outscored guests from Ramla 103-78. The game was mostly controlled by Ironi Nahariya. Elitzur Ramla was better in third quarter 23-20. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Ironi Nahariya made 26-of-31 charity shots (83.9 percent) during the game. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 23 assists. 24 personal fouls committed by Elitzur Ramla helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The best player for the winners was the former international swingman Jeron Roberts (194-76, college: Wyoming, agency: Gross Zeev ISA) who scored 19 points and 5 assists. American swingman Marcus Ginyard (196-87, college: N.Carolina) chipped in 16 points and 9 rebounds. Five Ironi Nahariya players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Stacey Moragne (195-83, college: Mass.-Lowell) who recorded 25 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists (on 8-of-10 shooting from the field) and his fellow American import forward Ryan Bacon (200-88, college: St.Peter's, agency: Strategic Sports) added 19 points and 10 rebounds respectively. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Ironi Nahariya moved-up to sixth place. Elitzur Ramla at the other side keeps the ninth position with seven games lost. Ironi Nahariya's next round opponent will be higher ranked Hapoel Afula (#4) on the road and it may be quite challenging game. Elitzur Ramla will play against Ironi Nes-Ziona (#11) in Nes Ziyona and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Ironi Nahariya: O.Ben Hemo 20+3reb+4ast, J.Roberts 19+4reb+5ast, M.Ginyard 16+9reb+2ast, A.Eliyahu 14+1reb+7ast, E.Traimel 12+9reb+2ast, J.Baze 9+1ast
Elitzur Ramla: S.Moragne 25+7reb+5ast, R.Bacon 19+10reb+3ast, O.Zinderman 12+1ast, M.Badalov 8+1ast, I.Berkowitz 6+5reb+4ast, R.Barzilai 3+1reb+2ast

Hapoel T-A - Hapoel Y/M 84-60

No shocking result in a game when second ranked Hapoel Tel-Aviv (10-2) crushed at home 12th ranked Hapoel Yokneam/Megido (3-9) 84-60. The game without a history. Hapoel Tel-Aviv led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They made 22-of-26 charity shots (84.6 percent) during the game, while Hapoel Yokneam/Megido only scored five points from the stripe. Hapoel Tel-Aviv forced 27 Hapoel Yokneam/Megido turnovers. The best player for the winners was American Curtis Kelly (205-88, college: Kansas St.) who scored 26 points (on 10-of-12 shooting from the field). The other American import point guard Demontez Stitt (186-89, college: Clemson) chipped in 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Four Hapoel Tel-Aviv players scored in double figures. Hapoel Tel-Aviv's coach Erez Edelshtein felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the other side the best for losing team was American power forward Rahshon Turner (201-75, college: Fair Dickinson, agency: Hart Sports Mngm) who recorded 20 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists and forward Haiim Barbi (197-89) added 16 points and 7 rebounds respectively. Hapoel Tel-Aviv have a solid four-game winning streak. They used an opportunity after Macc.B.Yaakov lost their game and moved up joining them at the top position. Hapoel Yokneam/Megido at the other side dropped to the thirteenth place with nine games lost. Hapoel Tel-Aviv's next round opponent will be Elitzur Yavne (#3) on the road, which may be the game of the day. Hapoel Yokneam/Megido will play against Hapoel Kfar Saba (#14) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Hapoel T-A: C.Kelly 26+1reb+2ast, D.Stitt 14+9reb+4ast, G.Eytan 13+2reb+2ast, C.Carr 11+1reb+3ast, M.Naor 7+4reb+2ast, A.Zelkovits 6+3reb
Hapoel Y/M: R.Turner 20+8reb+4ast, H.Barbi 16+7reb+2ast, M.Moscovitz 11+12reb+1ast, J.Sztarkman 5+2reb+3ast, O.Ida 4+1reb, M.Zalmanovich 2+3reb

Hapoel K/S - Ironi Ramat Gan 71-82

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 14th ranked Hapoel Kfar Saba's (2-10) home loss to thirteenth ranked Ironi Ramat Gan (4-8) 71-82. The game was mostly controlled by Ironi Ramat Gan. Hapoel Kfar Saba was better in second period 22-17. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Ironi Ramat Gan made 25-of-32 charity shots (78.1 percent) during the game. 26 personal fouls committed by Hapoel Kfar Saba helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The best player for the winners was American forward Rodney Webb (200-83, college: Florida Atlantic) who had a double-double by scoring 25 points and 10 rebounds. Power forward Raviv Pitshon (201-89) chipped in a double-double by scoring 21 points and 14 rebounds. Four Ironi Ramat Gan players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was American guard Errick McCollum (185-88, college: Goshen, agency: Gross Zeev ISA) who recorded a double-double by scoring 24 points and 12 rebounds and his fellow American import forward Marshall Moses (198-89, college: Oklahoma St.) added 22 points and 11 rebounds respectively. Hapoel Kfar Saba's coach tested ten players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Ironi Ramat Gan moved-up to twelfth place. Hapoel Kfar Saba lost fourth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with ten games lost. Ironi Ramat Gan's next round opponent will be higher ranked Kiryat Tivon (#5) in Kiryat Tivon and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Hapoel Kfar Saba will play on the road against Hapoel Yokneam/Megido (#13) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Ironi Ramat Gan: R.Webb 25+10reb+3ast, R.Pitshon 21+14reb+1ast, D.Davidi 13+4reb+1ast, L.Rubinstein 12+4reb+5ast, T.Bannister 8+5reb+3ast, G.Amitay 3+3reb+1ast
Hapoel K/S: E.McCollum 24+12reb+3ast, M.Moses 22+11reb+1ast, O.Ron 6+5reb+4ast, B.Reuven 6+1reb+1ast, A.Harush 5+2reb+1ast, E.Rotemberg 3+1reb

Kiryat Tivon - Lev Hasharon 104-80

Rather predictable result when sixth ranked Kiryat Tivon (7-5) rolled over at home 10th ranked Lev Hasharon (5-7) 104-80. The game without a history. Kiryat Tivon led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They dominated down low during the game scoring 64 of its points in the paint compared to Lev Hasharon's 38. They outrebounded Lev Hasharon 43-25 including a 34-21 advantage in defensive rebounds. Kiryat Tivon players were unselfish on offense dishing 27 assists. The best player for the winners was American-Puerto Rican Ramon Clemente (200-85, college: Wichita St.) who had a double-double by scoring 33 points (!!!) and 22 rebounds. Power forward Kobi Izik (204-83, agency: Avi Zilberman) chipped in 21 points and 8 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was American guard Lewis Clinch (191-87, college: Georgia Tech) who recorded 23 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists and guard Omer Rub (173-90) added 13 points and 6 assists respectively. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Lev Hasharon's coach gave up on the game allowing to play ten players seeing no chance for a win. Kiryat Tivon moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Hapoel Afula. Lev Hasharon at the other side dropped to the ninth position with seven games lost. Kiryat Tivon's next round opponent will be Ironi Ramat Gan (#12) on the road and are hoping to win another game. Lev Hasharon will play against the league's leader Beer Yaakov.
Top scorers:
Kiryat Tivon: R.Clemente 33+22reb+2ast, K.Izik 21+8reb+1ast, J.Gomes 16+3reb+8ast, L.Segev 13+4reb+11ast, O.Hover 8+3reb+3ast, N.Yanay 6+2reb+1ast
Lev Hasharon: L.Clinch 23+7reb+6ast, O.Shmidt 16+2reb+1ast, O.Rub 13+2reb+6ast, A.Sela 10+4reb, B.Sharoni 9+2reb+1ast, V.Yeremishin 6+2reb+1ast

Macc.B.Yaakov - Hapoel Afula 100-108

The most surprising game was a loss of top-ranked Beer Yaakov (10-2) at the home court on Tuesday night. Hosts were defeated by fifth ranked Hapoel Afula (7-5) 108-100. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Beer Yaakov. The guests trailed by 2 points after first quarter, but they rallied back to get the 3-point lead at the halftime and eventually won the game 108-100. Hapoel Afula dominated down low during the game scoring 78 of its points in the paint compared to Beer Yaakov's 58. They outrebounded Beer Yaakov 33-16 including a 22-10 advantage in defensive rebounds. Hapoel Afula looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists. It was a good game for American forward Gregg Thondique (201-87, college: Virginia Union) who led his team to a victory with 21 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. Swingman Elad Eliyah (193-85) contributed with 25 points for the winners. Guard Yoad Bet-Yosef (182-87, agency: Avi Zilberman) replied with a double-double by scoring 24 points and 13 assists and American forward Jermaine Hall (196-80, college: Wagner) added 25 points (on 11-of-12 shooting from the field) in the effort for Beer Yaakov. Five Hapoel Afula and four Beer Yaakov players scored in double figures. Hapoel Afula have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Kiryat Tivon. Beer Yaakov at the other side still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Hapoel T-A. Hapoel Afula is looking forward to face Ironi Nahariya (#6) at home in the next round. Beer Yaakov will play against Lev Hasharon (#10) and is hoping to win this game.
Top scorers:
Hapoel Afula: E.Eliyah 25+3reb+3ast, R.LeMelle 21+6reb+1ast, G.Thondique 21+9reb+9ast, G.Cohen 14+2reb+2ast, H.Shifman 11+2reb+3ast, O.Blayzer 10+7reb
Macc.B.Yaakov: J.Hall 25+3reb, Y.Bet-Yosef 24+2reb+13ast, N.Miller 21+6reb+1ast, I.Simin 13+3reb+6ast, C.Watson 8+2reb+1ast, I.Buchman 6+5ast

Ironi Nes-Ziona - Hod Hasharon 95-92

A very close game took place in Nes Ziyona between Ironi Nes-Ziona and Hod Hasharon. Eleventh ranked Ironi Nes-Ziona (4-7) got a very close home victory over higher ranked Hod Hasharon (6-6). Ironi Nes-Ziona managed to escape with a 3-point win 95-92 on Tuesday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Hod Hasharon. Hod Hasharon was trailing by 4 points at halftime but managed to get 1-point lead after three quarters before a 23-19 charge of Ironi Nes-Ziona, which allowed them to win the game. They made 22-of-26 free shots (84.6 percent) during the game. Ironi Nes-Ziona outrebounded Hod Hasharon 29-18 including 19 on the defensive glass. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 25 assists. The winners were led by American swingman Bilal Benn (196-86, college: Niagara) who scored that evening 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists and naturalized Welsh forward Tal Michael Dunne (197-87) supported him with 20 points. Benn is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Even a double-double of 16 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists by the former international guard Avi Sukar (187-76) did not help to save the game for Hod Hasharon. Puerto Rican point guard Javier Gonzalez (182-89, college: N.Carolina St.) added 19 points and 5 assists. Four Ironi Nes-Ziona and five Hod Hasharon players scored in double figures. Hod Hasharon's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Ironi Nes-Ziona maintains eleventh position with 4-7 record. Loser Hod Hasharon keeps the seventh place with six games lost. They share the position with Ironi K-A. Ironi Nes-Ziona will meet higher ranked Elitzur Ramla (#9) on the road in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Hod Hasharon will play against Ironi Kiryat Ata and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Ironi Nes-Ziona: B.Benn 25+5reb+5ast, T.Michael Dunne 20+3reb+3ast, D.Bank 16+4reb+4ast, G.Blair 13+10reb, R.Zehavian 8+4reb+5ast, D.Assaf 6+3reb+8ast
Hod Hasharon: J.Gonzalez 19+2reb+5ast, A.Johnson 17+6reb+1ast, A.Sukar 16+5reb+10ast, G.Gandel 12+2reb+2ast, A.Skverer 11+2reb+2ast, C.Dewhurst 9+1reb+1ast

Ironi K-A - Elitzur Yavne 81-100

An interesting game for Elitzur Yavne (8-4) which played road game in Kiryat Ata against 4th ranked Ironi Kiryat Ata (6-6). Third ranked Elitzur Yavne had an easy win 100-81. The game was mostly controlled by Elitzur Yavne. Ironi Kiryat Ata was better in third quarter 19-17. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Elitzur Yavne made 19-of-24 charity shots (79.2 percent) during the game. Ironi Kiryat Ata was plagued by 24 personal fouls down the stretch. Worth to mention a great performance of guard Nir Golan (180-86) who helped to win the game recording 19 points and 4 assists and swingman Elad Hofman (192-85) who added 21 points during the contest. The best for the losing side was American forward Tony Younger (200-80, college: Spring Hill, agency: Gross Zeev ISA) with 19 points and 8 rebounds and guard Ilan Nanikashvili (187-79) scored 4 points and 12 assists. Five Elitzur Yavne and four Ironi Kiryat Ata players scored in double figures. Elitzur Yavne maintains third position with 8-4 record having just two points less than leader Macc.B.Yaakov. Newly promoted Ironi Kiryat Ata dropped to the seventh place with six games lost. They share the position with Hod Hasharon. Elitzur Yavne will play against league's second-placed Hapoel Tel-Aviv at home in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Ironi Kiryat Ata will play against Hod Hasharon (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Elitzur Yavne: E.Hofman 21+3reb+3ast, N.Golan 19+4reb+4ast, Z.Volfer 15+4reb+4ast, K.Wilson 15+10reb+2ast, B.Laing 13+2reb+2ast, E.Engel 7+1reb+1ast
Ironi K-A: T.Younger 19+8reb+2ast, D.Peterson 16+3reb, G.Halamish 14+4reb, A.Nanikashvili 14+3ast, R.Elbaz 12+3reb, I.Nanikashvili 4+4reb+12ast

Ironi Ness-Ziona add Bilal Benn - by Eurobasket News
Ironi Nezz-Ziona bolstered their backcourt. They added Bilal Benn (196-G/F-86, college: Niagara) to the roster. The guard has just recently parted ways with Naglis Palangos in Lithuania. Bilal Benn posted 8.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.0 steals per game in Baltic League. In LKL his stats read 14.5 points, 7.5 boards and 2.5 assists per appearance. Previously Bilal Benn played for Vermont Frost Heaves in PBL. He tallied 3.0 points per game in the league. Earlier Bilal Benn had a stint with Ovarense in Portugal. The guard has already debuted for his new team. He scored 25 points, grabbed 5 boards and issued 5 assists helping Ironi Ness-Ziona to a 95:92 win over Maccabi Hod-Hasharon.

Israeli League First Round Awards - Bryant Dunston (MVP) - by David Pick
The Israeli basketball league announced today (Tuesday) the top players of the 2011-12 first round. Despite playing in an exhausting three league season, Maccabi Tel-Aviv impressively secured the top spot securing a 9-1 record. On the other hand, with all the hype of signing three NBA players during the NBA lockout, Bnei Hasharon is ranked rock bottom 2-8.

All First Team

MVP - Bryant Dunston: With 7-double-doubles, 16.6ppg and 11rpg including a bare minimum of 2-dunks per game, Dunston secured the first round MVP award leading Hapoel Holon to a 6-4 record and 3rd spot in the league. SN: 28 efficiency value average.

Moran Roth: 'The Israeli Truth' - Refused to an offer from Maccabi Tel-Aviv during the summer and developed into the second Holon All-First Team player, averaging 12.8ppg and 8.3 assists. During the 10-games thus far, Roth dished out 10-dimes in 3-different games in addition to recording a career-high 15 in a crushing win over Bnei Hasharon.
Paul Delaney: After winning last year's Israeli Devision2 title, Delaney is one of the prime reasons to Habikaa's success this season. The bullet-like scoring guard posts numbers of 19ppg, 4.9 assists and nearly 4 rebounds a game, helping lead Habikaa to a tied 5-7 place with a 5-5 record.

Romeo Travis: While in the U.S. most people might know 'Rome' as Lebron James' high school teammate and Akron HOFer, across the Atlantic Travis is his own grown man. Coming off a pre-season injury, Travis is the main reason as to why Galil/Gilboa is ranked 2nd place with a 7-3 record. In 9-games thus far, Travis came up short of double-digit scoring just once posting numbers of 16.6ppg, 6.1 boards and 3 assists per game. 'Rome' also leads Galil to a perfect Balkan League record with 12 points and 7.7 rebounds per game.

Richard Hendrix: After the Pargo-Perkins-Eidson era, Hendrix is the closest thing to stability this season for Maccabi. A tough break up from star point guard Jordan Farmar (lockout contract), left coach Blatt in search of an efficient and stable player while Sofo rests during the Israeli play, causing Hendrix to rise to the occasion. The Alabama alumnus, who the management wanted to get rid of during the summer, is proving to be a prime asset averaging 14.2ppg and 7.2rpg in just 22-minutes -- coming off the bench.

1st Round Coach

Lior Lubin: although he's only been on the sidelines for three years in total and one as an assistant, Lubin's record is more than promising. 1-National Championship, 2-Final-Four finals appearances and currently blowing on the back on David Blatt and Maccabi's neck. Lubin managed to keep Courtney Feel for a second season adding big man Joseph Jones and Leader Romeo Travis including to a few mid-season changes. Lubin is putting on a show for others standing on the sidelines this season.

6th Man

Ido Kozikaro: The 33-year-old Israeli big man, who was cut this summer from the National Team roster, shows there's still a lot of basketball left in him. Kozikaro's enjoying his third stint in any European challenge (Balkan League) but even more so, he's enjoying everything about his team. 9.6ppg and 4.8rpg in 17 minutes definitely prove so.

Honorable Mentions

Brian Asbury (back-to-back Israeli League Weekly MVP Awards 18.2ppg, 7.1rpg), Adrian Uter (After 3-season in Israel's Devision2, Uter proves to be much more than a legit D1 player with 14.5ppg, 7.2rpg & 2.1bpg), Ron Lewis (20ppg and 66/70 made free-throws), David Blu (still proving on daily basis he's one of Europe's top 3-best shooters with 48% beyond the arc on route to 11.2ppg and 5.1rpg), Dwayne Mitchell (16ppg, 7.1rpg and 5.1 assists. Last season's Eurobasket MVP began this year with a roar flirting with several triple-doubles, but recently has seemed to suffer most from teammate Raymar Morgan's injury), Marco Killingsworth (developed into one of Israel's most dominant forces in the paint with 16.5ppg and 6.6rpg) and last but not least, soon to be 37-year-old point guard Meir Tapiro, who recently recorded another career triple-double of 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Despite a bad team season thus far, Tapiro's having a great personal one with nearly 10ppg, 8aspg and 5rpg.

Follow David Pick on Twitter: @DubiPick

*****************************************************

ITALY

Sassari, Steve Hunter left Italy without permission - by Andrea Centenari
Banco di Sardegna Sassari informs that Steve Hunter (213-C-81, agency: Priority Sports, college: De Paul) left the team without permission and returned back to the States. The big man was diagnosed with a disease that was not discovered during the physical he had when he signed few weeks ago. Banco di Sardegna Sassari has just signed Tony Easley (206-F-87, agency: Pro One Sports, college: Murray St.) from MarcoPoloShop.it Forli to replace the former NBA player. In this season in Italy, Hunter played 6 games averaging 7,5 points and 5,5 boards per game.

SerieA Round 12: Change at the top of the standings - by Eurobasket News
The fans could enjoy quite many interesting games in the last round. The round ended with change at the leadership position, extra overtimes, favorites losing the games and games ending by tiny margin.

SerieA round 12 caused change at the leadership position. Third defeat of league's leader Armani Milano (8-3) against seventh ranked Bennet Cantu (7-5) 79-54 was the most important game of the last round. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Armani Milano. The game was mostly controlled by Bennet Cantu. Armani Milano managed to win third quarter 17-16. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. They dominated on the defensive end, holding Armani Milano to just 7 points in second quarter. It was a great shooting night for Bennet Cantu especially from behind the arc, where they had solid 61.1 percentage. It was a good game for Georgian guard Manuchar Markoishvili (196-86) who led his team to a victory with 17 points and 6 rebounds. American forward Maarten Leunen (206-85, college: Oregon) contributed with 14 points for the winners. American guard Malik Hairston (198-87, college: Oregon) replied with 13 points and 5 rebounds for Armani Milano. Armani Milano's coach gave up on the game allowing to play eleven players seeing no chance for a win. Bennet Cantu moved-up to fifth place, which they share with Sidigas AV. Armani Milano at the other side dropped to the second position with three games lost. They were replaced at the leadership position by Montepaschi. Armani Milano will play next round against Air Avellino trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Bennet Cantu will try to continue on its current victory against eighth ranked Cimberio Varese on the road.

There were no big surprises in other games of round 12: Acea Roma beat Banca Tercas on the road 67-64. Umana Venezia won against Vanoli CR on its own court 83-70. Benetton TV unfortunately lost to CS Bologna in a road game 61-74. Scavolini PS managed to beat Cimberio VA at home 72-68. Banco di Sard. was defeated by Fabi Shoes on the opponent's court 85-76. Sidigas AV beat Pepsi Caserta in a home game 84-74.
The most impressive performance of 12th round was 14 points, 5 rebounds and 8 assists by Giuseppe Poeta of CS Bologna.

Banca Tercas - Acea Roma 64-67

No shocking result in a game when thirteenth ranked Lottomatica Roma (5-7) edged bottom-ranked Banca Tercas (2-10) in Teramo 67-64 on Tuesday. The guests trailed by 6 points at the halftime before their 40-31 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. It was a good game for international point guard Antonio Maestranzi (178-84, college: N.Illinois) who led his team to a victory with 16 points and 4 assists. American guard Clay Tucker (196-80, college: Wisc.-Milwaukee, agency: Pro One Sports) contributed with 17 points for the winners. The former international power forward Valerio Amoroso (204-80) replied with 16 points and 9 rebounds and American point guard Dee Brown (185-84, college: Illinois) added 15 points and 6 rebounds in the effort for Banca Tercas. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Lottomatica Roma maintains thirteenth position with 5-7 record. Banca Tercas lost third consecutive game. They stay at the bottom place with ten games lost. Lottomatica Roma will face higher ranked Umana Venezia (#7) at home in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game.
Top scorers:
Acea Roma: C.Tucker 17+4reb+1ast, A.Maestranzi 16+4reb+4ast, U.Slokar 11+6reb+1ast, M.Kakiouzis 10+5reb+1ast, N.Gordic 8+4reb, A.Tonolli 3+1reb
Banca Tercas: V.Amoroso 16+9reb+1ast, D.Brown 15+6reb+3ast, M.Borisov 10+7reb+1ast, B.Brown 10+4reb+1ast, B.Cerella 7+6reb+2ast, Y.Green 6+4reb

Umana Venezia - Vanoli CR 83-70

Very expected game when 16th ranked Vanoli-Braga (3-9) lost on the road to ninth ranked Umana Venezia (6-5) 83-70 on Tuesday. The hosts trailed by 6 points at the halftime before their 52-33 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. Umana Venezia made 18-of-21 free shots (85.7 percent) during the game. It was a good game for American point guard Alvin Young (188-75, college: Niagara) who led his team to a victory with 19 points. The other American import guard Timothy Bowers (188-82, college: Mississippi St.) contributed with 12 points and 7 rebounds for the winners. Umana Venezia's coach Andrea Mazzon used an eleven-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The former international guard Daniele Cinciarini (194-83) replied with 20 points and Slovenian forward Marko Milic (201-77) added 12 points and 8 rebounds in the effort for Vanoli-Braga. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Umana Venezia moved-up to seventh place, which they share with 3 other teams. Loser Vanoli-Braga keeps the sixteenth position with nine games lost. Umana Venezia will face Lottomatica Roma (#13) on the road in the next round where they are favorite. Vanoli-Braga will play against Fabi Shoes Montegranaro and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Umana Venezia: A.Young 19+2reb+3ast, K.Clark 17+2ast, T.Slay 13+7reb, T.Bowers 12+7reb+2ast, S.Szewczyk 8+9reb+3ast, T.Fantoni 6+5reb+1ast
Vanoli CR: D.Cinciarini 20+2reb, M.Tusek 14+6reb+1ast, M.Milic 12+8reb+1ast, D.Lighty 10+2reb+2ast, J.Perkovic 7+4reb+2ast, B.Tabu-Eboma 5+4reb+3ast

CS Bologna - Benetton TV 74-61

Very predictable result when fourth ranked CS Bologna (7-4) won against at home 10th ranked Benetton Treviso (5-6) 74-61 on Tuesday. The game was mostly controlled by CS Bologna. Benetton Treviso was better in second period 16-14. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. CS Bologna forced 19 Benetton Treviso turnovers and outrebounded them 50-31 including a 21-7 advantage in offensive rebounds. Benetton Treviso was plagued by 31 personal fouls down the stretch. It was a good game for international guard Giuseppe Poeta (190-85) who led his team to a victory with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 8 assists. Finnish guard Petteri Koponen (194-88) contributed with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists for the winners. Austrian power forward Benjamin Ortner (206-83, college: Metro St.) replied with 18 points and 8 rebounds (on 8-of-10 shooting from the field) and naturalized Slovenian guard Sani Becirovic (196-81) added 13 points in the effort for Benetton Treviso. CS Bologna moved-up to third place, which they share with Angelico BI. Loser Benetton Treviso dropped to the eleventh position with six games lost. CS Bologna will face Pepsi Caserta (#10) on the road in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Benetton Treviso will play against the league's leader Montepaschi Siena.
Top scorers:
CS Bologna: P.Koponen 15+5reb+6ast, G.Poeta 14+5reb+8ast, D.Gailius 13+5reb, V.Sanikidze 9+13reb+1ast, A.Gigli 8+12reb, L.Vitali 6+2reb+1ast
Benetton TV: B.Ortner 18+8reb+3ast, S.Becirovic 13+3reb+2ast, J.Viggiano 12+3reb+2ast, V.Moldoveanu 7+6reb, M.Bulleri 6+3reb, J.Thomas 5+5reb+1ast

Scavolini PS - Cimberio VA 72-68

There was a minor upset when higher ranked Cimberio Varese (6-5) lost on the road to eleventh ranked Scavolini Pesaro (6-5) 72-68 on Tuesday. The hosts trailed by 1 point after three quarters before their 19-14 charge, which allowed them to win the game. Scavolini Pesaro shot 25 for 36 from the free-throw line, while Cimberio Varese only scored eight points from the stripe. Scavolini Pesaro forced 21 Cimberio Varese turnovers. Cimberio Varese was plagued by 32 personal fouls down the stretch. It was a good game for the former international guard Daniel Hackett (198-87, college: USC) who led his team to a victory with 19 points. American forward Jumaine Jones (203-79, college: Georgia) contributed with 17 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Croatian point guard Rok Stipcevic (185-86) replied with 21 points and Estonian forward Kristjan Kangur (201-82) added 8 points in the effort for Cimberio Varese. Cimberio Varese's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Scavolini Pesaro moved-up to seventh place, which they share with 3 other teams including defeated Cimberio Varese. Scavolini Pesaro will face Banco di Sard. (#12) in Sassari in the next round where they are favorite.
Top scorers:
Scavolini PS: D.Hackett 19+4reb, J.Jones 17+5reb, R.Hickman 15+2reb+3ast, J.White 7+4reb+2ast, T.Lydeka 6+4reb+1ast, D.Cavaliero 4+2reb
Cimberio VA: R.Stipcevic 21+4reb+3ast, J.Talts 9+4reb+1ast, T.Rannikko 8+3reb+1ast, K.Kangur 8+4reb+3ast, J.Hurtt 6+3reb, D.Fajardo 5+3reb+1ast

Fabi Shoes - Banco di Sard. 85-76

There was a small surprise when fifteenth ranked Fabi Shoes Montegranaro (4-7) defeated at home 12th ranked Banco di Sard. (5-6) 85-76 on Tuesday. The hosts started the game with a very strong first quarter 26-17. But Banco di Sard. won third quarter 20-15. However it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Fabi Shoes Montegranaro dominated down low during the game scoring 50 of its points in the paint compared to Banco di Sard.'s 30. Fabi Shoes Montegranaro looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists comparing to just 9 passes made by Banco di Sard.'s players. It was a good game for Bulgarian power forward Dejan Ivanov (205-86, agency: Beo Basket) who led his team to a victory with 16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. American-French forward Tariq Kirksay (199-79, college: Iona) contributed with 5 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals for the winners. American guard Drake Diener (196-81, college: De Paul, agency: Priority Sports) replied with 27 points and 5 rebounds and his fellow American import point guard Travis Diener (184-82, college: Marquette) added 20 points and 4 steals in the effort for Banco di Sard.Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Fabi Shoes Montegranaro moved-up to fourteenth place. Loser Banco di Sard. dropped to the eleventh position with six games lost. Fabi Shoes Montegranaro will face Vanoli-Braga (#16) in Cremona in the next round.
Top scorers:
Fabi Shoes: D.Ivanov 16+8reb+4ast, I.Zoroski 14+4reb+3ast, G.Brunner 14+3reb+2ast, C.Karl 12+2reb+1ast, S.Nicevic 10+2reb+1ast, V.Mazzola 8+2reb+1ast
Banco di Sard.: D.Diener 27+5reb+2ast, T.Diener 20+3reb+3ast, B.Sacchetti 12+5reb+2ast, Q.Hosley 10+3reb+1ast, N.Metreveli 5+4reb, T.Easley 2+4reb

Montepaschi - Novipiu CM 88-86 OT

Montepaschi Siena needed overtime to tame Novipiu Casale. David Andersen scored 21 points and grabbed 8 rebounds to lead the defending champions. M. Thornton and Igor Rakocevic added 14 points each for the winners as they improved at 9-2 record. Matt Janning answered with 16 points for Casale in defeat.
Top scorers:
Montepaschi: D.Andersen 21+8reb+2ast, M.Thornton 14+4reb, I.Rakocevic 14+3reb, B.McCalebb 13+2reb+6ast, P.Aradori 7+3reb+2ast, D.Moss 6+1reb+1ast
Novipiu CM: M.Janning 16+6reb, M.Shakur 14+4reb+7ast, G.Temple 14+4reb+1ast, D.Chiotti 11+8reb, S.Gentile 8+1ast, O.Stevic 7+2reb

Bennet Cantu - Armani MI 79-54

SerieA round 12 caused change at the leadership position. Third defeat of league's leader Armani Milano (8-3) against seventh ranked Bennet Cantu (7-5) 79-54 was the most important game of the last round. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Armani Milano. The game was mostly controlled by Bennet Cantu. Armani Milano managed to win third quarter 17-16. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. They dominated on the defensive end, holding Armani Milano to just 7 points in second quarter. It was a great shooting night for Bennet Cantu especially from behind the arc, where they had solid 61.1 percentage. It was a good game for Georgian guard Manuchar Markoishvili (196-86) who led his team to a victory with 17 points and 6 rebounds. American forward Maarten Leunen (206-85, college: Oregon) contributed with 14 points for the winners. Five Bennet Cantu players scored in double figures. American guard Malik Hairston (198-87, college: Oregon) replied with 13 points and 5 rebounds and international forward Stefano Mancinelli (203-83) added 10 points in the effort for Armani Milano. Armani Milano's coach gave up on the game allowing to play eleven players seeing no chance for a win. Bennet Cantu moved-up to fifth place, which they share with Sidigas AV. Armani Milano at the other side dropped to the second position with three games lost. They were replaced at the leadership position by Montepaschi. Armani Milano will play next round against Air Avellino trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Bennet Cantu will try to continue on its current victory against eighth ranked Cimberio Varese on the road.
Top scorers:
Bennet Cantu: M.Markoishvili 17+6reb+3ast, M.Leunen 14+4reb+1ast, V.Micov 13+3reb+1ast, N.Mazzarino 11+2ast, G.Shermadini 10+4reb, N.Gianella 7+1ast
Armani MI: M.Hairston 13+5reb+1ast, S.Mancinelli 10+2reb+2ast, J.Giachetti 8+1ast, O.Cook 7+5reb, I.Bourousis 5+5reb, A.Gentile 5+1reb+1ast

Sidigas AV - Pepsi Caserta 84-74

There was a minor upset when 5th ranked Pepsi Caserta (6-5) lost on the road to eighth ranked Air Avellino (7-5) 84-74 on Tuesday. The game was mostly controlled by Air Avellino. Pepsi Caserta was better in third quarter 16-11. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Air Avellino forced 19 Pepsi Caserta turnovers. It was a good game for American-FYR Macedonian point guard Marques Green (167-82, college: St.Bonaventure) who led his team to a victory with 23 points and 4 assists. American forward Ronald Slay (203-81, college: Tennessee, agency: David Lee services) contributed with a double-double by scoring 14 points and 13 rebounds for the winners. American-FYR Macedonian center Kevin Fletcher (207-80, college: Colorado Springs, agency: Hart Sports Mngm) replied with a double-double by scoring 17 points and 10 rebounds and the former international swingman Alex Righetti (198-77, agency: Interperformances) added 17 points and 10 rebounds in the effort for Pepsi Caserta. Four Pepsi Caserta players scored in double figures. Air Avellino moved-up to fifth place, which they share with Bennet Cantu. Loser Pepsi Caserta dropped to the seventh position with five games lost. Air Avellino will face league's second-placed Armani Milano on the road in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Pepsi Caserta will play against CS Bologna (#4).
Top scorers:
Sidigas AV: T.Dean 25+3reb, M.Green 23+2reb+4ast, R.Slay 14+13reb+2ast, L.Johnson 9+13reb+1ast, J.Golemac 7+1reb+1ast, V.Gaddefors 4+2reb+2ast
Pepsi Caserta: K.Fletcher 17+10reb+1ast, A.Righetti 17+10reb, A.Smith 11+3reb, O.Efejuku 10+3reb+1ast, A.Doornekamp 9+5reb, A.Collins 8+4reb+5ast

Prima Veroli signs BJ Elder - by Andrea Centenari
Today, Prima Veroli signed Barry Elder (193-G-82, college: Georgia Tech) for the rest of the season. Elder has already played in Italy with Angelico Biella (2007/2008, 15,3 ppg and 3 rpg) and Bennet Cantu (2008/2009, 13ppg and 2,6 rpg). In the last season Elder played for Fileni BPA Jesi where he had 14,5 points and 3,5 boards per game. The former Georgia Tech has also played in Germany and in Greece (Panionios). A good addiction for a team that is trying to coming out from a bad beginning of the season.

Standings - SerieA

SerieA Standings

1. Montepaschi		9-2
2. Armani MI		8-3
3. Angelico BI		7-4
4. CS Bologna		7-4
5. Bennet Cantu		7-5
6. Sidigas AV		7-5
7. Umana Venezia		6-5
8. Cimberio VA		6-5
9. Scavolini PS		6-5
10. Pepsi Caserta		6-5
11. Benetton TV		5-6
12. Banco di Sard.		5-6
13. Acea Roma		5-7
14. Fabi Shoes		4-7
15. Novipiu CM		3-8
16. Vanoli CR		3-9
17. Banca Tercas		2-10

Stats Leaders - SerieA

Points Per Game

Mustafa SHAKUR
  Novipiu CM
  (192-G-84)
  Avg: 20.4

1. Shakur, Novipiu CM	20.4
2. Wafer, Vanoli CR	20.1
3. Smith, Pepsi C.	17.5
4. Coleman, Angelico.	17.3
5. Pullen, Angelico BI	16.8
6. Diener, Banco d.	16.4
7. Datome, Acea Roma	16.1
8. Dean, Sidigas AV	16.0
9. Tucker, Acea Roma	15.7
10. Diener, Banco d.	15.2

Rebounds Per Game

Linton JOHNSON
  Sidigas AV
  (203-F-80)
  Avg: 10.4

1. Johnson, Sidigas	10.4
2. Homan, CS Bologna	10.0
3. Sanikidze, CS Bo.	9.8
4. Adrien, Benetton	9.0
5. Brunner, Fabi Shoes	8.8
6. Ivanov, Fabi Shoes	8.3
7. Chiotti, Novip.	8.0
8. Smith, Pepsi C.	7.7
9. Dragicevic, Angeli.	7.4
10. Amoroso, Banca T.	7.1

Assists Per Game

Marques GREEN
  Sidigas AV
  (167-PG-82)
  Avg: 6.3

1. Green, Sidigas AV	6.3
2. Collins, Pepsi C.	5.7
3. Diener, Banco d.	4.9
4. Cook, Armani MI	4.8
5. Stipcevic, Cimberi.	4.5
6. Poeta, CS Bologna	4.1
7. McIntyre, CS Bo.	3.9
8. Pullen, Angelico BI	3.7
9. Shakur, Novipiu CM	3.6
10. Brown, Banca T.	3.6

Steals Per Game

Aubrey COLEMAN
  Angelico.
  (193-G-87)
  Avg: 3.7

1. Coleman, Angelico.	3.7
2. Hosley, Banco d.	2.9
3. Pullen, Angelico BI	2.4
4. Hackett, Scavolin.	2.4
5. Bowers, Umana V.	2.3
6. Jones, Scavolini PS	2.2
7. Stonerook, Montep.	2.2
8. Poeta, CS Bologna	2.1
9. Green, Sidigas AV	2.1
10. Johnson, Sidigas	2.0

Blocks Per Game

Marco CUSIN
  Scavolini PS
  (211-C-85)
  Avg: 1.5

1. Cusin, Scavolini PS	1.5
2. Szewczyk, Umana V.	1.2
3. Shermadini, Bennet	1.1
4. Crosariol, Acea R.	1.1
5. Lavrinovic, Montep.	0.8
6. Johnson, Sidigas	0.8
7. Hunter, Banco d.	0.8
8. Adrien, Benetton	0.8
9. Green, Banca Terc.	0.7
10. Ress, Montepaschi	0.7

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JAPAN

Standings - BJ League

BJ Standings

Eastern
1. Hamamatsu P.		13-8
2. Akita NH		13-9
3. Niigata Albirex		12-8
4. Sendai 89ers		11-11
5. Chiba Jets		10-12
6. Shinshu BW		9-13
7. Toyama Grouses		8-10
8. Yokohama BC		8-11
9. Saitama Bron.		6-13
10. Iwate Big Bulls		6-16
Western
1. Okinawa GK		17-5
2. Osaka Evessa		15-5
3. Kyoto Hannar.		15-5
4. Shiga L-Stars		15-7
5. Fukuoka Rizing		15-7
6. Shimane SM		12-10
7. Miyazaki SS		10-12
8. Oita H.Devils		4-17
9. Takamatsu FA		1-21

Senegalese Babacar Camara appeared for Kyoto Hannaryz - by Eurobasket News
Senegalese Babacar Camara (211-C-81, college: CS Fullerton) appeared for Kyoto Hannaryz and already played in two games for his new team. The 211cm Center averaged 6.0 points per game in the openers.
In his debut game Babacar Camara collected 6 points and 2 rebounds. Kyoto Hannaryz edged Akita NH 79:78. The hosts started the game with a very strong first quarter 31-21. But Akita Happinets won second period 21-17. However it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening.
In another game he also scored 6 points, but grabbed 4 rebounds as Kyoto Hannaryz beat Akita NH 80-76 in overtime. The hosts trailed by 5 points after three quarters before their 22-17 charge, which allowed them to tie the game at the end of regular time and get a 4-point victory in overtime.
In 2008-2009 he played for Toyama Grouses (Japan-BJ League) and in 26 games averaged 16.5ppg, 9.5rpg, 1.7apg, 1.9bpg, FGP-1 (63.4%), FT: 55.0%. In February 2009 he moved to Takamatsu Five Arrows (Japan-BJ League, starting five) and in 23 games showed 17.6ppg, 10.0rpg, 1.9apg, Blocks-2 (2.4bpg), FGP-1 (64.7%), FT: 52.0%. In 2009-2010 moved to Elan Bearnais Pau-Lacq-Orthez (France-ProB), only pre-season, but in Nov.'09 moved to Al Ansar (Saudi Arabia-D1). The season 2010-2011 appeared for Ohud Medina (Saudi Arabia-D1, starting five).

Best players of Japanese BJ League round 24 - by Eurobasket News
American Carlos Dixon (201-G/F-81) had an amazing evening in the last round for Fukuoka Rizing and that's him to receive a Asia-basket.com BJ League Player of the Week award for round 24.
The 30-year old swingman had the game-high 32 points adding five rebounds and five assists for Fukuoka Rizing in his team's victory, helping them to beat Shimane SM (#6, 12-10) 93-88. Fukuoka Rizing maintains the 5th position in Japanese BJ League. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Fukuoka Rizing will need more victories to improve their 15-7 record. In the team's last game Dixon had a remarkable five three-pointers out of 8 attempts. He turned to be Fukuoka Rizing's top player in his first season with the team. Virginia Tech graduate has very impressive stats this year. Dixon is in league's top in assists (6th best: 2.7apg) and averages solid 54.0% FGP.

The second most remarkable performance in last round's games was 30-year old American swingman Dexter Lyons (198-F/G-81, agency: I.D.S. Law) of Miyazaki SS. Lyons impressed basketball fans with a double-double of 29 points and 10 rebounds. Of course he lead Miyazaki SS to another comfortable win outscoring slightly lower-ranked Takamatsu FA (#9, 1-21) 103-66. Miyazaki SS's 7th position in the standings has not changed. His team is not often considered as one of the league's best with a mere 10-12 record. Lyons is a newcomer at Miyazaki SS and it seems he did not have too much trouble to become one of team's leaders.

The third best performed player last round was American Zack Atkinson (206-C-86) of Oita H.Devils (#8). Atkinson scored 15 points and grabbed twenty rebounds (!!!). Despite Atkinson's great performance Oita H.Devils lost 63-87 to the higher-ranked Okinawa GK (#1, 17-5). But his team cannot count on just a single player as he also needs help of the other teammates. Oita H.Devils can only dream about fighting for top spots in the league. They have rather bad season and 4-17 record places them close to the bottom of the standings. Too bad for Atkinson he does not play for a better team. But maybe if he did, his season stats would not be that high. Atkinson has a very solid season. In 21 games in Japan he scored 7.4ppg.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Michael Parker (202-F-81) of Shimane SM - 24 points and 16 rebounds
5. Lee Roberts (201-F/C-87) of Shinshu BW - 19 points, 20 rebounds and 2 assists
6. Johnny Dukes (203-F-84) of Sendai 89ers - 23 points, 16 rebounds and 3 assists
7. Anthony McHenry (202-SF-83) of Okinawa GK - 19 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists
8. Dionisio Gomez Camargo (203-F-80) of Shiga L-Stars - 17 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists
9. Derek Raivio (190-G-84) of Shinshu BW - 24 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists
10. Lewis Witcher (207-F/C-87) of Miyazaki SS - 16 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

BJ League Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Michael PARKER
  Shimane SM
  (202-F-81)
  Avg: 24

1. Parker, Shimane SM	24.0
2. Palmer, Fukuoka	22.8
3. Hargrow, Chiba J.	21.0
4. White, Oita H.	20.1
5. Woods, Akita NH	20.1
6. Flowers, Saitama	19.9
7. Staten, Chiba Jets	19.6
8. Roberts, Shins.	19.5
9. Gardener, Akita NH	19.4
10. Humphrey, Saitama	19.3

Rebounds Per Game

Chris HOLM
  Niigata Albirex
  (212-C/F-84)
  Avg: 14.3

1. Holm, Niigata Albi.	14.3
2. Roberts, Shins.	11.1
3. Malloy, Iwate B.	10.9
4. Staten, Chiba Jets	10.5
5. Mims, Sendai 89ers	10.4
6. Rickert, Kyoto H.	10.3
7. Blackledge, Osaka	10.2
8. Allred, Kyoto H.	10.2
9. Hamilton, Fukuok.	10.2
10. Dora, Miyazaki SS	10.1

Assists Per Game

Kenny SATTERFIELD
  Saitam.
  (188-PG-81)
  Avg: 7.3

1. Satterfield, Saita.	7.3
2. Yamamoto, Shima.	5.8
3. Gardener, Akita NH	5.6
4. Takushi, Oita H.	5.0
5. Shimura, Sendai	5.0
6. Dixon, Hamamats.	4.7
7. Shimizu, Miyazaki.	4.6
8. Dukes, Sendai 89e.	4.6
9. Namizato, Okina.	4.4
10. Yamamoto, Iwate	4.3

Steals Per Game

Jamel STATEN
  Chiba Jets
  (198-G-83)
  Avg: 3.1

1. Staten, Chiba Jets	3.1
2. Palmer, Fukuoka	3.0
3. Parker, Shimane SM	2.6
4. Humphrey, Saitama	2.4
5. Arnold, Hamamats.	2.2
6. Hamilton, Fukuok.	2.1
7. Lyons, Miyazaki SS	2.0
8. Golson, Shimane SM	1.8
9. Nakanishi, Fukuok.	1.8
10. Gardener, Akita NH	1.7

Blocks Per Game

Jeral DAVIS
  Shimane SM
  (216-C-84)
  Avg: 3.6

1. Davis, Shimane SM	3.6
2. Blackledge, Osaka	3.2
3. Singleton, Sendai	2.3
4. Dukes, Sendai 89e.	1.6
5. Hughes, Shinshu BW	1.6
6. Mims, Sendai 89ers	1.6
7. Flowers, Saitama	1.5
8. Ocitti, Akita NH	1.4
9. McFarland, Yokoham.	1.4
10. Marshall, Osaka E.	1.4

*****************************************************

LITHUANIA

Salenga officially leaves Rudupis and joins Zalgiris - by Adomas Kraunevicius
Rudupis Prienu swingman Dainius Salenga (197-F-77) has officially left the team. Rudupis manager Aurtimas Bartuska has confirmed the news and said that Salenga's contract had a clause whereby the it could be terminated before the end of the season.

As opposed to some rumors that he will join VEF Riga, Salenga decided to move to his former team, Zalgiris Kaunas where he will finish this season with a possibility to extend the contract for longer. Salenga returns to Zalgiris after a one year break.

The swingman averaged 12.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists in this year's EuroCup regular season.

Kaunas to host U17 World Championship - by Adomas Kraunevicius
Kaunas will host world's best U17 teams in the next year's U17 World Championship which will be held on June 29 - July 8 in the Zalgiris Arena. 12 top teams from 6 continents will gather to determine which one of the is best in the world: defending champions, USA, Canada, Argentina, Egypt, China, South Korea, Australia, Spain, Croatia, Czech Republic, France and the hosts, Lithuania. The Lithuanians will be coached by Neptunas Klaipeda head coach, Paulius Juodis .

This will be the second U17 World Championship. The first one was held in 2010 in Hamburg where USA took the gold medals and Lithuania came in fourth.

This is not the only youth championship that is set to take place in Lithuania next summer: Siauliai will be hosting the U16 (along with Latvia) and U18 (in Vilnius and Klaipeda) championships.

Bilal Benn leaves Palanga - by Evaldas Ceilytkas
One of Naglis Palangos teams leaders decided to part ways with team. Bilal Benn (196-G/F-86, college: Niagara) who can play both shooting guard and small forward pasitions was one of key players of team. In Lithuanian league he averaged 14.5ppg, 7.5rpg and 2.5apg while playing 35.7 mpg in 11 matches. In Baltic league his results wasn't so good: 8.2ppg, 7.8rpg, 4.2 apg while playing 34.0mpg. Now Naglis lays in 11 spot in league with record 2-9. In BBL results are beter: 1'st spot in group and record 5-1. At this time Naglis has only 9 active players in roster.

*****************************************************

NBA

Augustin's 19 points lead Bobcats over Bucks 96-95 - by Eurobasket News
D.J. Augustin (5'11''-PG-87, college: Texas) scored 19 points, rookie Kemba Walker (6'1''-PG-90, college: Connecticut) added 13, including two free throws with 9.9 seconds remaining, and the Charlotte Bobcats erased a 14-point deficit to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 96-95 on Monday night in their season opener.

Gerald Henderson (6'4''-G-87, college: Duke) added 18 points and nine rebounds for the Bobcats.

Brandon Jennings (6'0''-PG-89) had 22 points for the Bucks, while Andrew Bogut (7'0''-C-84, college: Utah) had 17 points and nine rebounds.

The Bobcats got a huge lift off the bench from Walker and center Byron Mullens, who was acquired in a trade last week with the Thunder. Walker scored nine points in the second half, creating shots off the dribble, and chipped in with seven rebounds. Mullens was 5 of 7 from the field for 10 points.

The Bobcats led 89-81 with 2:10 left, but the Bucks needed less than a minute to erase that deficit. Jennings hit a pair of 3-pointers and Mike Dunleavy added another from the corner to take a 90-89 lead.

Augustin made a driving layup with 36.5 seconds left to give the Bobcats the lead, 93-92.

Dunleavy had a chance to put the Bucks ahead but missed an open 3-pointer with 11 seconds left. Walker was fouled and made both free throws to seal the win.

Walker gave the Bobcats an emotional lift off the bench in his first real game since leading Connecticut to the NCAA championship.

Late in the game he made a nice drive to the basket and a scoop shoot while drawing a foul, bringing Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, seated courtside, off his seat. Newton and Walker, who both wear No. 1, have forged a friendship.

Stephen Jackson (6'8''-F-78, college: Butler Co.CC) had a frustrating game against his former team.

After downplaying his return to Charlotte before the game, Jackson fouled out and was charged with a technical foul. He was just 1 of 5 from field and finished with six points.

Before the game, Bobcats coach Paul Silas laughed off the notion of this being just another game for the emotional Jackson, saying, 'Stephen Jackson is going to try to kill us.'

But it was Shaun Livingston, who was also a part of the draft-day trade that sent Jackson to the Bucks, who hurt the Bobcats in the first half. While Jackson was struggling with foul trouble, Livingston had 11 of his 14 points as the Bucks built a 52-41 lead.

Jackson game went over to Bobcats owner Michael Jordan and shook hands before the game.

NOTES: Newton had front row seats to Monday night's game. At one point he went over to Jordan and shook hands and chatted. ... Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter also took in Monday night's game from a private box.

Courtesy of www.wisn.com

Humphries hears boos, leads Nets past Wiz 90-84 - by Eurobasket News
Maybe Washington Wizards fans were keeping up with the Kardashians.

At least that might explain why they relentlessly booed Kris Humphries (6'9''-F-85, college: Minnesota), the New Jersey Nets forward famous for his much - hyped-and short-lived - marriage to Kim Kardashian.

Jeered during pregame introductions and harangued every time he touched the ball Monday night, Humphries ignored all the attention and finished with 21 points and 16 rebounds, helping New Jersey erase a 21-point deficit and come all the way back to beat Washington 90-84 in the season opener for both teams.

To me, its motivation. People are yelling at youyouve got to perform, youve got to play hard. They might want to have a reason to say something. You want to try and give them that reason, Humphries said. For me, its just makes it a little hostile environmentand its kind of fun to play in that environment.

Nets coach Avery Johnson, for one, was at a loss to explain all the hostility Humphries heard.

Im trying to figure out: What did he do? Im serious. It may be because I dont follow reality TVI dont know all the ins and outs of it. Its pretty hilarious to me, Johnson said. I dont even know if THEY know why theyre booing.

Humphries even deflected a too-late pass by John Wall (6'4''-PG-90, college: Kentucky), a turnover that thwarted Washingtons last good chance, trailing by only three points in the final minute.

Afterward, there was a bit of drama in the Wizards locker room, where power forward Andray Blatchewho opened a pregame speech to the home crowd by saying, This is your captain, Andray Blatchevoiced displeasure with the play-calling and said he should get the ball down low more than out on the wings. He then repeated that complaint on Twitter.

All it took was one regular-season game for the in-fighting to start in Washington.

Is it trust? Or is it, 'I think that I can make a play to get us going again, and you try to do it individually? In our league, you cant do it, unless youre one of the elite players, coach Flip Saunders said. We dont have anyone thats at that elite status right now.

When a reporter relayed the gist of what Saunders said, Blatche responded: He probably was talking about me, because for the simple fact that I said that I need the ball in the paint to be effective.

You cant keep having me pick-and-pop and shooting jump shots. Give me the ball in the paint. Thats where Im most effective at. Ive been saying that since training camp: I need the ball in the paint. I dont want to be the pick-and-pop guy that I used to be. Its not working for me, continued Blatche, who shot 5 for 13, scored 11 points and was called for a technical foul. Im not saying the offense has to run through me, but I prefer to be in the paint.

He shook his head. He stared at the carpet. He shrugged his shoulders. And then he sat in front of his locker, in full uniform, for a good half-hour after the game had ended.

Blatche offered a simple analysis of how Washington went from being ahead 37-16 in the second quarter to trailing in the third.

Our blessing was our curse, Blatche said. Getting up by 20 so early and so easy was a curse for us, because then guys started to get relaxed, and then we all wanted to start to play 1-on-1 basketball.

Which, as Wall explained, isnt something that generally will work in Washingtons favor.

We have nobody on our team thats THAT great, Wall said, echoing his coach.

Wall, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft, was outdueled by New Jersey point guard Deron Williams (6'3''-PG-84, college: Illinois), who accumulated 23 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Wall had 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists, shooting only 3 for 13 on field-goal attempts, and 7 for 13 on free throws.

Backup shooting guard Nick Young (6'6''-G/F-85, agency: Priority Sports, college: USC) led Washington with 16 points in just 18 minutes. He missed a large part of the second half after jamming his left foot, but returned.

Humphries re-signed with the Nets last week and was in the starting five Monday because Johnson decided to drop Shelden Williams from the lineup.

Wizards fans greeted Humphrieswho split up from Kardashian 72 days after their weddingwith loud jeers when he was first introduced. The booing reached a crescendo when Humphries was about to attempt a free throw in the first quarter, then turned to cheers when his shot clanged off the front of the rim. Fans also applauded and shouted approval when Humphries was whistled for fouls.

But he helped New Jersey put together a 58-38 rebounding edge. And when Humphries hit an 18-foot jumper four minutes into the second half, a game that Washington led 38-17 suddenly was tied at 53. About halfway through the third quarter, Deron Williams 3-pointer made it 58-57, the Nets first lead of the evening.

Its good to get the win, Humphries said. We were down by 21. Thats funny to say.

Notes: The Wizards (who went 23-59) and Nets (24-58) were two of the six worst teams in the NBA last season, and neither made any truly significant additions. Both went 0-2 during the abbreviated, post-lockout exhibition schedule. According to the Nets, their collection of guys named Williams make New Jersey the first team in NBA history to have four players with the same last name on a regular-season roster together: Deron, Jordan, Shawne and Shelden.

Courtesy of Yahoo! Sports

Thunder survive against Timberwolves, 104-100 - by Eurobasket News
Kevin Durant (6'9''-G/F-88, college: Texas) and the Oklahoma City Thunder are primed to challenge for the Western Conference title this season, three years after the core of one of the most promising teams in the league was assembled.

Kevin Love (6'10''-C-88, college: UCLA) and the Minnesota Timberwolves are a few years behind them, but hope to follow the same path.

Durant scored 33 points to lead the Thunder to a 104-100 victory over the Timberwolves on Monday night.

Russell Westbrook (6'3''-PG-88, college: UCLA) added 28 points, six assists and six rebounds, and James Harden (6'5''-G-89, college: Arizona St.) scored 16 points for the Thunder, who have started off a season loaded with expectations at 2-0.

'These are definitely games you got to be able to knuckle down, concentrate and get a win,' Westbrook said.

Westbrook and Durant took their lumps in 2008-09, when they won just 23 games. Three years later, they're the ones giving them.

'We have a lot of guys that can get a basket: Russell, of course, James is really stepping it up scoring the ball,' Durant said. 'I think we feed off each other really well; it's not like guys are being selfish playing one-on-one basketball.'

Love had 22 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, and Ricky Rubio (6'4''-G-90) had an impressive debut with six assists, six points, five rebounds and no turnovers for the Timberwolves, who hung with one of the best teams in the league all game long.

'That's a team that's a contender and we took them down to the last minute. The best thing is we gave ourselves a chance and if we play like that the rest of the season and continue to get better we're going to win a lot of games,' Love said.

The Wolves led 96-95 with three minutes to play when Westbrook drove the length of the floor, hit a layup and the free throw for a three-point play to put the Thunder ahead.

Oklahoma City never trailed the rest of the way, but this one was in doubt from start to finish.

Michael Beasley (6'10''-F-89, college: Kansas St.) scored 24 points on 11-for-27 shooting, and No. 2 overall pick Derrick Williams scored 13 for the Wolves, who were 3-for-22 from three-point range.

With new coach Rick Adelman on the bench and Rubio, Williams and J.J. Barea added to the roster, there is a buzz surrounding the Timberwolves, who lost 132 games over the previous two seasons and haven't been to the playoffs since 2004, for the first time in ages.

The Wolves sold out their home opener for the first time since 2007, and there is a new hope coming from one of the league's most hapless franchises. Much of it centers around Rubio, the dazzling, 21-year-old point guard who arrived from Spain this offseason after being chosen fifth overall in 2009.

'I've been hearing about him for six years and I saw him for the first time 30 minutes (ago) and it was like he is real,' Thunder coach Scott Brooks said before the game, with only a hint of sarcasm. 'Like a folk hero.'

Rubio entered with just over three minutes to play in the first quarter, and he electrified Minnesota's offense with his sensational passing. He zipped a pass through the lane that nearly took Thunder forward Nick Collison's head off before finding Barea for a layup. That started a run of three consecutive assists that got the crowd on its feet and gave the Wolves a 32-26 lead in the second quarter.

'I feel comfortable on the court and I feel like I helped the team,' Rubio said. 'We didn't get it in the end, but we have a chance. If we go this way, we can do a lot of good things.'

Oklahoma City knows all about expectations.

After beating Orlando to open the season on Sunday night, the Thunder had a little trouble finding their shooting legs early. They missed 20 of their first 28 shots, and Durant started the game 2-for-8.

Westbrook was equally quiet early, but he finished the first half with a jaw-dropping flourish to help the Thunder take the lead. He scored on a layup, knocked down a jumper and then crossed Luke Ridnour over so severely at the end of the half that the veteran point guard fell to the ground on a drive that gave Oklahoma City a 52-46 lead at the break.

'We're letting the game come to us,' Durant said. 'If we continue to do that we'll be fine.'

As discouraged as the Wolves were about the loss, they also took some solace in going toe-to-toe with one of the league's best.

'We played the best team in the West and lost by four points,' Williams said. 'We've got a lot to look forward to.'

NOTES: The Thunder have beaten the Timberwolves 10 consecutive times. Durant, Westbrook and Harden combined for 63 of 97 points in the win over the Magic on Sunday. Thunder SG Daequan Cook hit two huge threes early in the fourth. Barea scored 14 points.

Courtesy of www.usatoday.com

Hornets beat Suns 85-84 on Gordon's late jumper - by Eurobasket News
Eric Gordon (6'4''-G-88, college: Indiana) made a 20-footer from the top of the key with 4.2 seconds to play in his New Orleans debut to give the Hornets an 85-84 victory over the Phoenix Suns in their season opener Monday night.

Gordon, who came to New Orleans in the trade that sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Clippers, gave his team its only lead since the first two minutes of the second half.

Suns rookie Markieff Morris threw the ball away on Phoenix's final possession.

Gordon scored 20 points. Carl Landry (6'7''-F-83, agency: Priority Sports, college: Purdue) added 14 and Trevor Ariza 13 for New Orleans.

Robin Lopez (7'0''-C/F-88, college: Stanford) scored 22 points, more than he had in any game last season, for the Suns. Steve Nash had 14 points and 12 assists but was scoreless in the final quarter.

Marcin Gortat (7'0''-C-84) added 13 for Phoenix.

Both teams were awful from 3-point range, the Suns going 5 of 25 and New Orleans 2 of 16.

The Hornets were within one seven times in the final seven minutes before finally breaking through with Gordon's game-winning shot.

Ariza drove the lane and was fouled by rookie Markieff Morris with 35.4 seconds to go and the Suns up 84-83, but he missed both free throws and the Suns' Jared Dudley grabbed the rebound and called time as he fell to the court. Dudley, though, missed a fading 10-footer in the lane with 16.9 seconds to go to give New Orleans its shot at the game winner.

Gordon dribbled downcourt and let fly from the top of the key to put his team ahead. There was plenty of time for Phoenix to respond. But after a timeout, the ball was inbounded to Morris, who tried to throw the ball to Nash, but tossed it out of bounds instead with a half-second to play.

Down by as many as nine late in the first half, the Suns opened the third quarter with a 9-2 run, Nash's 21-footer putting Phoenix up 50-49 with 9:48 left in the period. After Vasquez tied it at 54-54 with a three-point play, Nash scored the next five on a driving layup through traffic and a 3-pointer, giving Phoenix a 59-54 with 6:06 to go in the quarter. The Suns led after that, until the final New Orleans shot, but never by more than six.

The Hornets led most of the first half.

Gordon's 10-foot floater capped an 8-2 spurt that put New Orleans up 41-34 with 2:10 left in the half. The run reached 14-6 when Brown's driving layup gave the Hornets their biggest lead of the half at 47-38 31.1 seconds before the break. Lopez's three-point play cut the lead to 47-41 at the half.

Notes: Jack was suspended for violating the league's conduct code. He pleaded no contest to a reckless driving charge in Georgia. ... Nash played in his 683rd game for the Suns, tied with Kevin Johnson for fourth-most in team history. ... Phoenix began a season with the same starting five that finished the previous one, the first time that's happened since the 1990-91 season. ... Gordon drew three fouls in a span of less than three minutes in the third quarter. ... Attendance was 17,776, just shy of a sellout.

Courtesy of www.boston.com

Ginobili scores 24 as Spurs beat Memphis 95-82 and get early payback for playoff ouster - by Eurobasket News
Emanuel Ginobili (6'6''-G-77, agency: Interperformances) never saw the Memphis Grizzlies play that badly in the playoffs, and is pretty sure he wont again.

But the San Antonio Spurs will take it.

Ginobili scored 24 points and San Antonio ran away from what barely resembled the up-and-coming Memphis team that stunned the 61-win Spurs in the first round last season, beating the Grizzlies 95-82 on Monday night.

San Antonio began what could be Tim Duncan's final season with a satisfying bit of payback but otherwise didnt read much into the victory. Take Zach Randolph (6'9''-C-81, college: Michigan St.) and Marc Gasol (7'0''-C-85, agency: Interperformances), who utterly bullied the Spurs in that playoff series but combined for just 23 points this time.

Zac was off. He didnt have of these games in the playoffs, Ginobili said. That happens the first game of the season. We all need time to get back in shape.

Rudy Gay (6'9''-F/G-86, college: Connecticut) led Memphis with 19 points and 10 rebounds in his first game in nearly 10 months. Gay missed the end of last season with a bad left shoulder, including when Memphis knocked out the top-seeded Spurs.

Yet even with the full starting lineup that Memphis wouldve preferred in last years playoffs, the Grizzlies still remained winless on opening night since the franchise left Vancouver in 2001.

Not quite the start the NBAs breakout team of last season had in mind.

We didnt play very well. We did turn the ball over alot, but we didnt guard, Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. We didnt guard them in the pick in roll. We gave up transition points. It was not a very well-played game by us at all.

The Grizzlies committed 24 turnovers. Randolph had 10 points and six rebounds and Gasol had 13 and six. In the playoffs series against the Spurs, Randolph averaged 21.5 points.

Its not like the Spurs got any bigger to defend the Grizzlies big frontline. DeJuan Blair, the 6-foot-7 center deemed too ineffective by coach Gregg Popovich to even play Games 5 and 6 against Memphis, was back in the starting lineup.

The Spurs have precious few alternatives: forward Antonio McDyess officially retired in training camp, and they havent added a big man to replace him. Yet San Antonio was helped by 7-footer Tiago Splitter, who didnt look as lost as he did as rookie against Memphis last season.

He was really solid, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. He stayed in good position, he blocked shots and he rebounded. He was real special tonight.

Mike Conley had 11 points and seven assists for the Grizzlies. Memphis led by one at halftime but were blown out in the third quarter after shooting just 29 percent from the floor.

Despite the loss, Gay was satisfied with his return.

Its kind of bittersweet we lost, but it good that Im healthy and I can get out there and play, he said.

Richard Jefferson, once thought to be a goner in San Antonio under the NBAs new amnesty clause, added 14 points for the Spurs. Duncan had 10 points in 22 minutes as the challenge of rationing the 35-year-olds minutes in a compressed, grueling schedule began.

Duncan is playing in the final year of his contract but hasnt said whether this will be his last run for a fifth title.

If Duncan and the Spurs have one last championship run left in them, there was no better first test than Memphis. The bigger and quicker Grizzlies gave the aging Spurs fits in the playoffs last April even without Gay, who had been Memphis second-leading scorer.

For opening night, at least, San Antonio showed it can still keep up.

Leonard can take some credit for that. The 15th overall pick brought a jolt off the bench in the third quarter when the Spurs opened up a 19-point lead despite trailing at halftime. Leonard had six points during the stretch, including hitting a corner 3-pointer after catching a nifty behind-the-back pass from Ginobili.

Leonard is the centerpiece of what the Spurs are calling their youth movement seven of their 13 players have fewer than three years of experience. But the face and fortunes of the franchise still firmly belong to Parker, Ginobili and Duncan, who started their 10th season together.

Notes: Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III watched the game with some of his Baylor teammates. The Bears are in town to play Washington in the Alamo Bowl on Thursday...Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones, who owns a home in San Antonio, sat courtside with Spurs owner Peter Holt. ...The Spurs remain without G Gary Neal after the second-year backup had his appendix removed during training camp.

Courtesy of www.washingtonpost.com

Lawson, Nuggets cruise past Mavericks 115-93 - by Eurobasket News
Ty Lawson (5'11''-PG-87, college: N.Carolina) scored 20 of his 27 points in the first half and the Denver Nuggets faced little resistance on their way to a 115-93 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night.

The reigning champions were drubbed for a second straight game, routinely giving up easy baskets in both. They allowed Denver to score 20 unanswered points in the second quarter and were down by 33 late in the third.

Denver, playing its opener, scored on 19 of 25 second-quarter possessions. The Nuggets made only 12 baskets in the second half, yet still cruised to victory.

Dirk Nowitzki (6'11''-F-78) led Dallas with 20 points, and didn't play in the fourth quarter - for the second straight game, yet another indication of how badly things are going for the Mavs.

Courtesy of www.kdvr.com

Rockets sign C Samuel Dalembert - by Eurobasket News
The Houston Rockets have signed free-agent center Samuel Dalembert (6'11''-C-81, college: Seton Hall).

The 6-foot-11 Dalembert agreed to a multi-year contract last week. The team officially announced his signing Monday.

Houston opens the season at Orlando on Monday night.

Dalembert averaged 8.1 points and 8.2 rebounds for Sacramento last season. He played his first eight seasons in Philadelphia after the 76ers made him a first-round (26th overall) pick in 2001.

The Rockets needed to add a big man after NBA Commissioner David Stern halted a three-team deal that would have brought Pau Gasol to town.

Courtesy of http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com

Curry leads Warriors to 99-91 win over Bulls - by Eurobasket News
Stephen Curry (6'3''-PG-88, college: Davidson) had 21 points and 10 assists, Monta Ellis scored 26 points and the Golden State Warriors beat the Chicago Bulls 99-91 on Monday, giving rookie coach Mark Jackson his first victory at any level.

David Lee (6'9''-F-83, agency: Priority Sports, college: Florida) added 22 points and seven rebounds and Dominic McGuire made three free throws in the final 47 seconds to seal the win for Golden State.

Luol Deng (6'7''-F-85, agency: Interperformances, college: Duke), whose block of Kobe Bryant as time expired sealed Chicago's season-opening 88-87 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulls, who trailed by as much as 19 before making a late surge to get within 96-91 with 36.3 seconds remaining.

Derrick Rose (6'4''-G-88, college: Memphis) had an off night shooting and finished with 13 points for Chicago.

Rose went 4 of 17 from the floor and missed badly on a pair of 3-pointers in the final moments, including an airball with 25.9 seconds left.

It was similar to a year ago when the Warriors, playing at home, held Rose to a quiet 14 points and 10 assists and beat the Bulls 101-90.

Ellis drew the assignment against Rose in that game. This time it was almost exclusively Curry, who followed Rose closely throughout the night and prevented the league's reigning MVP from getting settled in.

A day after making series of late-game breakdowns against Chris Paul and the Clippers in a 105-86 loss, the Warriors built a double-digit lead in the first quarter then had to hold off the Bulls.

Chicago, which is in the midst of a season-opening four-game road trip, has lost nine of its last 10 games in Oakland.

Ellis, held to 15 in the season-opening loss to the Clippers, got the Warriors going with 13 points in the first quarter but it was Curry who provided the biggest lift.

He scored 12 straight points and drove past three Chicago defenders in the key to cap a 16-5 run and give Golden State a 46-27 lead. Curry also shadowed Rose and helped hold him to seven points in the first half.

Rose, who hit the game-winner in the Bulls 88-87 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, took only three shots in the first quarter when Chicago committed eight turnovers.

The Warriors increased their lead to 17 after three before the Bulls made their late push to get within 93-85 with 1:44 left.

Kyle Korver made a pair of 3-pointers in a 14-second span to pull Chicago within 96-91 but the Bulls couldn't get closer than that.

Notes: Chicago's 14 first-half turnovers equaled their total from the previous night. ... It was the first time in 10 years the Warriors have opened the season with games on consecutive nights. Golden State also plays its next two at Oracle Arena. ... The sellout crowd included New York Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia, who grew up 30 miles north of Oakland, Raiders owner Mark Davis and San Francisco 49ers running back Anthony Dixon.

Courtesy of www.miamiherald.com

Trail Blazers beat 76ers 107-103 in season opener - by Eurobasket News
The NBA is back, and so are LaMarcus Aldridge (6'11''-F/C-85, college: Texas), Gerald Wallace (6'7''-F-82, college: Alabama) and the new-look Portland Trail Blazers.

Aldridge scored 25 points, and Wallace had 21 points and nine rebounds as the Blazers withstood a late 76ers rally on Monday night to win 107-103 in both teams' season opener at the Rose Garden.

There was plenty of pregame fanfare as the Blazers (1-0) introduced all of their players and showed a video montage of recently retired star Brandon Roy.

Neither team shot well early, but Portland found its rhythm before the 76ers did, and the Blazers built a 13-point lead before Philadelphia trimmed it to four points by halftime.

Each time Philadelphia (0-1) cut into Portland's lead early in the second half, the Blazers made a run, and early in the fourth quarter they again extended their margin to 15 points at 92-77.

But the 76ers wouldn't go away.

After hitting 2 of 8 three-pointers in the first three quarters, the 76ers made 6 of 11 in the final quarter and pulled to within 105-103 before Raymond Felton's free throws finally iced the game for Portland.

Blazers center Marcus Camby had six points, 13 rebounds and six assists for Portland, including a couple of lob passes that Aldridge turned into dunks. In addition to leading the team in scoring, Aldridge added seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks.

A couple of the Blazers' newcomers also had strong games. Felton scored 12 points and added six rebounds and eight assists. Jamal Crawford also had a dozen points and added four rebounds, four assists and four steals.

All told, six Blazers finished with at least 10 points in a balanced offensive attack.

Louis Williams (6'3''-PG-86) came off the bench to lead the 76ers with 25 points, including key late three-pointers that kept Philadelphia in it.

The Blazers next face Sacramento on Tuesday night at the Rose Garden.

Courtesy of www.oregonlive.com

Kings open season with 100-91 win over Lakers - by Eurobasket News
For Sacramento fans, just seeing their Kings on the court was a victory after all the talk of moving at the end of last season.

Beating the hated Los Angeles Lakers in the season opener only made it sweeter.

Marcus Thornton (6'4''-G-87, college: LSU) scored 12 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter and the Kings beat the Lakers at home for the first time in more than three years, 100-91 on Monday night.

It was nice to be back, coach Paul Westphal said. It was wild in there and our players really liked the feeling of that game. The fans were just fantastic.

Tyreke Evans (6'6''-PG-89, college: Memphis) added 20 points, John Salmons (6'7''-F-79, college: Miami, FL) had 13 and DeMarcus Cousins had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Kings, who had lost nine of 10 to the Lakers and five straight at home.

'It's not a rivalry', Kobe Bryant (6'6''-G-78) said. 'We beat them every year. Oh my God. I don't care if they beat us tonight. I like (Kings owners Joe and Gavin Maloof). I hope they enjoy this.'

Bryant scored 29 points and Metta World Peace (6'7''-G/F-79, college: St.John's) added 19 for the Lakers, who opened the season with consecutive losses for the first time since 2002-03, putting a damper on the start of new coach Mike Browns tenure.

We have a lot of games left, a lot of games left, World Peace said. Everything is going OK. Everything will be great.

Kings rookie Jimmer Fredette entered to a loud ovation midway through the first quarter and then committed a double dribble the first time he touched the ball.

Otherwise, it was nothing but a positive start to the season for the Kings, who didnt even know if they would be in Sacramento after ending last season with an overtime loss at home to the Lakers.

But the city got a reprieve when the team decided to stay for at least one more season instead of moving to Anaheim. That has led to newfound optimism that an emerging roster of young and athletic playmakers can return the Kings to prominence and the city can build a new arena to keep the team here for the long term.

These fans are unbelievable, newly acquired forward Chuck Hayes said. I thought they were loud on TV. I thought they were loud as an away player and I think theyre even louder as a home player. It was just a great moment.

The game was especially satisfying for Hayes, who got a major scare earlier this month when he failed a physical because of a heart abnormality. He then went to see specialists at the Cleveland Clinic and was cleared to play, leading the Kings to sign him once again. Hayes had seven points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes.

Chuck Hayes is the glue of this team, Westphal said. We knew he would be the glue when we signed him and he shows it every day. It was a phenomenal effort for Chuck with what hes been through.

The Kings went on an 11-0 run around halftime and then put together a strong finish to the third quarter led by Cousins. Playing with four fouls, Cousins scored eight points in the final 3:20 of the third to give Sacramento a 78-64 lead heading into the fourth.

Thornton scored seven of the Kings first nine points of the fourth as Sacramento maintained its lead. But six straight points by World Peace helped the Lakers cut it to 89-87 with 4:24 to play.

Thornton hit a 3-pointer to give the Kings some breathing room and Hayes had a key block on Pau Gasol leading to two free throws by Evans. The Lakers never got the deficit to less than five points after that. Thorntons jumper made it 99-89 with 1:10 to go, sending the crowd into a frenzy.

We stayed the course, Thornton said. We didnt get riled up. When they were making that run, we shot a couple of quick shots. We got back to doing what we do best.

Los Angeles doesnt have to wait long to get a chance for its first win in this lockout-compacted season, as the Lakers host Utah on Tuesday night with their third game in three nights to open the season.

Everyone is going to have to play three straight games and we will have to find a way through this, Brown said. We have had a lot of practice, followed by a long day today, but everyone has to go through it as well.

The Kings took a 49-40 halftime lead, holding the Lakers to 36.4 percent shooting including an uncharacteristic 4-for-13 performance from Bryant.

Sacramento even had success matching 5-foot-9 rookie Isaiah Thomas on Bryant on a few possessions in the second quarter despite a 9-inch height disadvantage. After missing a turnaround jumper over the shorter Thomas, Bryant could only manage to chuckle on his way back down the court.

Notes: The Kings have won six straight home openers. Mayor Kevin Johnson, who helped keep the Kings in Sacramento this season, was presented a jersey from the Maloofs. Bryant got called for a technical foul in the third quarter when he threw his hands in frustration after being fouled on a dunk attempt by J.J. Hickson.

Courteys of www.philstar.com

Standings

NBA Standings

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Div.
1. New Jersey N.		1-0
2. New York K.		1-0
3. Toronto R.		1-0
4. Boston C.		0-1
5. Philadelph.76		0-1
Central Div.
1. Indiana P.		1-0
2. Chicago B.		1-1
3. Cleveland C.		0-1
4. Detroit P.		0-1
5. Milwaukee B.		0-1
Southeast Div.
1. Charlotte B.		1-0
2. Miami Heat		1-0
3. Orlando M.		1-1
4. Atlanta H.		0-0
5. Washington W.		0-1
Western Conference
Northwest Div.
1. Oklah.City T.		2-0
2. Denver N.		1-0
3. Portland TB		1-0
4. Utah Jazz		0-0
5. Minnesota T.		0-1
Pacific Div.
1. LA Clippers		1-0
2. Sacramento K.		1-0
3. Golde State W.		1-1
4. Phoenix Suns		0-1
5. LA Lakers		0-2
Southwest Div.
1. N.Orleans H.		1-0
2. San Antonio S.		1-0
3. Houston R.		0-1
4. Memphis G.		0-1
5. Dallas M.		0-2

Irving struggles as Raptors rip Cavs 104-96 - by Eurobasket News
Rookie Kyrie Irving (6'2''-G-92, college: Duke) scored six points and hardly played like the No. 1 overall pick as the Toronto Raptors spoiled the Cleveland guards NBA debut with a 104-96 season-opening win over the Cavaliers on Monday night.

Irving, who played just 11 games at Duke before turning pro, finished just 2 of 11 from the fieldhe made a meaningless 3-pointer in the final minutes with seven assists and one turnover in 26 minutes. The Cavs are counting on the 19-year-old to turn around a team that won just 19 games last season.

Toronto, which went only 22-60 last season, won its first game under coach Dwane Casey, who was an assistant last season for the champion Dallas Mavericks.

Demar DeRozan (6'7''-F/G-89, college: USC) scored nine of his 15 points in the fourth for Toronto, which had seven players score in double figures. Jose Manuel Calderon (6'3''-PG-81) scored 15 with 11 assists, Amir Johnson scored 13 with 13 rebounds, Leandro Barbosa scored 14 and Andrea Bargnani 13.

Ramon Sessions (6'3''-PG-86, college: Nevada) led the Cavaliers with 18 and rookie Tristan Thompson, taken three picks after Cleveland selected Irving, added 12.

Alonzo Gee (6'6''-G-87, college: Alabama) had 15 points and Anderson Varejao 14 and 10 rebounds for Cleveland, which trimmed a 13-point deficit in the second half to 82-80 on Daniel Gibsons layup with nine minutes left, igniting a crowd at Quicken Loans Arena which came hoping to see the Irving era start with a win.

But DeRozan came up big down the stretch, scoring nine points in the final six minutes. His jumper from the right corner put the Cavs away in the final minute.

Although it was assumed Irving would start, Cavs coach Byron Scott didnt inform the youngster that he would be on the floor for the opening tip until the morning shootaround. Scott broke the news to Irving by telling him to put on a red (practice) jersey on. Clevelands starters wear wine-colored tops during practice.

Scott offered Irving some advice before his first game as a pro.

I told him to relax and have fun, Scott said. You only get to do this once, where its your first NBA game. I told him to enjoy the moment, but when that ball gets thrown up to get back to business.

Irving wasnt showing any nerves before tip-off. He popped on large headphones and listened to music while sitting in a chair in front of his locker before walking over to a large TV screen to watch film of the Raptors.

It was only when he got on the floor that Irving seemed a little overwhelmed. He started slowly, missing his first three shots and didnt score his first point until making a technical foul with 3:50 left in the first half. He scored his first field goal five seconds later, banking in a runner from the right side to pull the Cavs within six.

But he forced other shots and the Raptors never let him get into a rhythm.

The Raptors trailed 31-27 in the second quarter before going on a 15-2 tear. Barbosa and Jerryd Bayless hit 3-pointers in the run and Toronto was able to keep Cleveland at bay while building a 52-42 halftime lead.

Notes: Gee somehow survived a spectacular crash after a dunk in the second quarter. Gee threw the ball down he was called for traveling grabbed the rim, and nearly did a backward flip before landing on his neck and shoulders. He got up, brushed himself off and went back on defense. Even LeBron James tweeted Ouch!! after watching Gees tumble. Toronto backup C Aaron Gray was kept out as a precaution because of a rapid heart rate. Gray, who signed with the Raptors as a free agent when camp opened, may visit a specialist at the Cleveland Clinic while the team is in town. Toronto F Jamaal Magloire is the Raptors first Canadian-born player. Clevelands home opener was not sold out for the first time since 2004.

Courtesy of www.philstar.com

Magic find shots, down Rockets 104-95 - by Eurobasket News
The Orlando Magic may not know exactly what twists may lie ahead of them during the remainder of this year's fast-paced NBA schedule. What they can count on, however, is that the team as it exists presently will have its best nights when the ball moves around and it takes advantage of open shots on offense.

Orlando accomplished both Monday night in a 104-95 win over Houston in the kind of game the Magic's players said afterward should be saved as a season blueprint as they prepare to take on the first of several grueling stretches.

'I think it was across the board for our team tonight,' J.J. Redick said of the Magic earning their first win of the season following a Christmas night loss at Oklahoma City. 'We just played better offensively...and when that happens it's a little easier to get into somewhat of a rhythm.'

Hidayet Turkoglu (6'9''-F-79) scored 23 points to lead five Magic players in double figures, and Orlando got 13 points from Turkoglu and eight points from Redick in the fourth quarter to help the Magic stave off a handful of second-half charges by the Rockets. Dwight Howard (6'11''-C-85) finished with 21 points and Redick 20 for the game.

Van Gundy derided his team's offensive energy in the loss to the Thunder and said it is far away from normal regular-season form.

'Those guys gave us a lift, and then I thought that Glen (Davis) us a big left there when we were fighting for the lead.' said Van Gundy, whose team takes next hosts New Jersey Thursday to kick off a stretch of four games in five days. 'We had some guys bounce back and have better games tonight and we had some other guys fall off.

'It's tough right now. We haven't had anybody in the first two games to have two good games. Hopefully, that consistency will come pretty quickly.'

Kyle Lowry (6'0''-PG-86, college: Villanova) led Houston with 20 points and 12 assists, Luis Scola (6'9''-F/C-80) added 19 and Courtney Lee 15 off the bench.

The Rockets trailed by as many as 12 points and got within four in the fourth quarter, but the Magic were able to hit some timely 3-pointers late to help secure the victory.

Center Samuel Dalembert, who's signing with Houston became official on Monday, had 10 points, connecting on 5 of 6 field goals. His pickup was necessary after NBA Commissioner David Stern vetoed a three-team deal that would have sent Los Angeles Lakers' big man Pau Gasol to the Rockets.

New Houston coach Kevin McHale said he always planned to play Dalembert Monday, but was forced to get him in earlier than expected after Jordan Hill picked up two quick fouls. He played 19 minutes on the night and also had five rebounds.

'I went out there and got some minutes and kept it going,' Dalembert said. 'That is what a team is all about...I like this group...This year we really have to emphasize on defense and then we can get extra possessions...If we can do that, we will be OK.'

The retirement of Yao Ming has shifted much of the offensive onus for McHale's team to his young guards. Though they came up short Monday, there is definitely a lot for McHale to work with.

Lowry came just three rebounds shy of notching a triple-double and former Magic draft pick Courtney Lee (15 points) and Terrence Williams (13 points, six rebounds) also had their moments.

'Mentally, we're asking them to do a lot of different things with new coverages and a lot of different things with new calls and stuff like that,' McHale said. 'Some of that was blown. Overall, I think this team will play hard. I think we're feisty. I think when (Sam) gets in shape he'll help us out a great deal.'

Houston hung tough early, but were done in shooting 43 percent (36 for 82) from the field for the game and 22 percent (6 for 27) from beyond the arc.

Howard shot just 4 for 12 from the field in that game, but was active from the opening tap Monday and helped stimulate the flow for his teammates as Orlando took a 53-50 advantage into halftime.

He connected on 8 of his first 9 attempts Monday and led all scorers with 16 first-half points.

Redick added 10 points and Davis nine before being forced to the bench with his third foul.

Scola was just as productive for the Rockets, though, and kept them close in the opening 24 minutes with 15 points on 6 of 9 shooting.

Houston also managed to outrebound the Magic, 20-19, and had just three turnovers.

The Rockets kept both edges for the game, with two fewer turnovers and a 41-35 edge on the boards.

Magic guard Jason Richardson said they expect to have even better nights than Monday, but like the fight they showed down the stretch in just their second outing.

'They made a run and pushed, but we held out ground and we stayed put and stayed to our game plan and finished the game,' he said.

Notes: Redick picked up a technical fouled late in the third quarter, the Magic's first of the season. He also had a tech during the preseason ... Houston G Kevin Martin, who struggled during the preseason shooting just 2 for 12 from the field, started out 0 for 9 Monday ... McHale, who spent the past two seasons doing work for NBATV and TNT said that he definitely likes being back on the sidelines more than watching from the broadcast chair. McHale last coached Minnesota for 63 games in 2008-09. 'The fun thing about announcing is you don't care who wins (and) the bad thing about announcing is you don't care who wins,' he said. 'You like having a dog in the fight. You like the feeling I have right now - the little anticipation. You get the butterflies. You don't get that when you're doing TV.'

Courtesy of www.miamiherald.com

Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

LeBron JAMES
  Miami Heat
  (203-F-84)
  Avg: 37

1. James, Miami Heat	37.0
2. Anthony, New Y.	37.0
3. Durant, Oklah.Ci.	31.5
4. Rondo, Boston C.	31.0
5. Bryant, LA Lakers	28.5
6. Thornton, Sacramen.	27.0
7. Lawson, Denver N.	27.0
8. Wade, Miami Heat	26.0
9. Aldridge, Portland.	25.0
10. Williams, Philade.	25.0

Rebounds Per Game

Kris HUMPHRIES
  New J.
  (205-F-85)
  Avg: 16

1. Humphries, New J.	16.0
2. Hawes, Philadelph..	14.0
3. Hibbert, Indiana P.	14.0
4. Haslem, Miami Heat	14.0
5. James, New J.	14.0
6. Johnson, Toronto	13.0
7. Hansbrough, India.	13.0
8. Camby, Portland TB	13.0
9. Love, Minnesota T.	12.0
10. West, Indiana P.	12.0

Assists Per Game

Rajon RONDO
  Boston C.
  (185-PG-86)
  Avg: 13

1. Rondo, Boston C.	13.0
2. Nash, Phoenix Suns	12.0
3. Lowry, Houston R.	12.0
4. Calderon, Toron.	11.0
5. Paul, LA Clippers	9.0
6. Diaw, Charlotte B.	9.0
7. Williams, New J.	9.0
8. Hawes, Philadelph..	9.0
9. Augustin, Charlott.	8.0
10. Felton, Portland	8.0

Steals Per Game

Rajon RONDO
  Boston C.
  (185-PG-86)
  Avg: 5

1. Rondo, Boston C.	5.0
2. Chalmers, Miami He.	4.0
3. Curry, Golde S.	4.0
4. Crawford, Portland.	4.0
5. Parker, San A.	4.0
6. Douglas, New Y.	3.0
7. Ginobili, San A.	3.0
8. Lawson, Denver N.	3.0
9. Aldridge, Portland.	3.0
10. Miller, Denver N.	3.0

Blocks Per Game

DeAndre JORDAN
  LA Clippers
  (213-C-88)
  Avg: 8

1. Jordan, LA Clippers	8.0
2. Chandler, New Y.	6.0
3. Iguodala, Philadel.	4.0
4. Hayes, Sacramen.	3.0
5. Johnson, Toronto	3.0
6. Johnson, Toronto	3.0
7. Barnes, LA Lakers	3.0
8. McGee, Washingt.	3.0
9. Hibbert, Indiana P.	3.0
10. Wallace, Detroit	3.0

*****************************************************

NBLCANADA

Ralphy Holmes named Player of the Week for the 2nd time - by Eurobasket News
The National Basketball League of Canada is pleased to announce that Ralphy Holmes (6'4''-G-79, college: CS Fullerton) of the Quebec Kebs has been named Player of the Week for the week ending December 25, 2011. This is the second time that Holmes has won the honour this season.

Holmes, a 6'4' guard from Cal State-Fullerton, averaged a double-double of 14 points and 11.3 rebounds in three games this week. In Thursday night's matchup against the Saint John Mill Rats, Holmes became the first player in NBL history to earn a triple double. Holmes scored 17 points, pulled down 16 rebounds and handed out 10 assists.

Courtesy of The NBL

*****************************************************

NCAA1

Which Conference is Stronger: The A10 or the Pac-12? - by Carl Berman
Last year I wrote an article that supported the view that the Atlantic-10 conference was stronger than the Pac-12. This year the case is stronger.

In the current RPI rankings the A10 is ranked #7. The conference has six teams in the top 60, St. Josephs (13), Dayton (22), Xavier (24), Temple (34), St. Louis (53) and St. Bonaventure (57). Xavier would be much higher if not for their recent loss to Oral Roberts that they played with three starters suspended.

The Pac-12 is ranked #9 and only has two teams in the top 60, Arizona (35) and California (58).

Lets review each conferences bad losses and good wins. Good wins are any wins over a team with a better than 60 RPI or a strong BCS team. Bad losses are losses to a team with an RPI over 100 or a low mid-major team.

In the Pac-12, California defeated Denver (11) and Georgia, Stanford beat North Carolina St. (56) and Colorado State (52), Oregon State beat Texas, Arizona State beat Wake Forest, Washington lost to South Dakota State and Nevada, Oregon State lost to Idaho (239), Washington State lost to UC-Riverside (256), USC lost to Cal-Poly (127), Arizona State lost to Pepperdine (257), Northern Arizona (278) and Nevada, UCLA lost to LMU (164) and Middle Tenn. St. (132) while Utah lost to Boise State (124), Montana State (317), UMass (108), UNC-Asheville (139), Fresno State (196) and Fullerton (228), A total of 6 good wins and 16 bad losses.

In the A10, St. Josephs defeated Georgia Tech, Creighton (34) and Villanova (91) while losing to American (120). Xavier beat Georgia (73), Vanderbilt (28), Purdue (39) and Cincinnati. Dayton defeated Minnesota (18), Alabama (22) and Wake Forest while losing to Miami (OH) (269) and Buffalo (112). Temple beat Wichita State (44) and Villanova and lost to Bowling Green (229). St. Louis beat Oklahoma (24) and Villanova and lost to Loyola Marymount (164). Richmond beat Wake Forest. St. Bonaventure lost to Arkansas State (138). Charlotte beat Davidson (20) and lost to E. Tennessee St. (203). Duquesne lost to Western Michigan (207). LaSalle lost to Delaware (169). George Washington lost to Loyola (MD) (134) and Bradley (199). Fordham lost to Loyola (IL) (211), Lehigh (111), Manhattan (151) and Monmouth (284). Rhode Island lost to George Mason (191), Boston U. (157), Brown (300), Maine (200), Georgia State (273) and Yale (125). A total of 16 good wins and 21 bad losses with 10 of the bad losses by the bottom two teams.

Lets compare the conferences in games against BCS conference schools. The Pac-12 is 10-17 while the A10 is 20-18. In matchups between the conferences the result is 2-2 with St. Louis beating Washington 77-64 and UMass defeating Utah 89-75. The Pac-12s wins were Cal over George Washington (81-54) and Arizona beating Duquesne (67-59).

As far as NCAA bids, the Pac-12 shouldnt get more than two bids (maybe Arizona and Cal the way it looks now) while the A10 can get 3-4 out of Xavier, St. Josephs, Dayton, St. Louis and Temple.

The verdict is in. The Atlantic 10 is a stronger basketball conference this year than the Pac-12.

Carl Berman is a Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. Information about NetScouts Basketball can be found on our website at www.netscoutsbasketball.com..

Syracuse on top of AP hoops poll for 3rd week - by Eurobasket News
With Syracuse No. 1 for a third straight week, the top seven teams remain the same in The Associated Press' Top 25.

The Orange received 54 first-place votes from the 65-member national media poll on Monday. Ohio State, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Baylor and Duke held their places from last week.

Ohio State received five No. 1 votes, Kentucky had four and Louisville two.

Missouri, Connecticut and Florida round out the top 10.

Harvard moved into the rankings for the first time three weeks ago, then dropped out after one week. The Crimson are back at No. 24. San Diego State moved into the poll for the first time this season at No. 25.

Xavier, which lost three straight games after several players were suspended for fighting, dropped out from No. 14.

Courtesy of http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com

NetScouts Basketball's NCAA Players of the Week - by Carl Berman
NetScouts Basketball has selected our National Players of the Week for the week ending on December 25, 2011.

Stanford forward Nnemkadi Ogwumike is our Womens National Player of the Week. Ogwumike, a 6-2 senior from Cypress, Texas, scored 42 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead the No. 5 Cardinal to a 97-80 win over No. 6 Tennessee Tuesday. On Thursday she only played 13 minutes in a 90-48 home win over Cal State Bakersfield in which she had eight points, four rebounds and four assists. Ogwumike leads the Cardinal (9-1) with a 24.0 points per game and 11.0 rebounds per game.

Creighton forward Doug McDermott is our Mens National Player of the Week. McDermott, a 6-7 sophomore from Ames, Iowa, averaged 31.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists as Creighton picked up wins over Tulsa and Northwestern. McDermott shot 70.3 percent from the field (26-37), connected on 5-7 shots from three-point range (71.4 percent), and was perfect in five free-throw attempts.

He began his week with a career-high 35 points on Monday as the Bluejays handed Tulsa its worst home loss (83-64) since 2005-06. On Thursday against a 10-1 Northwestern team, McDermott had 27 points, five rebounds and a career-high five assists in an 87-79 win.

Our Mens International Player of the Week is Gerardo Suero of Albany, a 64 junior guard from the Dominican Republic. In victories over Dartmouth and St. Francis (NY) Suero averaged 24.0 points, four rebounds and three assists. Suero is currently 6th in the nation in scoring at 21.5 ppg.

Carl Berman is a Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. Information about NetScouts Basketball can be found at www.netscoutsbasketball.com.

Top 25 - Men

Top 25 Ranking

1. Syracuse		12-0
2. Ohio St.		12-1
3. Kentucky		11-1
4. Louisville		11-2
5. N.Carolina		10-0
6. Baylor		11-0
7. Duke		9-0
8. Missouri		12-0
9. Connecticut		10-1
10. Florida		9-2
11. Wisconsin		11-2
12. Georgetown		12-0
13. Indiana		12-0
14. Marquette		10-1
15. Mississippi St.		12-1
16. Michigan St.		12-2
17. Kansas		8-3
18. Michigan		11-2
19. UNLV		13-2
20. Murray St.		13-0
21. Creighton		10-1
22. Pittsburgh		11-2
23. Virginia		9-1
24. Harvard		9-1
25. San Diego St.		11-2

*****************************************************

NCAA2

Cal Poly Pomona faces two years of probation - by Eurobasket News
Cal Poly Pomona committed major violations in its women's and men's basketball program, according to findings by the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions.

The violations in this case included unethical conduct by a former assistant coach and former head coach of the women's basketball team and a lack of institutional control.

Penalties include recruiting restrictions, a reduction in tryouts and two years of probation for the institution. The former women's basketball head coach received a two-year show-cause order. Additionally, a one-year show-cause order was given to a former women's basketball assistant coach.

The show-cause penalties outline how the duties of these coaches must be limited at any NCAA member institution. These limitations are further detailed in the public infractions report.

This case was resolved through the summary disposition process, a cooperative effort where the involved parties collectively submit the case to the Committee on Infractions in written form. The NCAA enforcement staff, the institution and involved individuals must agree to the facts of the case in order for this process to be utilized instead of a formal hearing.

The committee noted the majority of the violations in this case occurred in the women's basketball program during 2009 and 2010. A former head coach and former assistant coach of the women's basketball team provided impermissible benefits to two prospective student-athletes and the cost of an online course for a third prospective student-athlete.

Because the coaches failed to act with honesty and integrity by knowingly providing impermissible benefits to prospective student-athletes, both were cited for unethical conduct.

Both the women's basketball and men's basketball coaching staffs conducted impermissible tryouts. The committee also found that Cal Poly Pomona failed to monitor its athletic program and exercise institutional control.

Specifically, the institution did not properly notify student-athletes regarding renewal and nonrenewal of financial aid from the 2000-01 academic year through 2009-10. The institution did not maintain squad lists for any of its sport programs during the 2005-06 academic year and did not correctly maintain squad lists for the majority of its programs from 2006-07 through 2009-10.

Cal Poly Pomona failed to exercise institutional control and monitoring in the conduct and administration of its athletics program since the program failed to educate the staff about the rules, properly maintain squad lists, investigate potential NCAA rule violation and properly notify student-athletes regarding renewal and nonrenewal of financial aid.

The penalties include:

Public reprimand and censure.

Two years of probation from December 16, 2011, through December 15, 2013.

Reduction in the number of tryouts in men's and women's basketball programs to 10 each during the 2011-12 academic year.

Elimination of official paid visits in the women's basketball program during probationary period.

One-year show-cause order for the former women's basketball assistant coach. The public report contains further details.

Two-year show-cause order for the former women's basketball head coach. The public report contains further details.
Detail regarding violations committed, the term of probation and penalties imposed must be displayed on the home page of the athletics website, in the media guides for the involved sports and in recruiting materials provided to prospective student-athletes in those sports.

Courtesy of www.ncaa.com

Ga. Southwestern tops Clearwater - by Eurobasket News
After dropping an instant classic in heartbreaking fashion in double overtime at Clayton State less than 48 hours earlier, No. 17 Georgia Southwestern was looking to avoid a hangover against Clearwater on Friday afternoon. The Hurricanes stumbled out of the gate before winning in convincing fashion 106-70.

It was a balanced attack for the Hurricanes as all five starters scored in double figures. They were led by Colin Slotter (6'5''-G) (26 points) and Evan Mobley (5'10''-G) (22 points). The backcourt duo was an efficient pair as they would combine to go 17-26 from the field, seven of eight from the line and record a combined ten assists.

Marlon Rivera also stuffed the stat sheet for the Hurricanes. The senior finished the afternoon with ten points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals.

Georgia Southwestern shot 60.3 percent from the field and converted 14 of their 16 free throw attempts. GSW clamped down on defense with 17 steals and out-rebounded Clearwater 41-25. The Blue & Gold totaled 29 assists as a team with Slotter, Rivera and Jamon Hawkins all recording six assists each.

Clearwater's Matt Wells was the game's leading scorer with 30 points, which accounted for 43 of the Cougar offense.

The Blue & Gold were shaking off the cobwebs for the game's first 13 minutes as the visiting Cougars would actually lead by four points with just seven minutes to go in the half. The Hurricanes would go into the half leading by only five points 41-36.

The Cougars' Todd Wahlberg did all of his damage in the first half scoring 12 points on four of five shooting from beyond the arc. Wells would tally 10 of his 30 points in the initial frame, while Phillip Brown registered 10 points and two rebounds in the first half as well for Clearwater.

The Canes came out of halftime with a 28-point outburst in the second half's first nine minutes. When the lead was pushed to 69-51, GSW head coach Mike Leeder was ejected after receiving two technical fouls. With assistant coach Stephen Cox at the helm for the game's final ten minutes, the Blue & Gold would double the 18-point lead to 36 points by game's end.

The victory pushes Georgia Southwestern's record to 7-2 (0-2 PBC) on the season.

Courtesy of www.ncaa.com

*****************************************************

POLAND

Long break in lower leagues - by Maciej Paszyn
Between seventeenth of December and seventh of January no games were planned in 1 and 2 liga. It is fixing 3 weeks of the break for healing injury and possible changes in compositions. On the first of January a 'transfer gate' which will last for two weeks is opening. It is the last possibility of contracting new players until the end of the season.

PLK will play next round in two days. Most curiously coming across two teams from the top is being announced: Trefl Sopot and Energa Czarni Slupsk

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ROMANIA

CS Dinamo Bucuresti sign JerVaughn Johnson - by Eurobasket Center
CS Dinamo Bucuresti signed 23-year old American forward JerVaughn Johnson (198-F-115kg-88, college: CS Fullerton). Johnson played most recently at Istanbulspor (Turkey). While playing 6 games for Istanbulspor this season he averaged 5.8ppg, 4.7rpg and 1.0spg. Johnson played also pro basketball in Israel. He just graduated from California State University, Fullerton and it is his first season in pro basketball.

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RWANDA

APR in Talks With Forward Malinga - by Eurobasket News
Basketball giants APR are set to finalise the transfer of Ugandan born Eric Malinga (186-G) from Kampala's Warriors.

The club's head coach Cliff Owour told Times Sport yesterday, 'We are in talks with Malinga and everything is materializing pretty well.'

'We are restructuring our club and Malinga is one of the top players in the region. We have thought about him for quite some time, and if we can get, he will help us achieve our set targets in this coming year,' added Cliff.

Malinga is a four-time champion with Falcons before moving to Warriors at the start of last season.

Brian Gumisiriza, a senior player and team manager at Warriors, has left the door open for arguably the best perimeter shooter here.

'His contract is up for renewal. If he doesn't move to Kigali, we will renew his contract,' Gumisiriza told the Daily Monitor on Saturday.

Though the local league has been marred with complications, the military side has currently finished the regular season, and going into the playoffs unbeaten with 28 points.

Complications rose recently after rivals and former champions CSK fielded an ineligible player in one of their fixtures. However, the general assembly is set to meet to solve the issue before January 7, 2012.

APR, who finished second last year behind KCB, has great ambitions this year. According to Owour, they want to lift the regional title which will qualify them to compete in the Africa club championship.
Courtesy of: The New times

Rwanda basketball federation goes to poll next February - by Eurobasket News
The Rwanda Basketball Federation will hold its elective General Assembly in February, 2012. The assembly will see to the election of a new president, vice president and a legal adviser to the body.

The federation is still working out on a date with the season due to end next January.

The body has been without a president after Eric Kalisa Salongo resigned last November citing personal reasons. He has two years of his term left.
Courtesy of: http://www.starafrica.com

*****************************************************

SENEGAL

SERBIA

Rastko Dramicanin signs deal in Hungary - by Eurobasket News
Rastko Dramicanin (207-C-86, agency: BeoExcell) will continue his career in Hungary. The Serbian center signed with BC Jaszbereny for rest of the season. Dramicanin started it with Borac Cacak. He appeared 14 times in A League with them averaging 14.5 points and 5.9 rebounds. Rastko Dramicanin split last season between Mega Vizura and German Mitteldeutscher BC Weissenfels. With Mega Vizura he had 15.3 ppg and 5.1 rpg for 13 games. Later he added 6.3 ppg and 3 rpg for 20 games with Mitteldeutscher. Dramicanin is a product of Borac Cacak, where he spent couple of years in the past. He also has experience from FMP. Dramicanin play at the A League All-Star Game in 2010.

OKK Beograd beat Zeleznicar - by Zoran Popovic
In the last match of delayed 3rd round coach Djurovic team beat Zeleznicar Indjija Indjije78:58 (23:12, 18:26, 23:12, 14:8) and with success finish 2011. OKK Beograd players made 11 points advantage in the first quarter, but guests answered in the second quarter and domestic players finished first half with 3 points advantage. In the third period hosts showed much better game and at the end of third period made 14 points advantage. Until the end of the match coach Djurovic give a chance to all players and finish match with 20 points advantage. The most efficient players in out team were Jovan Koprivica (198-G/F-82) with 20 scored points, Luka Drca with 17 and Stanoje Knezevic with 15 points. The most efficient player in the guests team was Bajic with 23 scored points,

Slobodan Ljubotina gets MVP of the Week award for Serbian B League - by Eurobasket News
Slobodan Ljubotina (207-F/C-84, agency: BeoExcell) had an amazing evening in the last round for Spartak and that's him to receive a Eurobasket.com B League Player of the Week award for round 12.
The 27-year old power forward had a double-double of 18 points and thirteen rebounds, while his team beat Viva Basket (#6, 6-6) 102-90. Spartak is placed at 4th position in Serbian B League. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Spartak will need more victories to improve their 7-5 record. It was one of impressive evenings for Ljubotina as usually he does not deliver so high stats. Ljubotina has impressive league stats. He is in league's top in rebounds (3rd best: 8.4rpg) and averages solid 1.4bpg and 66.7% FGP.

The second most remarkable performance in last round's games was 25-year old forward Aleksandar Vuletic (202-F-86, agency: Prossin Sports Management) of Viva Basket. Vuletic impressed basketball fans with 30 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists. Bad luck as Viva Basket lost that game 90-102 to slightly higher-ranked Spartak (#4, 7-5). Viva Basket managed to keep the same 6th spot in the standings. His team lost some distance to top teams. But 6-6 record is not bad and everything may still change. Vuletic is well-known by Viva Basket fans and he already established his position as one of team's most reliable players.

The third best performed player last round was another Spartak's star - Kemal Karahodzic. Karahodzic scored 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He was another key player of Spartak, helping his team with a 102-90 win against slightly lower-ranked Viva Basket (#6, 6-6). Spartak needs these victories very badly if they think about getting closer to top teams. Their record at this point is 7 victories and 5 lost games. Karahodzic has a very solid season. In 11 games in Serbia he scored 15.3ppg. He also has 7.7rpg, 1.8bpg and FGP: 67.0%.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Ivan Dukanac (199-F-80) of Mladost Cacak - 26 points and 9 rebounds
5. Milan Dondur) of Beovuk 72 - 19 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists
6. Nikola Glisovic (209-C-73) of Radnicki Stud. - 24 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists
7. Predrag Brankovic (185-G-83) of Jedinstvo NB - 22 points and 5 rebounds
8. Dragan Bjelica (198-G-81) of Viva Basket - 28 points and 7 assists
9. Nikola Jeftic (202-F-85) of Crnokosa - 22 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists
10. Borislav Djurovic (206-C-80) of Crnokosa - 20 points and 5 rebounds

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

Milisavljevic's 37-point game gives him Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
35-year old guard Branko Milisavljevic (193-G-76, agency: Beo Basket) put on an amazing game in the last round for Mega Vizura and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 14.
He had the game-high 37 points adding three rebounds and four assists for Mega Vizura in his team's victory, helping them to beat Sloboda Uzice (#10, 4-10) 86-80. Mega Vizura maintains the 3rd position in Serbian league. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Mega Vizura will need more victories to improve their 10-4 record. In the team's last game Milisavljevic had a remarkable five three-pointers out of 7 attempts. It's his second year at Mega Vizura and it's hard to imagine this team without him. Branko Milisavljevic averages this season 23.3ppg and 4.9apg.

Second best performed player last round was Milos Bojovic (198-G-81, agency: Beo Basket) of Zeleznicar. He is a guard in his first season at Zeleznicar. In the last game Bojovic recorded impressive double-double of 35 points and 11 rebounds. Bad luck as Zeleznicar was edged in overtime by the higher-ranked Smederevo (#5, 9-5) 105-104. Zeleznicar managed to keep the same 12th spot in the standings. 10 lost games are too many comparing to just three victories Zeleznicar managed to get this year. Bojovic is a newcomer at Zeleznicar and quickly became one of team's most reliable players. He belongs to the best scorers in the league with 24.1ppg (#1). He also registered 5.3 boards per game.

Third place about best performers goes to Bosko Balaban of Smederevo (#5). Balaban showcased his all-around game by recording 25 points, nine rebounds and four assists in the last round. He was a key player of Smederevo, leading his team to a 105-104overtime win against the lower-ranked Zeleznicar (#12, 3-10). Smederevo needs these victories very badly if they think about getting closer to top teams. Their record at this point is 9 victories and 5 lost games. Balaban has a great season in Serbia. After 14 games, he made it on the list of the league's leaders in points with 19.4ppg (5th best) and rebounds with 9.3rpg (#1 in league). He also has 1.3bpg and FGP: 72.3%.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Ivan Smiljanic (198-F-89) of Radnicki Basket - 22 points and 10 rebounds
5. Ivan Zigeranovic (212-C-84) of Borac - 25 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists
6. Aleksandar Petrovic (206-C-72) of BKK Radnicki - 17 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists
7. Ivan Kuburovic (203-F-81) of Sloboda Uzice - 21 points and 7 rebounds
8. Slobodan Dundjerski (190-G-88) of Vojvodina - 9 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists
9. Marko Zocevic (197-G/F-89) of Borac - 16 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists
10. Nenad Stefanovic (193-G-85) of Smederevo - 20 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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SLOVAKIA

D2 - Standings

League One Standings

Group East
1. Slavia Kosice		12-2
2. Nova Ves B		10-4
3. Ziar/Hronom		9-5
4. Sabinov		8-6
5. BKM Svit		7-7
6. Liptovsky M.		5-9
7. Roznava		5-9
8. Lucenec		0-14
Group West
1. Petrzalka		12-2
2. Inter B		11-3
3. Trnava		9-5
4. Karlovka		7-7
5. SKP Filozof		5-9
6. BSC Bratislava		4-10
7. Holic		4-10
8. Sered		4-10

*****************************************************

SLOVENIA

Zlatorog part ways with Cohadarevic - by Zeljko Zule
Zlatorog announced today that it has come to an agreement with Serbian Darko Cohadarevic (206-F-86, college: Texas Tech) to terminate the players's contract, effective immediately. Cohadarevic joined the club over the summer and played in 13 Adriatic League games during which he averaged 5.8 points (2P 56%, FT 56%), 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 16 minutes. Cohadarevic averaged 6.3 points (2P 64%, FT 39%), 2.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 10 Slovenian Telemach League games.

Valladolid signs Samo Udrih - by Eurobasket News
Samo Udrih (195-G-79) is back to Spain. The Slovenian guard penned a deal with CB Valladolid for rest of the season. Udrih has four years of experience in ACB. He moved to Spain in 2005 and spent one season wit Akasvayu Girona. From 2006 to 2008, Samo Udrih was a member of CB Granada. He had 10.7 ppg and 2.2 rpg in their first season together. In 2008/09, Udrih played for Estudiantes Madrid collecting 9.2 ppg, 2.1 rpg and 1.8 apg for 26 games. Samo Udrih split last season between Greek Panellinios Athens and Slovenian Union Olimpija. With Panellinios he had 9.9 ppg and 1.9 rpg in 14 league games. His numbers in EuroCup were little bit lower. Later with Olimpija, Udrih added 6.5 ppg and 2 rpg in Slovenian and Adriatic league. Udrih is active member of the Slovenian National team since 2006.

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SOUTH KOREA

Standings

KBL Standings

1. Dongbu Promy		25-6
2. Anyang KGC		23-7
3. Sonic Boom KT		19-11
4. KCC Egis		19-11
5. ET Land		15-14
6. Mobis Phoebus		13-17
7. LG Sakers		13-17
8. SK Knights		11-19
9. Daegu Orions		6-24
10. Samsung Th.		6-24

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SPAIN

Valladolid signs Samo Udrih - by Eurobasket News
Samo Udrih (195-G-79) is back to Spain. The Slovenian guard penned a deal with CB Valladolid for rest of the season. Udrih has four years of experience in ACB. He moved to Spain in 2005 and spent one season wit Akasvayu Girona. From 2006 to 2008, Samo Udrih was a member of CB Granada. He had 10.7 ppg and 2.2 rpg in their first season together. In 2008/09, Udrih played for Estudiantes Madrid collecting 9.2 ppg, 2.1 rpg and 1.8 apg for 26 games. Samo Udrih split last season between Greek Panellinios Athens and Slovenian Union Olimpija. With Panellinios he had 9.9 ppg and 1.9 rpg in 14 league games. His numbers in EuroCup were little bit lower. Later with Olimpija, Udrih added 6.5 ppg and 2 rpg in Slovenian and Adriatic league. Udrih is active member of the Slovenian National team since 2006.

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SWEDEN

Standings - Basketligan

Basketligan Standings

1. LF Basket		12-5
2. Boras		12-6
3. Norrkoping		11-6
4. Sodertalje		10-8
5. Sundsvall		10-8
6. 08		10-8
7. Uppsala		10-9
8. Solna		9-10
9. Jamtland		6-12
10. Eco Orebro		0-18

Stats Leaders - Basketligan

Points Per Game

Stephen MCDOWELL
  Solna
  (180-G-85)
  Avg: 23

1. McDowell, Solna	23.0
2. Zabas, Jamtland	21.4
3. Palm, Boras	19.8
4. Krayem, Boras	19.8
5. Mbemba, LF Basket	18.9
6. Sigurdarson, Sunds.	18.7
7. Smith, Sodertalje	18.5
8. Klaric, Jamtland	18.4
9. McKnight, Boras	18.1
10. Gunnarsson, Solna	17.3

Rebounds Per Game

Michael PALM
  Boras
  (208-C-79)
  Avg: 11.2

1. Palm, Boras	11.2
2. Baeringsson, Sunds.	11.1
3. Johnson, Uppsala	10.5
4. Toombs, Eco Orebro	9.9
5. Ramsey, LF Basket	9.6
6. Simms, Sodertalje	8.6
7. Lalugba, Jamtland	8.6
8. Watt, Eco Orebro	8.4
9. Ayuba, Norrkoping	8.0
10. Safford, LF Bask.	7.9

Assists Per Game

Rudy MBEMBA
  LF Basket
  (181-G-87)
  Avg: 7.7

1. Mbemba, LF Basket	7.7
2. Pleick, Eco Orebro	6.2
3. Krayem, Boras	6.2
4. Carter, Uppsala	5.4
5. Ermolinskij, Sunds.	5.2
6. Chuk, Sodertalje	5.1
7. Mitchell, Norrkopi.	4.1
8. Hellgren, Jamtland	4.0
9. Beck, Solna	3.8
10. McKnight, Jamtla.	3.7

Steals Per Game

Rhys CARTER
  Uppsala
  (190-G-84)
  Avg: 2.7

1. Carter, Uppsala	2.7
2. Mbemba, LF Basket	2.6
3. Mitchell, Norrkopi.	2.6
4. Smith, Sodertalje	2.5
5. Pleick, Eco Orebro	2.1
6. Ramsey, LF Basket	2.0
7. Ermolinskij, Sunds.	1.9
8. Johnson, Sundsvall	1.9
9. Krayem, Boras	1.9
10. McDowell, Solna	1.8

Blocks Per Game

Keith RAMSEY
  LF Basket
  (206-F-87)
  Avg: 2.1

1. Ramsey, LF Basket	2.1
2. Johnson, Uppsala	2.0
3. Simms, Sodertalje	1.6
4. Lalugba, Jamtland	1.6
5. Toombs, Eco Orebro	1.3
6. Gregory, Sundsvall	1.3
7. Watt, Eco Orebro	1.2
8. Doychinov, Solna	1.1
9. Ayuba, Norrkoping	0.9
10. Nystrom, 08	0.8

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TAIWAN

Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Marcus FIZER
  Taiwan Mobile
  (203-F-78)
  Avg: 23

1. Fizer, Taiwan Mobi.	23.0
2. Chang, Dacin Tigers	20.0
3. Broxsie, KKL	19.5
4. Johnson, Yulon L.	19.0
5. Lu, Yulon Luxgen	18.0
6. Felix, Dacin Tigers	17.5
7. Dials, Pure Youth	17.0
8. Chang, Bank o.	16.5
9. Vaudreuil, Bank o.	15.3
10. Yang, Taiwan Beer	14.0

Rebounds Per Game

Kevin JOHNSON
  Yulon L.
  (201-F-84)
  Avg: 18.3

1. Johnson, Yulon L.	18.3
2. Broxsie, KKL	13.3
3. Dials, Pure Youth	13.0
4. Fizer, Taiwan Mobi.	13.0
5. Vaudreuil, Bank o.	11.5
6. Carr, Taiwan Beer	11.0
7. Teng, Taiwan Mobile	11.0
8. Felix, Dacin Tigers	10.3
9. Cheng, Taiwan Beer	9.7
10. Davis, Pure Youth	9.0

Assists Per Game

Yi-Chieh SU
  Taiwan Mobile
  (181-PG-87)
  Avg: 5.3

1. Su, Taiwan Mobile	5.3
2. Chen, Yulon Luxgen	4.5
3. Wu, Taiwan Beer	4.0
4. Johnson, Yulon L.	3.3
5. Shang, KKL	3.0
6. Hsu, Dacin Tigers	3.0
7. Chen, Taiwan Mobile	2.7
8. Lin, Dacin Tigers	2.5
9. Hung, KKL	2.5
10. Felix, Dacin Tige.	2.5

Steals Per Game

Douglas CREIGHTON
  Pure Y.
  (195-F-85)
  Avg: 3

1. Creighton, Pure Y.	3.0
2. Chang, Dacin Tigers	3.0
3. Chen, Taiwan Mobile	2.5
4. Liu, KKL	2.5
5. Lin, Bank o.	2.5
6. Yang, Taiwan Beer	2.3
7. Chen, Taiwan Beer	2.0
8. Canopy, Yulon L.	2.0
9. Hsu, KKL	2.0
10. Lin, Dacin Tigers	2.0

Blocks Per Game

Antoine BROXSIE
  KKL
  (209-F-79)
  Avg: 4.5

1. Broxsie, KKL	4.5
2. Felix, Dacin Tigers	4.0
3. Davis, Pure Youth	2.3
4. Johnson, Yulon L.	2.0
5. Chou, Yulon Luxgen	1.3
6. Carr, Taiwan Beer	1.3
7. Cheng, Taiwan Beer	1.3
8. Vaudreuil, Bank o.	1.0
9. Chen, Taiwan Mobile	1.0
10. Fizer, Taiwan Mob.	1.0

Standings - SBL

SBL Standings

1. Dacin Tigers		4-0
2. Yulon Luxgen		3-1
3. KKL		2-2
4. Pure Youth		2-2
5. Taiwan Beer		1-2
6. Taiwan Mobile		1-2
7. Bank of Taiwan		0-4

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TANZANIA

Mwanza Face TBF Wrath - by Eurobasket News
TANZANIA Basketball Federation (TBF) Executive Committee will meet early January to decide on disciplinary measures to be taken against Mwanza following their decision to boycott tournaments organized by the federation.

TBF Assistant Secretary General Michael Maluwe said on Saturday that the committee will meet between January 2 and 5 to decide on the Mwanza team action which he cited as detrimental to the progress of the sport in the country.

He said though the Mwanza leaders did not file any official letter to the federation to express their claims. During the annual Taifa Cup held in Dar es Salaam mid this month, Mwanza expressed intention to boycott all tournaments sanctioned by TBF for what the region claimed as ill treatment it had endured from the federation in this year's Championship.

Mwanza men's basketball team, alias Rocky City Boys, was controversially disqualified from the tournament, despite having qualified for the final, after the other competitors, Unguja, filed a protest against the Lake Zone side claiming the team had two players that were not registered for the event.

The Rocky City Boys had defeated Unguja 74-62 in the men's semi-final match played at the Leaders Club venue but the Isles outfit later protested against the presence of two players, Ahmed Said and Enock Charles, in their opponents' squad saying the duo was not in the previous list submitted to TBF before the tournament.

Unguja won the protest and was given the right to play against Singida in the final after the latter had grabbed a win over Lindi in another semi-final. Mwanza, however, strongly opposed the TBF ruling saying the federation had malicious intention against the team considering that Said and Charles were already in the list that was submitted to the body early on.

The Rocky City Boys' decision has been inspired by anger but the region stands to be the loser should it go on and boycott TBF competitions, cautioned the official.

Mbeya emerged champions of the women category after beating Pemba 67-60 in an entertaining final but the men's final was briefly mired by controversy before the start as Singida, Mwanza and Unguja entered their respective squads at the venue and all warmed up for a while before Mwanza eventually exited the venue after it was urged to settle the matter amicably.
Courtesy of: Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)

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TUNISIA

Athletes' Outstanding Achievements - by Eurobasket News
2011 has been a successful year for Tunisian athletes, whose phenomenal performances have stood out among their international counterparts.

Tunisian World and Olympic swimming champion, Oussama Mellouli, was chosen on December 22nd as Sportsman of the Doha Pan Arab Games. He won 14 gold medals at the 12th quadrennial Pan Arab Games competition in Doha Qatar, which began December 6th and will end today.

Mellouli participated in all 14 swimming events, (13 of which he won) while being disqualified from the 100m breaststroke for exceeding 15 meters underwater at the start of the race (a punishable foul according to international regulations). Thanks to Mellouli's achievement, Tunisia became the leader on the medals' table for the swimming events of the Doha Pan Arab Games - beating Egypt with 17 gold medals.

Tunisian soccer also received recognition through Oussama Darragi, who was honored as the Best Local Soccer Player by the Confederation of African Football (or CAF). Winners of the CAF Awards were revealed yesterday at a gala held at the banquet room of the Stadium House in Ghana. Darragi's team, Esprance Sportive Tunisienne (or EST), was also chosen as the Best African Team of 2011.

Additionally, the Tunisian basketball team, Etoile Sportive du Sahel (ESS), won the 26th African Cup title. The Tunisian victory (82 to 60) dethroned the previous champions, the Angolan Primero d'Agosto, in Sal Morocco on December 21st.
Courtesy of: Tunisia Live (Tunis)

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TURKEY

Tolga Ongoren sacked by Trabzonspor - by Ugur Turker
Tolga Ongoren left Trabzonspor Basketbol after only win in eleven game in TBL. Trabzonspor Basketbol General Manager said that Tolga Ongoren is no logner in coach position in the club. Trabzonspor Basketbol had financial problems before season and started tihs season 1-10 record. Now, Trabzonspor Basketbol is looking for another coach. General Manager added ' there are 3-4 names who are canditates and we are in talk with them. We will announce our new coach soon.'

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UGANDA

2011 Review - End of Year Honours in Basketball - by Eurobasket News
The 2011 basketball season will go down as one of the most dramatic ever; from the seven-game playoff final thriller, between Dmark Power and Kyambogo Warriors, to the controversial failure of 7Up Falcons to make the playoffs and UCU Canons playing an entire season with just eight players.

Felix Eupal awards the best and worst of 2011.

Regular season MVP Men: Without doubt it's got to be Warriors' Ivan Enabu (182-G). His wizardry with the ball was second to none.

Defensive player of the Year: The stats don't give the right picture but most players will tell you they endured hell when they faced Canons' Jeff Omondi.

Sixth man of the Year: I give the nod to Richard Balemwa. He hardly started any game but he offered Power the much-needed depth whenever he came off the bench.

Coach of the Year: Bernice Ankunda was the brain behind Power's second successive title. He transformed a team that had 'indiscipline' as their middle name and turned them into a bunch of dutiful soldiers.

Most Improved Player: Sam Gombya is undisputed in this regard and turned from zero to hero, coming off the bench to finish off the Canons in game four of the semis and even tormenting Power in the final.

Rookie of the Year: Nabisunsa's 18-year-old Joy Chemutai is the runaway winner and has every big team eyeing her services after her series of dazzling performances this season.

Worst Player: He follows wherever Norman Blick (201-F-83), his elder brother, goes but despite having four championships to his name, Donald Blick was a disaster in the Miracle Eagles jersey.

Worst Referee: This page wouldn't be enough if I was to note down Peter Kirabo's poor calls.

Mess of the Year: After attracting capacity crowds during the regular season, Fuba knew the numbers would swell during the playoffs and seized the opportunity to make a quick buck by increasing the entry fee by 100% to Shs 10,000.

Some fans exercised their power by shunning the games and opted for the nearest bars, forcing a shamefaced Fuba to reverse the decision.

Men Playoff MVP: It's a tough call between Ben Komakech and Isaac Afidra but my nod goes to Koma for his overall influence and contribution to Power's championship.
Courtesy of: The Observer (Kampala)

Dwindling Fuba's Bank Balance Is Only Tip of Task - by Eurobasket News
Kampala Basketball is definitely the envy of so many sports disciplines in Uganda. Their games enjoy relative peace and fans come in their thousands without much appealing from the local body, Fuba.

Of course, this season never passed without bad incidents like a fan who poured beer on UCU Canons' guard Geoffrey Omondi or another who struck an umpire with a missile in Game Five of the finals.

This has not been the most successful of seasons for Fuba especially when it came to their bank balance. During last year's playoffs, Shs68m came through the gates. Just over half of that - Shs35m - was realised this season from the playoffs even though the number of games is exactly the same like last year.
Courtesy of: The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

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UKRAINE

DniproAzot bring in Pierre Pierce - by Eurobasket News
DniproAzot have agreed on terms of contract with Pierre Pierce (193-G-83, college: Iowa). The guard is expected to appear in todays game against Mykolaiv. Pierre Pierce started the season in Georgia. He played for Sokhumi. His stats read 9.0 points, 5.5 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.0 steal per game in EuroChallenge Qualifying Round. The guard left the team in October. Last season Pierre Pierce tipped off in Aris. Later he joined Azovmash. He posted 8.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game in Superleague. In VTB League Pierre Pierce accounted for 12.0 points, 5.3 boards, 3.7 assists and 1.3 steals.
In the meantime DniproAzot parted ways with Gytis Sirutavicius (195-SF-83). The Lithuanian player delivered 9.3 points, 2.6 boards and 1.9 assists per game in Superleague this season.

Interview with BC Donetsk head coach Sasa Obradovic - by Greg
Sasa Obradovic (agency: Beo Basket ) had very successful coaching stints in Germany and Ukraine. After leading Rhein Energy Koeln to Bundesliga Champions title in 2006 he took German Cup the next season. With BC Kyiv Serbian tactician has made an impressive run in the 2008-09 EuroChallenge. Ukrainian club that didnt have any foreigner was very close to reach Final Four of the tournament. This season, as a BC Donetsk head coach, Obradovic has won 5 from 6 Eurocup regular season Group A games. At the same time his squad looks like a team that has a real chance to capture Ukrainian Superleague trophy this time.

Sasa, lets start with congratulations. Donetsk is the only Ukrainian club that goes on competing in Eurocup. More than that, your team booked the place in Eurocup LAST-16 beforehand.

Its really a great success for us, because the group wasnt so easy. Achievements of Cibona are well-known. And the fact that they defeated KRKA, Hemofarm, Union Olimpija and Red Star in current Adriatic League season just confirms its high class. Hapoel Jerusalem is the club with good financial support and roster, the club that had an aim to reach LAST-16. And its not a secret how hard it is to play in Israel. I am must pay contribute to my team for that character that they showed in Jerusalem. Its pity that we lost first game in France against BCM Gravelines with such a big score. That time we still didnt find our rhythm, Darnell Jackson just arrived and Ramel Curry was injured. And Gravelines showed unbelievable game on the level of Euroleague team. And after this I am really glad that it is Donetsk team that managed to beat pirates in Eurocup regular season.

Today Donetsk is doing well, but start of the season one can hardly call successful. Lost games against Goverla, Nikolaev and Ferro, as well as unconvincing games against Dnipro and Dnipro-Azot sparked a lot of rumors: staring from speculations about changes in roster and finishing coachs resignation

I really esteem trust relations between me and clubs management. In the beginning of the season I was told: Your work will be valued in May, and after bad start again: We dont change our mind, nobody wants to change the coach. Same judiciousness was with possible changes in roster. Believe me, a lot of times I was a witness when rushed decision was making only worse. It is easy answer: if we dont have result right here right now, we have to find the guilty one and say him good-buy. No way! You have to read the situation, analyze it what provoked such course of events.
Believe me, with that number of injures that we faced in the beginning of the season to start championship on high level was absolutely impossible. You have to remember that national championship consists of three rounds so we have time catch-up and we already proved that. And now just imagine if after bad start we said good-buy to Vule Avdalovic for instance, because he didnt find his game from the very beginning and was criticized a lot. And now Vule is one of the key players brain and engine of the team.

After all, the only player with whom the Club part ways was DeMarcus Nelson. Officially it was made to give more game time to Alexander Lypovyy. In fact his game time didnt grow too much.

Leaving of DeMarcus Nelson could not automatically increase Lypovyy minutes on court. But Oleksandr received a good chance to prove himself. In my team everyone receives the time he really deserves. Nobody will get time artificially. Now Lypovyy receives about 15 minutes in the game in average. But Im sure, that desire he shows at our practices will help him prove that he is ready to play more.
Nelsons disadvantage was absence of stable shot. In Ukrainian championship where teams mostly play zone its the biggest problem. Thats why I understood that some day we would say good-buy to Demarcus. So, whats the point to wait? Its better to give an opportunity to Lypovyy to prove himself and not to spoil the season for Nelson, especially that his former club Cholet was interested in him coming back.

In home Eurocup game against Hapoel Lypovyy showed a very good game, but in re-game in Jerusalem you didnt give him a minute. Why?

Usually I use Sasha to play against point guards in defense and to play like a shooting guard in offense. In Kiev game Lypa mostly played against Darryl Strawberry who played a role of playmaker. Second guard in that game was not tall Yuval Naimy who Avdalovic and Curry could cope with. But in Jerusalem game Naimy was injured and second guards were taller and stronger Brian Randle and Dan Grunfeld who automatically would have an advantage playing against Vule or Ramel. Thats why I didnt risk to play Lypovyy in that game, I used Pustozvonov and Gliebov on position two instead.

You are one of the most emotional coaches in Superleague. Is it easy to get on well with your team leaders, who probably didnt use to face such way of communication with coach?

While searching for the players for my team, I made an accent not just on the players skills, but also on their human qualities. I do agree that Sasa Obradovic (agency: Beo Basket ) is not an easy coach; basis of my philosophy is every-day work on the highest possible level. I demand of the players to fight till the end. Thats why selecting players for the team I pay attention to the character of the player, I try to understand does he have a core that will give him enough strength to stand the pressure. Believe me, this summer there were a lot of famous names who wanted to come to Donetsk, but I refused them because of the fact I wasnt sure that they would be ready for that kind of pressure, that they had spirit of the fighters and character of the winners.
Now we are almost in the middle of the season and I can say without any doubts that I made no mistakes in my choice. We have true fighters in BC Donetsk. It can be either Curry or Kovalenko, all of them do their best both at practice and in game.

You used to say a lot of times that for you most important thing in game is defense. Will you agree that well-known phrase Offense wins games and defense wins titles is now getting out of date? It was offense that brought Eurobasket title to Spain national team and even Gravelines is known as typical fast-break team

Modern basketball is universal, and I really doubt that you will disagree that offense starts with good rebound and rebound is a result of good defense. I accept that maybe last year my teams offense was not like somebody wanted to see it. This summer while building new season roster I kept that in mind and now we are one of the most scoring teams in Superleague.

Can you say that you are satisfied with the roster you have today? Or you still dont refuse the idea to have six foreign players in your team?

You will never find a coach who would mind to have one more player in roster. Me and teams management constantly keep under control players market and we will make a decision to take one more foreigner only in case of top level player appear on market.

Superleague Round 18: Budivelnyk loses #1 position - by Eurobasket News
There were many interesting games last round. The round ended with change at the leadership position and favorites losing the games.

Round 18 in Superleague means a new league leader. The biggest surprise took place in Mykolaiv where host Mykolaiv (7-13) beat league's leader Budivelnyk (13-5) 91-76 on Thursday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Budivelnyk. The hosts trailed by 1 point at the halftime before their 49-33 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. Mykolaiv made 25-of-31 free shots (80.6 percent) during the game. The best player for the winners was American swingman Rodney Green (195-88, college: La Salle) who scored 25 points and 4 assists. The other American import point guard Deonta Vaughn (185-86, college: Cincinnati) chipped in 15 points and 9 assists (went 8 for 8 at the free throw line). At the other side the best for losing team was Belarusian center Artsiom Parakhouski (211-87, college: Radford) who recorded 17 points and 7 rebounds. Mykolaiv maintains tenth position with 7-13 record. Defending champion Budivelnyk dropped to the second place with five games lost. They were replaced at the leadership position by BC Donetsk. Budivelnyk will play next round against BC Odessa trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Mykolaiv will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game.
Very important is a road loss of second ranked Azovmash (12-5) against seventh ranked Hoverla (12-7) on Monday night. Visiting Azovmash was defeated by Hoverla in Frankivsk 71-61. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Azovmash. It was a good game for American center Eric Coleman (200-85, college: N.Iowa, agency: Hart Sports Mngm) who led his team to a victory with 17 points. Kevin Tiggs contributed with 15 points and 4 assists for the winners. The former international guard Artur Drozdov (199-80) replied with 18 points and 8 rebounds for Azovmash. Hoverla moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Khimik. Azovmash at the other side dropped to the third position with five games lost. Hoverla will play against league's leader BC Donetsk at home in the next round and it may be the game of the week. Azovmash will play against Halychyna in Lviv and hopes to get back on the winning track.
An interesting game was played in Zaporozhye where host Ferro-ZNTU (#8) rolled over 5th ranked Dnipro with 23-point difference 96-73 on Friday evening. R.T. Guinn scored 33 points (!!!) and 8 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners. Ferro-ZNTU's coach Kiril Bolshakov felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was Steven Burtt with 25 points. Ferro-ZNTU maintains eighth position with 11-9 record. Loser Dnipro dropped to the seventh place with seven games lost. Ferro-ZNTU will meet at home higher ranked Azovmash (#3) in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Dnipro will have a break next round.
We should mention about the upset which took place in Krivoy Rog, where higher ranked Khimik (12-7) was outleveled in a road game by thirteenth ranked Kryvbasbasket (5-14) 86-65. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Khimik. The game was dominated by American players. Pierce Caldwell notched 18 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists to lead the effort. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Kryvbasbasket maintains thirteenth position with 5-14 record. Khimik at the other side keeps the fourth place with seven games lost. Kryvbasbasket will have a break next round. Khimik will play on the road against the league's second-placed Budivelnyk (#2) where they are definitely not considered as a favorite in this game either.
An interesting game took place in Dniprodzerzhynsk, where 10th ranked Mykolaiv (7-13) lost to thirteenth ranked DniproAzot (6-14) in a road game 62-71 on Tuesday. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Mykolaiv. The best player for the winners was Stanley Pringle who scored 22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. DniproAzot's coach Donaldas Kairys used an eleven-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. DniproAzot have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to twelfth place. Loser Mykolaiv keeps the tenth position with 13 games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.

Rest of the games of round 18 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
BC Donetsk defeated Halychyna in a road game 88-71. Cherkasy was beaten by DniproAzot at home 74-81. BC Kyiv won against Hoverla on the opponent's court 79-70.

Kryvbasbasket - Khimik 86-65

We should mention about the upset which took place in Krivoy Rog, where higher ranked Khimik (12-7) was outleveled in a road game by thirteenth ranked Kryvbasbasket (5-14) 86-65. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Khimik. Khimik was tied at the half but could not keep up in last two quarters eventually losing the game. Kryvbasbasket made 20-of-26 charity shots (76.9 percent) during the game. 25 personal fouls committed by Khimik helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The game was dominated by American players. Guard Pierce Caldwell (191-88, college: Incarnate Word, agency: Alti Sport) notched 18 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists to lead the effort and guard James Florence (185-88, college: Mercer, agency: Pro One Sports) supported him with 18 points, 5 assists and 5 steals. Caldwell is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Five Kryvbasbasket players scored in double figures. Even 14 points and 9 rebounds by forward Reyshawn Terry (203-84, college: N.Carolina) did not help to save the game for Khimik. point guard Louis Hinnant (193-84, college: Boston Coll.) added 13 points. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Kryvbasbasket maintains thirteenth position with 5-14 record. Khimik at the other side keeps the fourth place with seven games lost. Kryvbasbasket will have a break next round. Khimik will play on the road against the league's second-placed Budivelnyk (#2) where they are definitely not considered as a favorite in this game either.
Top scorers:
Khimik: R.Terry 14+9reb+2ast, L.Hinnant 13+1reb+2ast, P.Miletic 10+1reb, A.McGhee 9+6reb, A.Pustovyi 6+2reb+1ast, O.Prokopenko 6+3reb+3ast
Kryvbasbasket: P.Caldwell 18+8reb+4ast, J.Florence 18+5ast, V.Malchevskiy 13+3reb+1ast, B.Davis 10+5reb+1ast, D.Djapa 10+4reb+3ast, V.Konev 8+2reb+1ast

Halychyna - BC Donetsk 71-88

There was no surprise in Lviv where 14th ranked Halychyna (2-17) was defeated by third ranked BC Donetsk (13-4) 88-71 on Monday. Halychyna trailed 45-44 at halftime, rallying from a 28-12 deficit at the end of first quarter to trim the gap. BC Donetsk dominated down low during the game scoring 54 of its points in the paint compared to Halychyna's 32. They outrebounded Halychyna 47-27 including a 19-7 advantage in offensive rebounds. BC Donetsk looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. The best player for the winners was American guard Ramel Curry (192-80, college: CSU Bakersfield) who scored 21 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Serbian forward Ivan Radenovic (208-84, college: Arizona) chipped in 22 points. Four BC Donetsk players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was American guard Lans Harris (195-83, college: Kansas St.) who recorded 20 points and 7 assists and his fellow American import guard Mike Williams (187, college: W.Carolina) added 14 points and 4 assists respectively. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. BC Donetsk have an impressive five-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader. Halychyna lost twelfth consecutive game. They stay at the bottom place with 17 games lost. BC Donetsk will face Hoverla (#4) in Frankivsk in the next round. Halychyna will play at home against Azovmash (#3) in Mariupol.
Top scorers:
Halychyna: L.Harris 20+4reb+7ast, M.Williams 14+4reb+4ast, V.Vukosavljevic 12+8reb, Y.Zubrytskyi 8+4reb+1ast, S.Alferov 7+2reb+2ast, B.Djurasovic 6+1reb
BC Donetsk: I.Radenovic 22+4reb+1ast, R.Curry 21+9reb+7ast, V.Avdalovic 12+4reb+6ast, V.Kravtsov 10+13reb, D.Gliebov 9+6reb+3ast, O.Lypovyy 7+5reb+5ast

Hoverla - Azovmash 71-61

Very important is a road loss of second ranked Azovmash (12-5) against seventh ranked Hoverla (12-7) on Monday night. Visiting Azovmash was defeated by Hoverla in Frankivsk 71-61. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Azovmash. Azovmash was ahead by 9 points at the halftime before a 40-21 second half run of Hoverla. They dominated down low during the game scoring 56 of its points in the paint compared to Azovmash's 26. It was a good game for American center Eric Coleman (200-85, college: N.Iowa, agency: Hart Sports Mngm) who led his team to a victory with 17 points. The other American import swingman Kevin Tiggs (196-84, college: E.Tenn.St.) contributed with 15 points and 4 assists for the winners. Four Hoverla players scored in double figures. The former international guard Artur Drozdov (199-80) replied with 18 points and 8 rebounds and American swingman Ricky Minard (196-82, college: Morehead St.) added 19 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for Azovmash. Hoverla moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Khimik. Azovmash at the other side dropped to the third position with five games lost. Hoverla will play against league's leader BC Donetsk at home in the next round and it may be the game of the week. Azovmash will play against Halychyna in Lviv and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Top scorers:
Azovmash: R.Minard 19+5reb+2ast, A.Drozdov 18+8reb+1ast, R.Rancik 10+4reb, D.Ewing 7+5reb+5ast, R.Varda 4+6reb+1ast, M.Ivshyn 3+1reb
Hoverla: E.Coleman 17+4reb+3ast, K.Tiggs 15+4reb+4ast, M.Walker 11+4reb+2ast, B.Greene 10+10reb+2ast, Y.Lemyk 8+3reb, D.Swanson 7+3reb

DniproAzot - Mykolaiv 71-62

An interesting game took place in Dniprodzerzhynsk, where 10th ranked Mykolaiv (7-13) lost to thirteenth ranked DniproAzot (6-14) in a road game 62-71 on Tuesday. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Mykolaiv. The hosts trailed by 1 point after first quarter, but they rallied back to get the 5-point lead at the halftime and eventually won the game 71-62. DniproAzot had a 15-4 advantage in offensive rebounds. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when DniproAzot made 11 blocks. The best player for the winners was Filipino-American point guard Stanley Pringle (184-87, college: Penn St.) who scored 22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. American center Michael Dunigan (208-89, college: Oregon, agency: N.E.T.) chipped in a double-double by scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds. DniproAzot's coach Donaldas Kairys used an eleven-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. At the other side the best for losing team was American point guard Jerome Coleman (187-81, college: Rutgers) who recorded 19 points and his fellow American import swingman Rodney Green (195-88, college: La Salle) added 9 points and 6 assists respectively. DniproAzot have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to twelfth place. Loser Mykolaiv keeps the tenth position with 13 games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Mykolaiv: J.Coleman 19+3reb+1ast, I.Gilyevych 11+3reb, R.Green 9+3reb+6ast, A.Korochkin 9+1reb+1ast, D.McClintock 7+2reb+2ast, D.Vaughn 4+6reb+3ast
DniproAzot: S.Pringle 22+8reb+5ast, M.Dunigan 13+12reb, P.Pierce 11+3reb+2ast, V.Gurtovoy 6+3reb, M.Little 6+4reb+2ast, L.Stefanishin 4+3reb

Cherkasy - DniproAzot 74-81

There was a small surprise when thirteenth ranked DniproAzot (6-14) defeated on the road 10th ranked Cherkasy (6-13) 81-74 on Thursday. Cherkasy was plagued by 29 personal fouls down the stretch. The best player for the winners was Filipino-American point guard Stanley Pringle (184-87, college: Penn St.) who scored 26 points and 5 assists. American center Michael Dunigan (208-89, college: Oregon, agency: N.E.T.) chipped in a double-double by scoring 19 points and 12 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was American guard Willie Solomon (187-78, college: Clemson) who recorded 20 points and FYR Macedonian guard Vojdan Stojanovski (193-87) added 14 points and 5 rebounds respectively. Four Cherkasy players scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to get some rest. DniproAzot have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to twelfth place. Loser Cherkasy dropped to the eleventh position with 13 games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Cherkasy: W.Solomon 20+1reb+2ast, T.Plaisted 15+7reb, V.Stojanovski 14+5reb+3ast, M.Pupovic 11+11reb, I.Timermanis 6+6reb+1ast, Y.Frasenyuk 5+3reb+2ast
DniproAzot: S.Pringle 26+3reb+5ast, M.Dunigan 19+12reb, M.Little 11+6reb+1ast, S.Gorbenko 9+5reb, M.Balashov 5+4reb+2ast, P.Knowles 5+3reb+3ast

Ferro-ZNTU - Dnipro 96-73

An interesting game was played in Zaporozhye where host Ferro-ZNTU (#8) rolled over 5th ranked Dnipro with 23-point difference 96-73 on Friday evening. The game without a history. Ferro-ZNTU led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. Ferro-ZNTU outrebounded Dnipro 41-30 including a 27-16 advantage in defensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 32 assists comparing to just 12 passes made by Dnipro's players. American center R.T. Guinn (208-81, college: Baylor) scored 33 points (!!!) and 8 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners and the other American import forward Mike Davis (205-88, college: Illinois) chipped in 11 points and 16 rebounds during the contest. Four Ferro-ZNTU players scored in double figures. Ferro-ZNTU's coach Kiril Bolshakov felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was international guard Steven Burtt (185-84, college: Iona) with 25 points and American forward Charles Thomas (203-86, college: Arkansas) produced a double-double by scoring 13 points and 11 rebounds. Ferro-ZNTU maintains eighth position with 11-9 record. Loser Dnipro dropped to the seventh place with seven games lost. Ferro-ZNTU will meet at home higher ranked Azovmash (#3) in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Dnipro will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Dnipro: S.Burtt 25+4reb+1ast, D.Low 15+1reb+5ast, C.Thomas 13+11reb+2ast, D.Kozlov 6+1reb, K.Glazyrin 6+4reb+1ast, S.Tymofeyenko 4+1reb
Ferro-ZNTU: R.Guinn 33+8reb+1ast, R.Culpepper 25+1reb+3ast, M.Davis 11+16reb+2ast, H.Kandrusevich 10+1ast, J.Chappell 10+8reb+8ast, S.Dikiy 7+4reb+1ast

Hoverla - BC Kyiv 70-79

There was a minor upset in Frankivsk where 7th ranked Hoverla (12-7) was defeated by ninth ranked BC Kyiv (9-9) 79-70 on Friday. Hoverla trailed by 19 points at halftime and as many as 21 after three quarters before a 24-12 last quarter charge cut the deficit to 70-79 at the end of the game. The best player for the winners was guard Vladyslav Podolyan (196-86, agency: New Trend Agency) who scored 17 points and 4 assists. American forward Vernon Goodridge (206-84, college: La Salle) chipped in a double-double by scoring 10 points and 15 rebounds. Goodridge is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Five BC Kyiv players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was American point guard Marcus Walker (186-86, college: Colorado St., agency: Hart Sports Mngm) who recorded 18 points and his fellow American import swingman Kevin Tiggs (196-84, college: E.Tenn.St.) added 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists respectively. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to get some rest. BC Kyiv maintains ninth position with 9-9 record. Loser Hoverla dropped to the fourth place with seven games lost. BC Kyiv will face higher ranked BC Odessa (#6) at home in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Hoverla will play against the league's leader BC Donetsk where they are definitely not considered as a favorite in this game either.
Top scorers:
Hoverla: M.Walker 18+2ast, Y.Lemyk 13+4reb+1ast, K.Tiggs 10+6reb+4ast, B.Greene 7+10reb, D.Swanson 7+1reb+5ast, E.Coleman 4+13reb+1ast
BC Kyiv: G.Ervin 17+1reb+4ast, V.Podolyan 17+4reb+4ast, D.Zimmerman 14+3reb+5ast, R.Otverchenko 12+1reb, V.Goodridge 10+15reb, P.Barac 5+4reb+1ast

Mykolaiv - Budivelnyk 91-76

Round 18 in Superleague means a new league leader. The biggest surprise took place in Mykolaiv where host Mykolaiv (7-13) beat league's leader Budivelnyk (13-5) 91-76 on Thursday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Budivelnyk. The hosts trailed by 1 point at the halftime before their 49-33 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. Mykolaiv made 25-of-31 free shots (80.6 percent) during the game. The best player for the winners was American swingman Rodney Green (195-88, college: La Salle) who scored 25 points and 4 assists. The other American import point guard Deonta Vaughn (185-86, college: Cincinnati) chipped in 15 points and 9 assists (went 8 for 8 at the free throw line). At the other side the best for losing team was Belarusian center Artsiom Parakhouski (211-87, college: Radford) who recorded 17 points and 7 rebounds and Swiss-Lithuanian guard Rolandas Alijevas (192-85) added 14 points and 4 assists respectively. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Mykolaiv maintains tenth position with 7-13 record. Defending champion Budivelnyk dropped to the second place with five games lost. They were replaced at the leadership position by BC Donetsk. Budivelnyk will play next round against BC Odessa trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Mykolaiv will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game.
Top scorers:
Budivelnyk: A.Parakhouski 17+7reb, R.Alijevas 14+2reb+4ast, C.Monroe 11+2reb+2ast, M.Anisimovas 11+2reb+1ast, Z.Morley 8+5reb+3ast, S.Sehovic 7+7reb
Mykolaiv: R.Green 25+3reb+4ast, D.Vaughn 15+2reb+9ast, I.Kryvych 15+4reb+3ast, D.McClintock 14+6reb+1ast, A.Korochkin 11, L.Iailo 4+7reb

Azovmash tab Marijonas Petravicius - by Eurobasket News
Azovmash landed Marijonas Petravicius (208-F/C-79, college: S.Carolina). The Lithuanian centre will replace Hasan Rizvic (212-C-84) on the roster. Marijonas Petravicius spent the last season in Italy. He played for Armani Jeans Milano. Marijonas Petravicius tallied 8.2 points, 3.2 rebounds per game in Euroleague. In SeriaA the centre delivered 3.9 points and 2.1 rebounds per appearance. Previously Marijonas Petravicius had stints in Germany, Belgium, Latvia, Kuwait and Lithuania. The centre was named Fiba Europe Cup Final Four MVP in 2004. Eurobasket.com named Marijonas Petravicius All-Lithuanian LKL Centre of the Year in 2008 and 2009. Marijonas Petravicius played for Lithuania at 2011 EuroBasket. His stats read 4.5 points and 1.5 boards per game at the tournament.

Standings - Superleague

Superleague Standings

1. BC Donetsk		13-4
2. Budivelnyk		13-5
3. Azovmash		12-5
4. Hoverla		12-7
5. Khimik		12-7
6. BC Odessa		11-6
7. Dnipro		11-7
8. Ferro-ZNTU		11-9
9. BC Kyiv		9-9
10. Mykolaiv		7-13
11. Cherkasy		6-13
12. DniproAzot		6-14
13. Kryvbasbasket		5-14
14. Halychyna		2-17

Louis Hinnant leaves Khimik - by Eurobasket News
Khimik decided to part ways with Louis Hinnant (193-PG-84, college: Boston Coll.). The guard joined the Ukrainian team earlier in December. He appeared in just one game for the Yuzny team. Hinnant posted 13 points, 2 assists and a rebound for Khimik. The guard started the season in Anwil. He averaged 2.7 points per game in VTB League. Previously Louis Hinnant had stints in Sweden, Finland, Hungary and Ukraine. Eurobasket.com named Louis Hinnant All-Hungarian League Guard of the Year. The guard helped ZTE KK to the Hungarian Cup title. Louis Hinnant also participated at Hungarian League All-Star Game.

Stats Leaders - Men

Points Per Game

Willie SOLOMON
  Cherkasy
  (187-G-78)
  Avg: 20.4

1. Solomon, Cherkasy	20.4
2. Culpepper, Fe.	20.1
3. Burtt, Dnipro	19.1
4. King, BC Odessa	18.6
5. Guinn, Fe.	18.5
6. Deane, BC Odessa	18.1
7. Minard, Azovmash	17.4
8. McClinton, Budivel.	17.0
9. Pecherov, Azovmash	16.8
10. Thomas, Dnipro	16.6

Rebounds Per Game

Vladan VUKOSAVLJEVIC
  Halych.
  (206-F/C-84)
  Avg: 10.7

1. Vukosavljevi., Hal.	10.7
2. King, BC Odessa	10.6
3. Davis, Fe.	9.0
4. Fraser, DniproAzot	8.9
5. Davis, Kryvbasb.	8.8
6. Korniyenko, Dnipro	8.7
7. Dunigan, DniproAzot	8.6
8. Pecherov, Azovmash	8.2
9. Goodridge, BC Kyiv	8.1
10. Odufuwa, Halychy.	8.1

Assists Per Game

Derrick ZIMMERMAN
  BC Kyiv
  (191-G-81)
  Avg: 6.3

1. Zimmerman, BC Kyiv	6.3
2. Deane, BC Odessa	5.8
3. Mitchell, Khimik	5.6
4. Burtt, Dnipro	5.3
5. Ewing, Azovmash	5.1
6. Florence, Kryvbasb.	5.0
7. Butskyy, Fe.	5.0
8. Ervin, BC Kyiv	4.4
9. Rybalko, Fe.	4.4
10. Morovic, Halychyna	4.4

Steals Per Game

James FLORENCE
  Kryvbasb.
  (185-G-88)
  Avg: 2.2

1. Florence, Kryvbasb.	2.2
2. Chappell, Fe.	2.0
3. House, Dnipro	1.9
4. Ewing, Azovmash	1.8
5. Minard, Azovmash	1.7
6. Curry, BC Donetsk	1.7
7. Sirsnins, DniproAz.	1.6
8. Nelson, BC Donetsk	1.6
9. Tiggs, Hoverla	1.6
10. Davis, Kryvbasb.	1.5

Blocks Per Game

Shawn KING
  BC Odessa
  (208-C-82)
  Avg: 2.5

1. King, BC Odessa	2.5
2. Goodridge, BC Kyiv	2.5
3. McClintock, Mykola.	2.3
4. Davis, Kryvbasb.	2.1
5. Gorbenko, Dnipr.	1.7
6. Korniyenko, Dnipro	1.7
7. Rizvic, Azovmash	1.5
8. Hunter, Mykolaiv	1.4
9. Wallace, Halychyna	1.4
10. Kravtsov, BC Do.	1.3

*****************************************************

UNITED KINGDOM

Raiders Are Best Claims Garbelotto - by Paul Nilsen
Tony Garbelotto has heaped praise on UCP Marjon Plymouth Raiders for assembling what he believes is the best team in the BBL.

The Mersey Tigers play-caller certainly knows what it takes to accumulate silverware after leading his side to a glorious treble last season.

Ahead of Thursdays trip to Devon, Garbelotto is tipping Raiders to be big threat in every competition and the main contenders to follow in Tigers footsteps when it comes to winning BBL silverware.

He said, Gavin Love has the best roster of any team in this league period.

Its a credit to the Raiders organisation that they are willing to invest in the very best players at every position.

This team is primed to contend for every honour added Garbelotto.

Emerging from the Pavilions with a win certainly looks to be a hugely difficult task for the Tigers who know they need to improve on their league record if they want to secure a play-off spot in the New Year having only managed two victories from their first eight games so far.

Raiders meanwhile will see this game as a potential banana skin and must retain their focus as they bid to play catch-up having played fewer games than most of the other BBL Championship title contenders.

Two other teams in the hunt to finish top of the pile are Worcester Wolves and Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders who will go head-to-head on Wednesday evening.

The hometown Wolves have only lost two games so far and recently defeated leaders Newcastle Eagles on the road which has given them a real sense of belief while Riders have only lost once in the league all season.

Wolves have a big opportunity to head into 2012 with real momentum if they do manage to defeat Riders since they head to Prestige Homes MK Lions on Friday night knowing they will have a good chance of securing a win double this week.

For while the Lions have found some form in recent weeks, revenge will be on the minds of the Wolves who were well beaten 99-82 on their last visit and they will be motivated to make amends.

Stopping the effervescent Demarius Bolds is likely to be key for Wolves since the guard is very much the heartbeat of the Lions and has posted some blistering performances so far this season.

Also on Friday night, Glasgow Rocks host One Health Sharks Sheffield at Kelvin Hall with both teams way off the pace in terms of the title race and eager to wrap up the BBL action for 2011 with a victory.

The damage was done early in the campaign for Sharks after they picked up a bunch of quick-fire losses although they have rallied of late.

Meanwhile it has been during December when the wheels have come off for Rocks who had looked well primed and in the thick of the race a month ago before their current slump.

Tipping off BBL action in 2012 will be Guildford Heat who entertain fellow strugglers Durham Wildcats on New Years Day and no doubt eager to start with a fresh page after a horrific league campaign so far which has resulted in just one win something shared with their opponents who can also reflect on just one success.

England Basketball Players of the Year 2011 - by Eurobasket News
We are pleased to announce the Players of the Year for 2011.

These awards are in recognition of outstanding and consistent leadership, teamwork and application based on performances on court, off court, in training and in competition.

An excerpt of each winner's nomination by their head coach is included below.

U16 Men
Luke Nelson (185-PG-95)

Luke started at point guard for the promotion winning U16 Men side, averaging a team-high 13.6 points per game on 42.1% shooting. He also averaged 3.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest and came up big in the promotion clinching game with a 27 point, 7 rebounds, 6 assist preformance against Israel.

'Luke was a strong presence for the team on and off the floor. It was a tough call to make to choose a stand out, with some serious contenders, but Luke's poise in the key games, and the stand-out performance against Israel earnt him this award.

'His development over the year was impressive. He worked on his physique, fundamentals and technical aspects to ensure he would be ready for the challenges ahead. He even overcame a potentially threatening back injury just one month prior to the Euro's.'

U18 Men
Rowell Graham (94)

Rowell was not in the starting five for the U18 Men, but still managed to rack up 8.0 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. He was the team's most efficient scorer shooting at 59.5%. He posted double figure points twice and was in the top 10 in the tournament in blocked shots.

'Rowell is a physically talented athlete who has only been playing organised basketball for two years. He has progressed from street ball to international level through his determination and drive to become the best! He has shown leadership on the floor and was the best England player at the recent European Championship.'

Senior Men
Joel Freeland (208-F-87)

Joel was the starting power forward for GB Senior Men at EuroBasket and made a big impression culminating in a 27 point, 11 rebound double-double on perfect shooting against Poland.

'Joel had a stunning EuroBasket 2011 campaign becoming a major player for the side. Throughout the EuroBasket Finals he averaged 11.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Since his return to regular season club, Unicaja Malaga, he has excelled, winning the ACB player of the month in the first month of the season'

Courtesy of: http://www.englandbasketball.co.uk

*****************************************************

URUGUAY

Sneed leads Defensor Sporting to beat Olimpia - by Hector Lopez
Omar Sneed (198-F-76, college: Memphis) netted 23 points, incluiding 4/5 from the three points line, and grabbed 14 rebounds leading Defensor Sporting to beat Olimpia 93-67 for the Uruguayan League 23rd round. Also for Defensor Juan Pablo Silveira (191-G-86, college: Weber St.) added 18 points, with 3/4 three points shots. For Olimpia Albert Jackson (211-F/C-88, college: Georgia) scored 14 points with 10 rebounds and Michael Gale (193-G-82, college: Centenary) netted 7 points. Other results:
Sayago 85 - Jason McCoy (206-F/C-82, college: Wisc.-Milwaukee) 29 points 11 rebounds 3 assists2 blocks. Terence Shellman (199-F-78) 9 points 13 rebounds 8 assists
Guruyu Waston 75 - Craig Craft (191-G-87, college: S.Mississippi) 18 points 3 rebounds 3 assists, Torraye Braggs (203-F/C-76, college: Xavier) 19 points 5 rebounds 2 assiksts, Ryan Blankson (201-F-80, college: Loyola, IL) 6 points 7 rebounds 2 assists,
- - -
Welcome 75 - Jimmy Boston (201-F-77, college: N.C.Central) 23 points 10 rebounds 2 assists, Kevin Nelson (192-G-84, college: Park) 16 points 5 rebounds
Trouville 70 - Claudio Bascou (189-G-89) 20 points, Brandon Brown (201-F-85, college: CS San Bernar.) 11 points 7 rebounds 4 assists, Brad Kanis (218-C-84, college: Grand Canyon) 7 points 7 rebounds

Standings - LUB

LUB Standings

Capital
1. Hebraica		18-2
2. Malvin		15-5
3. Defensor		15-6
4. Welcome		13-8
5. Aguada		13-8
6. Bigua		12-9
7. Larre Borges		11-10
8. Trouville		11-11
9. Un.Atletica		9-11
10. Cordon		8-12
11. Olimpia		8-13
12. Guruyu Waston		8-13
13. Bohemios		7-13
14. Montevideo		7-14
15. Sayago		6-16
16. Cader		5-15
Littoral
1. Anastasia		4-0
2. Remeros		3-1
3. Wanderers		2-2
4. Universitario S.		1-3
5. Juventus Salto		0-4
South
1. Lagomar		5-0
2. Plaza		3-2
3. Lavalleja		2-2
4. Maldonado		2-3
5. Flores Trinidad		0-5

Stats Leaders - LUB

Points Per Game

Willard CREWS
  Cader
  (203-F-88)
  Avg: 24.3

1. Crews, Cader	24.3
2. Humphrey, Bigua	23.9
3. Brown, Trouville	23.8
4. Herring, Bohemios	22.7
5. McCullough, Un.Atl.	22.1
6. Roland, Sayago	22.1
7. Keenan, Larre B.	21.9
8. Eddie, Cordon	21.7
9. Johnson, Olimpia	21.0
10. Evans, Cader	21.0

Rebounds Per Game

Otis POLK
  Montevideo
  (206-C-88)
  Avg: 15.1

1. Polk, Montevideo	15.1
2. Wilborn, Un.Atleti.	13.3
3. Humphrey, Bigua	11.6
4. Davis, Aguada	11.0
5. Crews, Cader	10.7
6. Jackson, Defensor	10.4
7. Shellman, Sayago	10.2
8. Passos, Hebraica	10.2
9. Keenan, Larre B.	10.2
10. Douglas, Bohemios	9.8

Assists Per Game

Gustavo BARRERA
  Hebraica
  (194-G-85)
  Avg: 8.8

1. Barrera, Hebraica	8.8
2. Fitipaldo, Malvin	5.9
3. Gonzalez, Aguada	5.5
4. de Gouveia, Monte.	5.1
5. Taboada, Larre B.	5.1
6. Braggs, Guruyu W.	5.0
7. Muro, Aguada	4.9
8. Silvarrey, Sayago	4.8
9. Cambon, Bigua	4.7
10. Garcia Moral., Bi.	4.6

Steals Per Game

Mauro TORNARIA
  Trouville
  (187-G-82)
  Avg: 2.7

1. Tornaria, Trouville	2.7
2. Barrera, Hebraica	2.6
3. Shellman, Sayago	2.5
4. Clarkson, Larre B.	2.4
5. Garcia Moral., Big.	2.3
6. Aguilera, Trouville	2.3
7. Vazquez, Olimpia	2.3
8. Silvarrey, Sayago	2.2
9. Evans, Cader	2.1
10. Jeffries, Malvin	2.1

Blocks Per Game

Otis POLK
  Montevideo
  (206-C-88)
  Avg: 2

1. Polk, Montevideo	2.0
2. Humphrey, Bigua	1.9
3. Crews, Cader	1.7
4. Clarkson, Larre B.	1.7
5. Herring, Bohemios	1.7
6. Wilborn, Un.Atleti.	1.7
7. Suarez, Cordon	1.6
8. Newsome, Malvin	1.5
9. Augustus, Hebraica	1.5
10. Douglas, Bohemios	1.4

*****************************************************

VTB UNITED LEAGUE

Azovmash tab Marijonas Petravicius - by Eurobasket News
Azovmash landed Marijonas Petravicius (208-F/C-79, college: S.Carolina). The Lithuanian centre will replace Hasan Rizvic (212-C-84) on the roster. Marijonas Petravicius spent the last season in Italy. He played for Armani Jeans Milano. Marijonas Petravicius tallied 8.2 points, 3.2 rebounds per game in Euroleague. In SeriaA the centre delivered 3.9 points and 2.1 rebounds per appearance. Previously Marijonas Petravicius had stints in Germany, Belgium, Latvia, Kuwait and Lithuania. The centre was named Fiba Europe Cup Final Four MVP in 2004. Eurobasket.com named Marijonas Petravicius All-Lithuanian LKL Centre of the Year in 2008 and 2009. Marijonas Petravicius played for Lithuania at 2011 EuroBasket. His stats read 4.5 points and 1.5 boards per game at the tournament.

*****************************************************

ZIMBABWE

All Set for Sebastin Masawi Memorial Basketball Tourney - by Eurobasket News
Gweru EIGHT teams are expected at the Sebastian Musiiwa Masawi Memorial Basketball tournament set for Redcliff tomorrow.

Four teams from the Southern Region Basketball League - Highlanders, Kings, Unicorns and Steelers - are expected to feature in a tournament that will also be graced by Saints, Fibres, Mbizo and Harare-based Gentlemen Association.

One of the organisers, Walter Mabhena, confirmed the tournament yesterday.

'We have a memorial tournament in Redcliff on Saturday in memory of Rambo (Sebastian Musiiwa Masawi) and eight teams will take part.

'A prominent sponsor, Rambo, died in the United Kingdom three years ago and his family has invited us to this tournament with view of making it an annual tournament.

'All is now set and come Saturday basketball roads will lead toRedcliff and we hope to make it a success,' said Mabhena.
Courtesy of: The Herald

*****************************************************

Women News

*****************************************************

AUSTRALIA - Women

Big V: Craigieburn appoint State Youth Champ Women Coach - by Eurobasket News
The Craigieburn basketball association are excited to announce that Laura Janes has received & accepted an offer to be Head Coach of the womens State Youth Championship team for season 2012.

Laura originally from the Gold Coast where she represented many elite teams was initially identified as a player to watch by the late Paul Simpson and was brought to Melbourne to play on the tigers line up. After many years with the tigers as a player & coach to the junior levels Laura moved onto Diamond Valley to continue her playing career.

Unfortunately Laura would sustain a knee injury & require screws put into her knee as a part of the surgery & on-going recovery, this effectively lead to Laura giving the game away as a player, although Laura did get one last year in back in Tigers colours playing for the youth league team and taking a mentoring role to the younger group, this was served under long-time coach Joe Borg.

Laura plays the game with flair that is rarely seen anymore and if she can bring that to her coaching I am sure she will be successful. Quote from Joe Borg.

Laura has already been at the Eagles club for three weeks & has been accepted straight into the group, already getting herself in the mix and putting her spin on training, working alongside Division 1 head coach Simon Liebelt.

Laura is a very passionate person, she has a long history with basketball at a high level and it shows in her professionalism and intensity. Laura definitely brings a background from high level clubs that we will all learn from. The one thing that really stuck out to me was when Laura walked into training on her first night with the club and we both clicked, it was like we were instantly on the same page and had been working together for years. Quote from Simon Liebelt.

The Eagles youth league women are looking strong following there inaugural season last year with many players still under the 23 years old restriction and many with a few years under their belt. Last years captain Rebeeca brown is back alongside Kristen McNamara, Kelsey Ryan, Tahlia Prestia, Andrea Gobbo, Natalie Eggins, Rachael Butler, Sage Dickinson, Emma Moore and new junior inclusions Melissa Doran and Nicola Stewart. Also Joining the team are Alexis ( AJ ) Page and Jess Yates, both playing their junior years at Eltham & Melbourne Tigers.

Even though my playing career ended earlier then wanted, Im extremely excited to be coaching Craigieburn Youth League women. Im appreciative of the opportunity and look forward to working with an association that is heading in a great direction. Quote from Laura Janes.
Courtesy of: bigv.com.au

*****************************************************

BELGIUM - Women

D1 Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Krystel BALLAU
  Spirou M.
  (168-G-84)
  Avg: 16.9

1. Ballau, Spirou M.	16.9
2. Meesseman, Blue C.	16.8
3. Vasovic, Houthalen	16.1
4. Greene, Point Cha.	15.9
5. Conicelli, Jeugd G.	15.5
6. Jones, Dexia Namur	15.0
7. Deyaert, Waregem	14.8
8. Tetschiag, Waregem	14.6
9. Raman, Waregem	14.6
10. Rosseel, Blue Ca.	14.5

Rebounds Per Game

Kayla TETSCHIAG
  Waregem
  (183-G/F-83)
  Avg: 11.6

1. Tetschiag, Waregem	11.6
2. Demirer, Spirou M.	10.8
3. Greene, Point Cha.	10.7
4. Burks-Wiley, Casto.	9.3
5. Meesseman, Blue C.	8.8
6. Conicelli, Jeugd G.	8.6
7. Maes, Tulikivi.	8.0
8. Michiels, Spirou M.	7.4
9. Boonen, Kangoero.	7.3
10. Deyaert, Waregem	7.3

Assists Per Game

Krystel BALLAU
  Spirou M.
  (168-G-84)
  Avg: 3.4

1. Ballau, Spirou M.	3.4
2. Blommaers, Houth.	3.2
3. Salvi, Houthalen	2.6
4. Devliegher, Blue C.	2.5
5. Vercauteren, Wareg.	2.4
6. Delaere, Kangoero.	2.3
7. Meesseman, Blue C.	2.2
8. Van Driel, Kangoe.	2.1
9. Boonen, Kangoero.	2.0
10. Rosseel, Blue Ca.	2.0

Steals Per Game

Miete CELUS
  Sint Katelijne
  (175-G-91)
  Avg: 3.2

1. Celus, Sint Kateli.	3.2
2. Leemans, Sint K.	2.7
3. Mayombo, Point C.	2.6
4. Deneil, Dexia Namur	2.6
5. Conicelli, Jeugd G.	2.5
6. Rosseel, Blue Cats	2.5
7. Greene, Point Cha.	2.4
8. Ibekwe, Dexia N.	2.2
9. Blommaers, Houth.	2.2
10. Meesseman, Blue	2.2

Blocks Per Game

Emma MEESSEMAN
  Blue C.
  (192-C-93)
  Avg: 1.6

1. Meesseman, Blue C.	1.6
2. Dochez, Willebroek	1.3
3. Boonen, Kangoero.	1.0
4. Nauwelaers, Sint K.	0.9
5. Burks-Wiley, Casto.	0.8
6. VanMalderen, Dexia	0.8
7. Hendrickx, Kangoe.	0.8
8. Blommaers, Houth.	0.7
9. Ben Abdelkad., Dex.	0.7
10. Vasovic, Houthal.	0.7

Standings - Women

D1 Standings

1. Dexia Namur		12-0
2. Kangoeroes-B.		10-2
3. Sint Katelijne		9-2
4. Waregem		9-2
5. Blue Cats		9-3
6. Point Chaud		6-6
7. Spirou Monceau		5-7
8. Jeugd Gentson		4-7
9. Houthalen		3-9
10. Willebroek		2-9
11. Tulikivi Deerlijk		1-11
12. Castors Braine		0-12

D1 Round 12: Top-ranked Dexia Namur wins another game - by Eurobasket News
D1 top team - Dexia Namur (12-0) managed to deliver another win on Saturday. This time they beat sixth ranked Point Chaud (6-6) in Sprimont 86-74. The game was mostly controlled by Dexia Namur. Point Chaud managed to win third quarter 23-22. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. They made 16-of-20 free shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Dexia Namur forced 19 Point Chaud turnovers. It was a good game for American Chandrea Jones (175-SF-87, agency: LBM Management, college: Syracuse) who led her team to a victory with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Hind Ben Abdelkader (170-95) contributed with 18 points for the winners. International point guard Noemie Mayombo (170-91, agency: LBM Management) replied with 23 points for Point Chaud. Point Chaud's coach Bernard Schoobroodt rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Undefeated Dexia Namur have an impressive 12-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 12-0 record. Point Chaud at the other side keeps the sixth place with six games lost. Dexia Namur are looking forward to face Sint Kateline Waver (#3) in Sint Katelijne in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Point Chaud will play on the road against Houthalen and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Bottom-ranked Castors Braine is still unable to win any game. This time they could not use their home court advantage losing their 12th consecutive match to eighth ranked R.Spirou Monceau (5-7) 66-51. Worth to mention a great performance of American-Polish forward Julia Demirer (187-81, college: Emmanuel (MA), agency: LBM Management) who helped to win the game recording 8 points and 17 rebounds and Krystel Ballau who added 16 points during the contest. The best for the losing side was American forward Jesyka Burks-Wiley (185-87, college: Boston U.) with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 14 rebounds. Castors Braine's coach Jean Luc Cornia tested eleven players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. R.Spirou Monceau moved-up to seventh place. Newly promoted Castors Braine still closes the standings with 12 games lost. R.Spirou Monceau will play against Jeugd Gentson (#8) at home in the next round. Castors Braine will play against Declercq Stortbeton (#4) in Waregem and hopes to get finally their first victory.
The game in Gent supposed to be also quite interesting. Fourth ranked Declercq Stortbeton (9-2) played at the court of 7th ranked Jeugd Gentson (4-7). Declercq Stortbeton smashed Jeugd Gentson 91-65 on Saturday. The winners were led by Nele Deyaert who scored that evening 32 points and 7 rebounds. Even 23 points and 8 rebounds (went 13 for 13 at the free throw line !!!) by Isabelle Degels did not help to save the game for Jeugd Gentson. Jeugd Gentson's coach Benny Mertens gave up on the game allowing to play ten players seeing no chance for a win. Defending champion moved-up to third place, which they share with Sint Katelijne. Loser Jeugd Gentson dropped to the eighth position with seven games lost. Declercq Stortbeton will meet at home bottom-ranked Castors Braine (#12) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Jeugd Gentson will play against R.Spirou Monceau (#7) in Charleroi and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Tenth-ranked Basket Groot (2-9) used its home court advantage to challenge fifth ranked Blue Cats (9-3) in Willebroek. The visitors from Ieper managed to secure only three-point victory 74-71. However their fans expected much easier game. The best player for the winners was Emma Meesseman who had a double-double by scoring 12 points and 15 rebounds. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Blue Cats have an impressive six-game winning streak. They maintain fifth position with 9-3 record. Basket Groot lost third consecutive game. They keep the tenth place with nine games lost. Blue Cats' next round opponent will be league's second-placed Kangoeroes-B. in Boom and it may be quite challenging game. Basket Groot will play on the road against Tulikivi (#11) in Deerlijk and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
The game between second ranked Kangoeroes-B. (10-2) and 11th ranked Tulikivi (1-11) in Boom on Saturday ended with biggest points difference. Kangoeroes-B. outscored guests from Deerlijk 86-33. It was a good game for Anne-Sophie Strubbe who led her team to a victory with 16 points and 7 rebounds. Kangoeroes-B. have a solid three-game winning streak. They maintain second position with 10-2 record having just two points less than leader Dexia Namur. Tulikivi lost ninth consecutive game. They keep the eleventh place with 11 games lost. Kangoeroes-B. will face Blue Cats (#5) in Ieper in the next round. Tulikivi will play at home against Basket Groot (#10) in Willebroek and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

In the last game of round 12 Houthalen was beaten by Sint Katelijne on the road 71-64.
The most impressive performance of 12th round was 21 points and 14 rebounds by Kayla Tetschiag of Waregem.

Jeugd Gentson - Waregem 65-91

The game in Gent supposed to be also quite interesting. Fourth ranked Declercq Stortbeton (9-2) played at the court of 7th ranked Jeugd Gentson (4-7). Declercq Stortbeton smashed Jeugd Gentson 91-65 on Saturday. Declercq Stortbeton made 21-of-22 free shots (95.5 percent) during the game. Declercq Stortbeton had a 30-17 advantage in offensive rebounds. The winners were led by the former international forward Nele Deyaert (186-79) who scored that evening 32 points and 7 rebounds and American swingman Kayla Tetschiag (183-83, college: Wisc.-Green Bay) supported her with 21 points and 14 rebounds (went 12 for 12 at the free throw line !!!). Four Declercq Stortbeton players scored in double figures. Even 23 points and 8 rebounds (went 13 for 13 at the free throw line !!!) by guard Isabelle Degels (167-92) did not help to save the game for Jeugd Gentson. American forward Jessilyn Conicelli (182, college: Biola, CA) added 14 points and 11 rebounds. Jeugd Gentson's coach Benny Mertens gave up on the game allowing to play ten players seeing no chance for a win. Defending champion moved-up to third place, which they share with Sint Katelijne. Loser Jeugd Gentson dropped to the eighth position with seven games lost. Declercq Stortbeton will meet at home bottom-ranked Castors Braine (#12) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Jeugd Gentson will play against R.Spirou Monceau (#7) in Charleroi and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Waregem: N.Deyaert 32+7reb+1ast, K.Tetschiag 21+14reb+3ast, L.Biebuyck 11+6reb+1ast, K.Vercauteren 11+1reb, T.Van Respaille 9+2reb+1ast, L.Foucart 4+1reb
Jeugd Gentson: I.Degels 23+8reb+3ast, J.Conicelli 14+11reb+1ast, V.Kara 10+1reb+1ast, L.Schmitz 8+2reb, L.Delvaux 4+1reb, L.Platteau 2

Castors Braine - Spirou Monceau 51-66

Bottom-ranked Castors Braine is still unable to win any game. This time they could not use their home court advantage losing their 12th consecutive match to eighth ranked R.Spirou Monceau (5-7) 66-51. The game without a history. R.Spirou Monceau led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They made 18-of-23 charity shots (78.3 percent) during the game. R.Spirou Monceau forced 19 Castors Braine turnovers and outrebounded them 54-34 including a 33-21 advantage in defensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of American-Polish forward Julia Demirer (187-81, college: Emmanuel (MA), agency: LBM Management) who helped to win the game recording 8 points and 17 rebounds and guard Krystel Ballau (168-84, agency: LBM Management) who added 16 points during the contest. The best for the losing side was American forward Jesyka Burks-Wiley (185-87, college: Boston U.) with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 14 rebounds and DR Congolese forward Thethe Kazadi (178-86) scored 7 points. Castors Braine's coach Jean Luc Cornia tested eleven players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. R.Spirou Monceau moved-up to seventh place. Newly promoted Castors Braine still closes the standings with 12 games lost. R.Spirou Monceau will play against Jeugd Gentson (#8) at home in the next round. Castors Braine will play against Declercq Stortbeton (#4) in Waregem and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Spirou Monceau: K.Ballau 16+4reb+2ast, C.Myers 10+4reb, V.Michiels 9+7reb, J.Demirer 8+17reb+1ast, A.Mai 7+13reb, P.Frassanito 6+3reb+1ast
Castors Braine: J.Burks-Wiley 18+14reb+1ast, L.Foerster 7+2reb+1ast, T.Kazadi 7+4reb, A.Halin 5+1reb+1ast, E.Vermylen 4+4reb+2ast, C.Mahaux 4+3reb

Point Chaud - Dexia Namur 74-86

D1 top team - Dexia Namur (12-0) managed to deliver another win on Saturday. This time they beat sixth ranked Point Chaud (6-6) in Sprimont 86-74. The game was mostly controlled by Dexia Namur. Point Chaud managed to win third quarter 23-22. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. They made 16-of-20 free shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Dexia Namur forced 19 Point Chaud turnovers. It was a good game for American Chandrea Jones (175-87, college: Syracuse, agency: LBM Management) who led her team to a victory with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Hind Ben Abdelkader (170-95) contributed with 18 points for the winners. International point guard Noemie Mayombo (170-91, agency: LBM Management) replied with 23 points and American forward Mariesa Greene (183-87, college: Barry) added 18 points and 9 rebounds in the effort for Point Chaud. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Point Chaud's coach Bernard Schoobroodt rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Dexia Namur have an impressive 12-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 12-0 record. Point Chaud at the other side keeps the sixth place with six games lost. Dexia Namur are looking forward to face Sint Kateline Waver (#3) in Sint Katelijne in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Point Chaud will play on the road against Houthalen and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Top scorers:
Dexia Namur: C.Jones 19+8reb+1ast, H.Ben Abdelkader 18+1reb+3ast, N.Crelot 14+1reb, I.Ibekwe 11+8reb+1ast, S.Dubuc 9+1reb+1ast, L.VanMalderen 5+5reb+2ast
Point Chaud: N.Mayombo 23+3reb+3ast, M.Greene 18+9reb+1ast, E.Mayombo 13+2reb+1ast, J.Allemand 11+2reb, L.Lonay 3+1reb, M.Grzesinski 2+3reb+1ast

Sint Katelijne - Houthalen 71-64

No shocking result in a game when third ranked Sint Kateline Waver (9-2) beat 9th ranked Houthalen (3-9) in Sint Katelijne 71-64 on Sunday. The hosts took control from the first minutes by winning first half. But Houthalen won third quarter 12-10. However it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Sint Kateline Waver made 23-of-26 free shots (88.5 percent) during the game. They also forced 23 Houthalen turnovers. Houthalen was plagued by 24 personal fouls down the stretch. It was a good game for international Sara Leemans (178-88) who led her team to a victory with 14 points and 8 rebounds. International guard Miete Celus (175-91) contributed with 12 points and 4 assists for the winners. Four Sint Kateline Waver players scored in double figures. Sint Kateline Waver's coach Arvid Diels used an eleven-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. Serbian power forward Andrijana Vasovic (186-83) replied with 17 points and French guard Audrey Salvi (173-89) added 9 points and 8 rebounds in the effort for Houthalen. Sint Kateline Waver have a solid four-game winning streak. They maintain third position with 9-2 record having four points less than leader Dexia Namur, which they share with Waregem. Houthalen lost fifth consecutive game. They keep the ninth place with nine games lost. Sint Kateline Waver will face league's leader Dexia Namur on the road in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Houthalen will play against Point Chaud (#6) in Sprimont.
Top scorers:
Sint Katelijne: S.Leemans 14+8reb+1ast, D.Van Dessel 14+4reb, M.Celus 12+4reb+4ast, I.Van der Vonder 11+4reb+2ast, F.Mertens 6+1reb, A.Nauwelaers 6+4reb
Houthalen: A.Vasovic 17+2reb+1ast, A.Salvi 9+8reb+1ast, W.Bas 9+5reb, A.Blommaers 9+5reb+1ast, C.Custermans 8+1reb, N.Smolders 8+3reb

Kangoeroes-B. - Tulikivi Deerlijk 86-33

The game between second ranked Kangoeroes-B. (10-2) and 11th ranked Tulikivi (1-11) in Boom on Saturday ended with biggest points difference. Kangoeroes-B. outscored guests from Deerlijk 86-33. The game without a history. Kangoeroes-B. led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They dominated on the defensive end, holding Tulikivi to just 5 points in first and fourth quarters. Kangoeroes-B. held Tulikivi to an opponent 17.2 percent shooting from the field compared to 47.2 percent accuracy of the winners. Kangoeroes-B. forced 21 Tulikivi turnovers and outrebounded them 48-29 including a 36-21 advantage in defensive rebounds. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Kangoeroes-B. made 7 blocks. It was a good game for international Anne-Sophie Strubbe (182-90) who led her team to a victory with 16 points and 7 rebounds. The former international forward Eveline Decroos (184-84) contributed with 16 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Four Kangoeroes-B. players scored in double figures. Center Eline Verbeest (186-86) replied with 15 points and 8 rebounds and the former international power forward Irina Medvedeva (190-76) added 3 points and 10 rebounds in the effort for Tulikivi. Kangoeroes-B. have a solid three-game winning streak. They maintain second position with 10-2 record having just two points less than leader Dexia Namur. Tulikivi lost ninth consecutive game. They keep the eleventh place with 11 games lost. Kangoeroes-B. will face Blue Cats (#5) in Ieper in the next round. Tulikivi will play at home against Basket Groot (#10) in Willebroek and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Kangoeroes-B.: E.Decroos 16+5reb+1ast, A.Strubbe 16+7reb+2ast, E.Lauwers 13+3reb+1ast, D.Boonen 12+4reb+4ast, L.Malfait 9+12reb+1ast, S.Hendrickx 7+9reb
Tulikivi Deerlijk: E.Verbeest 15+8reb+1ast, V.Boydens 7+5reb, L.Mestdagh 4+1reb+3ast, I.Medvedeva 3+10reb+1ast, N.Surgeloose 2, E.Vanfleteren 2+1reb

Willebroek - Blue Cats 71-74

Tenth-ranked Basket Groot (2-9) used its home court advantage to challenge fifth ranked Blue Cats (9-3) in Willebroek. The visitors from Ieper managed to secure only three-point victory 74-71. However their fans expected much easier game. Basket Groot was ahead by 2 points at the halftime before a 23-17 third quarter run of Blue Cats. They made 22-of-27 charity shots (81.5 percent) during the game. They also forced 21 Basket Groot turnovers and outrebounded them 41-25 including 27 on the defensive glass. 27 personal fouls committed by Basket Groot helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The best player for the winners was international center Emma Meesseman (192-93) who had a double-double by scoring 12 points and 15 rebounds. American power forward Latoya Drake (188-86, college: Miami, FL) chipped in 14 points and 7 rebounds. Five Blue Cats players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was swingman Karen Hendrickx (171-88) who recorded 19 points and Heleen Adams (173-94) added 12 points and 5 rebounds respectively. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Blue Cats have an impressive six-game winning streak. They maintain fifth position with 9-3 record. Basket Groot lost third consecutive game. They keep the tenth place with nine games lost. Blue Cats' next round opponent will be league's second-placed Kangoeroes-B. in Boom and it may be quite challenging game. Basket Groot will play on the road against Tulikivi (#11) in Deerlijk and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Blue Cats: J.Rosseel 16+5reb, L.Drake 14+7reb, S.Devliegher 12+5reb, E.Meesseman 12+15reb, M.Versavel 10+1reb, A.Plasman 4+3reb
Willebroek: K.Hendrickx 19+1reb, I.Beaurang 12+2reb, H.Adams 12+5reb+1ast, N.Poffyn 9+2reb, T.Bijnens 8+4reb, N.Deriemaeker 7+3reb

Tetschiag's double-double lands her Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
28-year old swingman Kayla Tetschiag (183-G/F-83) put on an amazing game in the last round for Waregem and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 12.
She had a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds, while her team outclassed Jeugd Gentson (#8, 4-7) with 26-point margin 91-65. Waregem maintains the 4th position in Belgian D1. They are still close to the very top. Waregem would have been even better if they kept winning the games like in the last round. They have a solid 9-2 record. Tetschiag turned to be Waregem's top player in her first season with the team. University of Wisconsin - Green Bay graduate has very impressive stats this year. Tetschiag. Tetschiag is in league's top in points (8th best: 14.6ppg).

Second best performed player last round was Nele Deyaert (186-F-79). She is former international forward in her 5th season at Waregem. In the last game Deyaert recorded impressive 32 points and 7 rebounds. Of course together with Tetschiag she helped Waregem with another comfortable win outscoring the lower-ranked Jeugd Gentson (#8, 4-7) 91-65. Waregem's 4th position in the standings has not changed. Her team lost just two games this season, while they won 9 matches. Deyaert is one of the most experienced players at Waregem and similarly like Kayla Tetschiag has a reputation of one of team's most reliable players. She belongs to the best scorers in the league with 14.8ppg (#7). She also registered 7.3 boards per game.

Third place about best performers goes to forward Jesyka Burks-Wiley (185-F-87) of Castors Braine (#12). Burks-Wiley scored 18 points and grabbed fourteen rebounds (!!!). Despite Burks-Wiley's great performance Castors Braine lost 51-66 to the higher-ranked Spirou Monceau (#7, 5-7). But her team cannot count on just a single player as she also needs help of the other teammates. Castors Braine can only dream about fighting for top spots in the league. They have awful season losing so far all 12 games. Too bad for Burks-Wiley she does not play for a better team. But maybe if she did, her season stats would not be that high. Burks-Wiley has individually a great season in Belgium. After only 9 games, she made it on the list of the league's leaders in rebounds with 9.3rpg (4th best).

Other top performing players last week:
4. Anne-Sophie Strubbe (182-SF-90) of Kangoeroes-B. - 16 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists
5. Mariesa Greene (183-F-87) of Point Chaud - 18 points and 9 rebounds
6. Jessilyn Conicelli (182-F) of Jeugd Gentson - 14 points and 11 rebounds
7. Sara Leemans (178-SF-88) of Sint Katelijne - 14 points and 8 rebounds
8. Lieselot Malfait (190-C-87) of Kangoeroes-B. - 9 points and 12 rebounds
9. Emma Meesseman (192-C-93) of Blue Cats - 12 points and 15 rebounds
10. Isabelle Degels (167-G-92) of Jeugd Gentson - 23 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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BULGARIA - Women

Stanoeva's 27 points and 8 rebounds give her Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
35-year old forward Zoya Stanoeva (182-F-76, agency: Global Sports Plaza) put on an amazing game in the last round for Beroe 07 and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 14.
She had the game-high 27 points adding eight rebounds and three assists for Beroe 07 in her team's victory, helping them to outclass Rilski Sportist (#6, 2-10) with 27-point margin 71-44. Beroe 07 maintains the 3rd position in Bulgarian NBL. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Beroe 07 will need more victories to improve their 7-4 record. In the team's last game Stanoeva had a remarkable 75.0% from 2-point range. She turned to be Beroe 07's top player in her first season with the team. Zoya Stanoeva averages this season 15.4ppg.

Second best performed player last round was Natalia Topalova-Shopova (186-F-80) of Montana 2003. She is former international forward in her first season at Montana 2003. In the last game Topalova-Shopova recorded impressive double-double of 24 points and 13 rebounds. Of course she lead Montana 2003 to another comfortable win 88-75 over Slavia (#7, 0-11) being unquestionably team leader. Montana 2003's 4th position in the standings has not changed. Her team's 6-5 record is not bad at all. Topalova-Shopova is a newcomer at Montana 2003 and quickly became one of team's most reliable players.

Third place about best performers goes to guard Charel Allen (181-G-86, agency: LBM Management) of league's leader Dunav 8806. Allen scored 20 points and grabbed ten rebounds. Despite Allen's great performance Dunav 8806 lost 66-67 to #2 ranked Neftochimic. But her team cannot count on just a single player as she also needs help of the other teammates especially in such crucial game. That was shocking loss for Dunav 8806 and their fans. Hopefully so far almost perfect season will not turn around. They still have impressive 10-1 record in the league holding top position in the standings. Allen plays for a very strong team and Dunav 8806 has many quality players. So achieving that high stats is even more impressive. Allen has a very solid season. In 11 games in Bulgaria she scored 16.2ppg. She also has 5.8rpg, FGP: 53.7% and 3PT: 60.0%.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Katerina Dorogobuzova (187-F-90) of Neftochimic - 20 points and 11 rebounds
5. Adrienne Johnson (182-F-89) of Dunav 8806 - 21 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists
6. Tsvetelina Nikolova (191-C-88) of Rilski Sportist - 17 points and 8 rebounds
7. Stefka Nikolova (173-G-90) of Beroe 07 - 12 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists
8. Margarita Ilieva (189-C-88) of Beroe 07 - 12 points and 9 rebounds
9. Camellia Mihalkova (181-F-80) of Montana 2003 - 13 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists
10. Aleksandra Delcheva (202-C-87) of Slavia - 13 points and 5 rebounds

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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CHINA - Women

WCBA Round 16: Beijing Great Wall defeats leader Shenyang Golden Lions - by Eurobasket News
The fans could enjoy quite many interesting games in the last round. The round ended with defeat of the leader, extra overtimes and favorites losing the games.

The most crucial game of the last round was a loss of top-ranked Shenyang Golden Lions (13-3) on the court of second ranked Beijing Great Wall on Tuesday night. Visitors were defeated by Beijing Great Wall in overtime 97-88. It ended at the same time the eight-game winning streak of Shenyang Golden Lions. It may be a crucial game in the contest for the top position in the league. The hosts trailed by 5 points at the halftime before their 23-16 charge in the third quarter, which allowed them to tie the game at the end of regular time. They were better in overtime eventually winning that period 18-9. Beijing Great Wall made 16-of-20 free shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Beijing Great Wall outrebounded Shenyang Golden Lions 38-27 including 26 on the defensive glass. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists. Worth to mention a great performance of American center Nicky Anosike (190-86, college: Tennessee) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 22 points and 20 rebounds. International forward Fan Zhang (188-84) contributed with 24 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. International guard LiJie Miao (180-81) replied with a double-double by scoring 28 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists for Shenyang Golden Lions. Beijing Great Wall have a solid four-game winning streak. They maintain second position with 12-4 record behind leader Shenyang. Shenyang Golden Lions at the other side still keep top place with three games lost. Beijing Great Wall are looking forward to face Liaoning Hengye (#5) in Anshan in the next round. Shenyang Golden Lions will play at home against Shanghai Octopus (#4) and are hoping to win this game.

In the last game of round 16 Jiangsu beat Guangdong on the road 85-68. Bottom-ranked Henan lost to Zhejiang on its own court 78-84. Yunnan managed to outperform Shanghai in Qujing 71-64. Heilongjiang managed to beat Bayi at home 93-80. Shandong crushed Liaoning on the opponent's court 86-62.
The most impressive performance of 16th round was 29 points, 15 rebounds and 6 assists by Katie Mattera of Zhejiang.

Guangdong - Jiangsu 68-85

No shocking result in a game when third ranked Jiangsu Phoenix (11-5) beat 6th ranked Guangdong Dolphins (9-7) in Guangzhou 85-68 on Tuesday. The game without a history. Jiangsu Phoenix led from the first minutes and controlled entire game increasing their lead in each quarter. They dominated down low during the game scoring 62 of its points in the paint compared to Guangdong Dolphins' 42. It was a very good performance for American center Amy Jaeschke (196-89, college: Northwestern) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 22 points and 10 rebounds. International point guard Xiaojia Chen (177-88) contributed with 6 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for the winners. Four Jiangsu Phoenix players scored in double figures. American forward Swin Cash (187-79, college: Connecticut, agency: Josep and Nicolas) replied with a double-double by scoring 16 points and 12 rebounds and international center Wei Wei (207-89) added 19 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for Guangdong Dolphins. Jiangsu Phoenix have a solid three-game winning streak. They maintain third position with 11-5 record having just two points less than leader Shenyang. Loser Guangdong Dolphins keep the sixth place with seven games lost. Jiangsu Phoenix will face Qujing Yunnan (#9) on the road in the next round where they are favorite. Guangdong Dolphins will play against Henan Elephants in Jiyuan.
Top scorers:
Guangdong: W.Wei 19+5reb+1ast, C.Swin 16+12reb+3ast, H.Hongpin 11+7reb+1ast, Q.Siyue 9+2reb+3ast, D.Yuan 6+3reb+4ast, G.Xin 4
Jiangsu: J.Amy 22+10reb, H.Huan 18+5reb+4ast, N.Xu 17+1reb+1ast, L.ShanShan 14+7reb+3ast, C.Xiaojia 6+12reb+11ast, X.Hou 4

Henan - Zhejiang 78-84

Very expected game when 12th ranked Henan Elephants (1-15) lost to eighth ranked Zhejiang Far East (8-8) in Jiyuan 78-84 on Tuesday. Henan Elephants trailed by 19 points after 3 quarters before a 20-7 run in the last quarter cut the deficit to 78-84 at the end of the game. They outrebounded Henan Elephants 38-24 including 17 on the offensive glass. It was a very good performance for American center Katie Mattera (202-82, college: Liberty) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 29 points, 15 rebounds and 6 assists. Forward Xue-Mei Dong (180-92) contributed with 14 points and 6 rebounds for the winners. Zhejiang Far East's coach Wu Zheng used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Swingman Jie Sun (183-91) replied with 23 points and 6 rebounds and forward LiJun Zhang (180-90) added 17 points in the effort for Henan Elephants. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Zhejiang Far East maintains eighth position with 8-8 record. Henan Elephants lost eleventh consecutive game. They stay at the bottom place with 15 games lost. Zhejiang Far East will face Bayi Kylin (#11) in Yinzhou in the next round. Henan Elephants will play at home against Guangdong Dolphins in Guangzhou.
Top scorers:
Henan: S.Jie 23+6reb+1ast, Z.LiJun 17+2reb+1ast, L.Yunyun 13+5reb+1ast, T.Ying 12+4reb, W.Jing 8+1reb+2ast, X.Xin 5+5reb+7ast
Zhejiang: M.Katie 29+15reb+6ast, D.Xue-Mei 14+6reb+2ast, G.Jun 13+3reb+1ast, S.Binbin 10+3reb+3ast, B.Lan 8+4reb+5ast, S.Yi 4+2reb+1ast

Shanghai - Yunnan 64-71

There was a surprise result when ninth ranked Qujing Yunnan (7-9) won against on the road higher ranked Shanghai Octopus (10-6) 71-64 on Tuesday. The guests trailed by 1 point at the halftime before their 35-27 charge in the second half, which allowed them to win the game. Qujing Yunnan made 16-of-18 free shots (88.9 percent) during the game. They also forced 19 Shanghai Octopus turnovers. It was a very good performance for American center Lindsay Taylor (203-81, college: UCSB) who helped to win the game recording 19 points and 6 rebounds (made all of her seven free throws). Forward Lin Zhu (180-88) contributed with 14 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Four Qujing Yunnan players scored in double figures. American swingman Camille Little (188-85, college: N.Carolina) replied with a double-double by scoring 31 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals and point guard Xiufeng Shi (178-87) added 13 points in the effort for Shanghai Octopus. Qujing Yunnan maintains ninth position with 7-9 record. Shanghai Octopus lost third consecutive game. They keep the fourth place with six games lost. Qujing Yunnan will face higher ranked Jiangsu Phoenix (#3) in Yixing in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Shanghai Octopus will play on the road against the league's leader Shenyang Golden Lions having rather not much hope for a victory.
Top scorers:
Shanghai: L.Camille 31+11reb+4ast, S.Xiufeng 13+3reb, J.Lan 10+3reb, W.Jue 4+3reb+3ast, Y.Hong 4+5reb, H.Jing 2+6reb
Yunnan: T.Lindsay 19+6reb+1ast, Z.Lin 14+5reb+1ast, Z.Huan 11+2reb+1ast, D.ChuanXing 10+6reb+1ast, L.XiaoLei 6+8reb+2ast, C.Betty 5+2reb+1ast

Heilongjiang - Bayi 93-80

Not a big story in a game when 10th ranked Bayi Kylin (3-13) lost to seventh ranked Heilongjiang Chenneng (9-7) in Harbin 80-93 on Tuesday. The game was mostly controlled by Heilongjiang Chenneng. Bayi Kylin was better in fourth quarter 20-17. But it was not enough to take a lead and get a victory that evening. Heilongjiang Chenneng dominated down low during the game scoring 78 of its points in the paint compared to Bayi Kylin's 56. Heilongjiang Chenneng looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. It was a very good performance for the former international swingman YanYan Ji (182-85) who helped to win the game recording 27 points and 6 assists. American center Rashidat Junaid (193-87, college: Rutgers) contributed with a double-double by scoring 20 points and 11 rebounds for the winners. International forward Lu Wen (188-90) replied with 21 points and 6 rebounds and international center Nan Chen (197-83) added 16 points and 6 rebounds in the effort for Bayi Kylin. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Bayi Kylin's coach rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Heilongjiang Chenneng have a solid three-game winning streak. They moved-up to sixth place, which they share with Guangdong. Bayi Kylin lost third consecutive game. They keep the tenth position with 13 games lost. Heilongjiang Chenneng will face Shandong (#10) in Jinan in the next round. Bayi Kylin will play at home against Zhejiang Far East in Hangzhou and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Bayi: W.Lu 21+6reb+2ast, C.Nan 16+6reb+1ast, C.Lisha 14+4reb+1ast, H.Qiulou 10+2reb+1ast, Z.Liting 9+4reb, S.Xiaoyun 8+2reb+3ast
Heilongjiang: J.YanYan 27+2reb+6ast, G.Song 21+5reb+4ast, J.Rashidat 20+11reb, Z.He 11+2reb+4ast, L.JiaCen 9+4reb+5ast, Z.Yongfu 3+2ast

Liaoning - Shandong 62-86

There was a surprise result when eleventh ranked Shandong (3-13) outplayed higher ranked Liaoning Hengye (10-6) in Anshan 86-62 on Tuesday. The guests trailed by 2 points after first quarter, but they stormed back to get the 7-point lead at the halftime and eventually won the game 86-62. Shandong dominated down low during the game scoring 46 of its points in the paint compared to Liaoning Hengye's 22. It was a very good performance for forward Fang Jiang (190-90) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 16 points, 13 rebounds and 4 assists. Forward Xin Li (180-89) contributed with 17 points and 4 assists for the winners. Four Shandong players scored in double figures. Forward Xiaoxue Cui (186-89) replied with 20 points and forward Feng Cheng (188-90) added 17 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks in the effort for Liaoning Hengye. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Shandong moved-up to tenth place, which they share with Bayi. Loser Liaoning Hengye dropped to the fourth position with six games lost. Shandong will face higher ranked Heilongjiang Chenneng (#6) in Harbin in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Liaoning Hengye will play on the road against the league's second-placed Beijing Great Wall having rather not much hope for a victory.
Top scorers:
Liaoning: C.Xiaoxue 20+3reb+3ast, C.Feng 17+6reb+1ast, W.HongChun 15+2reb+2ast, W.Baiyu 3, Y.Zheng 3+1reb+2ast, L.Jiamei 2+2reb
Shandong: L.Xin 17+2reb+4ast, J.Fang 16+13reb+4ast, Y.Jie 16+1reb+3ast, W.Shuo 14+1ast, B.Chante 8+5reb+2ast, L.Xuan 8+2reb

Beijing - Shenyang 97-88 OT

The most crucial game of the last round was a loss of top-ranked Shenyang Golden Lions (13-3) on the court of second ranked Beijing Great Wall on Tuesday night. Visitors were defeated by Beijing Great Wall in overtime 97-88. It ended at the same time the eight-game winning streak of Shenyang Golden Lions. It may be a crucial game in the contest for the top position in the league. The hosts trailed by 5 points at the halftime before their 23-16 charge in the third quarter, which allowed them to tie the game at the end of regular time. They were better in overtime eventually winning that period 18-9. Beijing Great Wall made 16-of-20 free shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Beijing Great Wall outrebounded Shenyang Golden Lions 38-27 including 26 on the defensive glass. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists. Worth to mention a great performance of American center Nicky Anosike (190-86, college: Tennessee) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 22 points and 20 rebounds. International forward Fan Zhang (188-84) contributed with 24 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. International guard LiJie Miao (180-81) replied with a double-double by scoring 28 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists and the former international power forward Liwei Song (190-85) added 18 points in the effort for Shenyang Golden Lions. Five Beijing Great Wall and four Shenyang Golden Lions players scored in double figures. Beijing Great Wall have a solid four-game winning streak. They maintain second position with 12-4 record behind leader Shenyang. Shenyang Golden Lions at the other side still keep top place with three games lost. Beijing Great Wall are looking forward to face Liaoning Hengye (#5) in Anshan in the next round. Shenyang Golden Lions will play at home against Shanghai Octopus (#4) and are hoping to win this game.
Top scorers:
Shenyang: M.LiJie 28+5reb+10ast, S.Liwei 18+2reb+1ast, Z.Han Lan 15+4reb+1ast, W.Xuejiao 12+3reb+3ast, S.Zhao 8+6reb+3ast, L.Dan 7+6reb
Beijing: Z.Fan 24+8reb+1ast, A.Nicky 22+20reb+2ast, K.Yeong-Ok 17+2reb+3ast, Z.Lin 16+3reb+6ast, Z.Yu 12+2reb+3ast, Z.Hui 2+1reb+3ast

Stats Leaders

Points Per Game

Camille LITTLE
  Shanghai
  (188-F/G-85)
  Avg: 28.5

1. Little, Shanghai	28.5
2. Ji, Heilongjiang	25.9
3. Miao, Shenyang	25.3
4. Camille, Shanghai	24.4
5. Taylor, Yunnan	24.0
6. Mattera, Zhejiang	23.7
7. Ji, Shandong	23.1
8. Bian, Zhejiang	21.0
9. Junaid, Heilongjia.	19.5
10. Cash, Guangdong	19.5

Rebounds Per Game

Katie MATTERA
  Zhejiang
  (202-C-82)
  Avg: 14.6

1. Mattera, Zhejiang	14.6
2. Junaid, Heilongjia.	12.8
3. Black, Shandong	12.5
4. Little, Shanghai	12.1
5. Ruili, Liaoning	11.1
6. Cash, Guangdong	10.9
7. Taylor, Yunnan	9.7
8. Jaeschke, Jiangsu	9.7
9. Anosike, Beijing	9.5
10. Camille, Shanghai	8.5

Assists Per Game

LiJie MIAO
  Shenyang
  (180-G-81)
  Avg: 5.6

1. Miao, Shenyang	5.6
2. Chen, Jiangsu	5.4
3. Bian, Zhejiang	5.2
4. Ji, Heilongjiang	4.4
5. Wang, Shanghai	3.8
6. Cash, Guangdong	3.5
7. Kim, Beijing	3.2
8. Ding, Guangdong	3.1
9. Little, Shanghai	3.0
10. Shuang, Shenyang	3.0

Steals Per Game

Zhao SHUANG
  Shenyang
  (188-F-90)
  Avg: 3.4

1. Shuang, Shenyang	3.4
2. Camille, Shanghai	2.9
3. Wang, Shanghai	2.9
4. Anosike, Beijing	2.7
5. Rosigi, Henan	2.4
6. Bian, Zhejiang	2.3
7. Miao, Shenyang	2.3
8. Liu, Yunnan	2.3
9. Zhang, Beijing	2.2
10. Li, Jiangsu	2.2

Blocks Per Game

Lindsay TAYLOR
  Yunnan
  (203-C-81)
  Avg: 2.6

1. Taylor, Yunnan	2.6
2. Ruili, Liaoning	2.4
3. Mattera, Zhejiang	1.6
4. Anosike, Beijing	1.6
5. Cash, Guangdong	1.5
6. Black, Shandong	1.4
7. Wei, Guangdong	1.3
8. Junaid, Heilongjia.	1.1
9. Jaeschke, Jiangsu	0.9
10. Camille, Shanghai	0.9

Standings - WCBA

WCBA Standings

1. Shenyang		13-3
2. Beijing		12-4
3. Jiangsu		11-5
4. Shanghai		10-6
5. Liaoning		10-6
6. Heilongjiang		9-7
7. Guangdong		9-7
8. Zhejiang		8-8
9. Yunnan		7-9
10. Shandong		3-13
11. Bayi		3-13
12. Henan		1-15

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HUNGARY - Women

Standings - Women

A Standings

1. UNIQA Eurol.		14-0
2. UNI SEAT		13-1
3. Pecs 2010		12-2
4. ZTE		10-4
5. Nanette FTC		10-4
6. Bajai NKK		7-7
7. DKSK		5-9
8. Vasas		4-10
9. Cegledi EKK		4-10
10. Atomeromu		3-11
11. BSE-FCSM		1-13
12. ELTE-BEAC		1-13

Stats Leaders - Women

Points Per Game

Maja SCEKIC
  Bajai NKK
  (170-G-87)
  Avg: 17.1

1. Scekic, Bajai NKK	17.1
2. Quigley, Pecs 2010	16.8
3. Hadzovic, DKSK	16.6
4. Murphy, Pecs 2010	16.3
5. Orban, Cegledi EKK	14.9
6. Skoric, DKSK	14.6
7. Teilane, Vasas	14.2
8. Rasheed, UNI S.	14.2
9. Cvetanovic, Atome.	14.1
10. Vida, Nanette FTC	12.8

Rebounds Per Game

Milica CVETANOVIC
  Atome.
  (195-C-86)
  Avg: 8.5

1. Cvetanovic, Atome.	8.5
2. Farkasinszki, DKSK	7.9
3. Krnjic, UNIQA E.	7.9
4. Murphy, Pecs 2010	7.9
5. Teilane, Vasas	7.9
6. Turoczi, Nanette	7.8
7. Nagy, UNI S.	7.8
8. Hollingswort., UNI	6.8
9. Quigley, Pecs 2010	6.4
10. Horvath, Pecs 20.	6.2

Assists Per Game

Iva CIGLAR
  UNI S.
  (170-G-85)
  Avg: 4.5

1. Ciglar, UNI S.	4.5
2. Cymmer, Cegledi	4.0
3. Fegyverneky, UNIQ.	3.8
4. Englert, Nanette	3.8
5. Nagy, UNI S.	3.6
6. Szlimak, Nanette	3.6
7. Torok, Pecs 2010	3.4
8. Medgyessy, Atome.	3.2
9. Rujak, Nanette FTC	3.2
10. Bukovszki, ZTE	3.2

Steals Per Game

Maja SCEKIC
  Bajai NKK
  (170-G-87)
  Avg: 4

1. Scekic, Bajai NKK	4.0
2. Csicsai, EL.	3.8
3. Theodoran, Bajai N.	3.6
4. Szabo, Bajai NKK	3.5
5. Cymmer, Cegledi	3.1
6. Pal, Vasas	3.1
7. Horvath, Pecs 2010	2.9
8. Teilane, Vasas	2.8
9. Ambrus, ZTE	2.7
10. Bukovszki, ZTE	2.7

Blocks Per Game

Anita TEILANE
  Vasas
  (196-C-85)
  Avg: 3.6

1. Teilane, Vasas	3.6
2. Bagi, BSE-.	1.1
3. Czukor, ZTE	0.9
4. Zavecz, UNIQA E.	0.9
5. Cvetanovic, Atome.	0.9
6. Fejes, Atomeromu	0.8
7. Fegyverneky, UNIQ.	0.7
8. Horvath, EL.	0.6
9. Licina, Atomeromu	0.6
10. Mansare, Vasas	0.6

*****************************************************

KENYA - Women

KPA Face Disciplinary Action - by Eurobasket News
Kenya Ports Authority's women's basketball team faces disciplinary action for boycotting the awards ceremony after losing their national league play-offs final to Eagle Wings at the Nyayo National Stadium last Sunday.

Kenya Basketball Federation first vice chairman, Henry Shihemi, and treasurer, Peter Orero, in separate statements also said that KPA women's coach Anthony Ojukwu could be disciplined for leading the players into boycotting the closing ceremony and engaging the referees in a verbal exchange during the tension-packed game three of the final.

Eagle Wings, a self-supporting team, won the decisive game 83-65 to reclaim the trophy they lost to KPA last year.

Ojukwu has also been reprimanded for stopping KPA first aider, Dina Chepyator, from attending to her own player, Brenda Angeshi, who was injured during the match.

'I have never seen anywhere in the world where a first aider is prevented from attending to any player who is injured during a match,' Agina Wasonga, a commissioner with the International Basketball Association (Fiba), said.

Team will forfeit trophy

According to Orero, the team will also forfeit this year's runners-up trophy, certificates and medals for boycotting the awards ceremony.

Orero said KPA team captain, Mwajuma Suleiman, was, however, later presented with a Sh20,000 cash award due to the ports women.

On Thursday, the Daily Nation could not reach Ojukwu for comment. But KPA's sports officer, Lennox Safari, who was the team's head of delegation during the game, said he was approached by Shihemi to ask the players to go for the awards ceremony and said he communicated the same to Ojukwu, who declined to lead the players to the ceremony.

'I then called KPA captain Suleiman and told her to convince her team mates to go for the ceremony because my role as head of the KPA delegation at that moment and was to direct the players and coach,' he said.

'But Mwajuma told me the coach had told the players not to go for the ceremony. I reported the same to my boss Jane Kamau (KPA's administrator in charge of sports).'

The winners in the men's and women's leagues were each awarded Sh50,000, while second-placed teams got Sh20,000 each.

KPA beat Eagle Wings in Mombasa 43-39 but lost Game Two in Nairobi 68-58 to tie the game 1-1, setting the stage for the decisive Game Three, which Eagle Wings won 83-65 to reclaim the trophy.
Courtesy of: Daily Nation

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MONTENEGRO - Women

Standings - Women League

Prve A ZCKL Standings

1. Buducnost		8-0
2. Roling Niksic		6-2
3. Rudar		6-2
4. Primorje		3-5
5. Lovcen		2-5
6. Kotor		2-6
7. Antivari Bar		0-7

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NCAA1 - Women

Baylor still No. 1 in AP women's basketball poll - by Eurobasket News
Baylor is still the unanimous choice as the No. 1 team in The Associated Press women's college basketball poll as the first five teams remained unchanged.

The Lady Bears received all 40 first-place votes Monday for the fourth straight week after blowing out McNeese State in its only game. UConn remains second, with Notre Dame, Stanford and Maryland following.

Kentucky, Tennessee, Duke, Ohio State and Texas A&M round out the Top 10. There was little movement in the poll as most teams had a light schedule for the holidays.

Miami had the biggest fall, dropping five places to No. 12 after a 25-point loss at then-No. 17 Georgetown on Wednesday. The Hoyas moved up two spots to 15th.

Courtesy of http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com

No. 11 OSU women outlast Washington State - by Eurobasket News
Samantha Prahalis (5'7''-G-90) overcame a slow start to spark a second-half run and No. 11 Ohio State surged to a 79-57 victory over Washington State on Thursday night.

Prahalis, averaging 17.8 points, had two in the first 20 minutes as the Buckeyes (13-0) clung to a 40-35 halftime lead. She had six points in the opening four minutes after the break then hit her second 3-pointer with 11:38 left to spark a 17-1 spurt that gave the Buckeyes a 70-45 lead.

Tayler Hill (5'10''-G-90) had 15 of her 21 points in the first half for the Buckeyes, while Prahalis finished with 20 points and 10 assists.

Carly Noyes (6'5''-C) scored 15 for the Cougars and Jazmine Perkins added 10.

The turning point came in the last 30 seconds of the first half, when Ohio State's Amber Stokes had four points and Maleeka Kynard made two free throws to turn a 35-34 deficit into a five-point advantage.

Courtesy of www.ktre.com

Moses, No. 20 Purdue women top IPFW 73-36 - by Eurobasket News
Courtney Moses (5'7''-G) scored 14 points to lead No. 20 Purdue to a 73-36 victory over IPFW on Thursday night.

Sam Ostarello (6'2''-G/F-91) added 13 points and eight rebounds, Brittany Rayburn (6'0''-G-90) had 11 points and four assists, and Antionette Howard added 10 points and nine rebounds for the Boilermakers (10-3) in their final nonconference game.

Stephanie Rosado (6'2''-F-89) scored nine points to lead IPFW (4-8).

The Mastodons shot 23 percent from the field and made just 5 of 23 3-pointers, while committing 22 turnovers.

Purdue shot 46 percent from the field and outrebounded IPFW 40-32.

The Boilermakers open Big Ten play on Dec. 30 at home against Minnesota.

Courtesy of www.kfvs12.com

Top 25 - Women

Top 25 Ranking

1. Baylor
2. Connecticut
3. Notre Dame
4. Stanford
5. Maryland
6. Kentucky
7. Tennessee
8. Duke
9. Ohio St.
10. Texas A&M
11. Rutgers
12. Miami, FL
13. Texas Tech
14. Louisville
15. Georgetown
16. Penn St.
17. Georgia
18. Wisc.-Green Bay
19. Delaware
20. Purdue
21. De Paul
22. Texas
23. Nebraska
24. N.Carolina
25. Vanderbilt

*****************************************************

SERBIA - Women

Vasic's double-double lands her Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
36-year old forward Snjezana Vasic (178-F-75) put on an amazing game in the last round for Celarevo and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 13.
She had a double-double of 36 points and 14 rebounds, while her team beat Proleter (#9, 4-9) 91-76. Celarevo maintains the 5th position in Serbian A League. Celarevo is a typical solid league team placed somewhere in the middle or a little bit lower in the standings. They need more victories to improve their 7-6 record. In the team's last game Vasic had a remarkable 77.8% from 2-point range and got five three-pointers out of 11 attempts. She has many years of experience at Celarevo, through which he has constantly improved. Vasic has impressive league stats. She is in league's top in assists (2nd best: 4.2apg) and averages solid 50.9% FGP.

Second best performed player last round was Marija Ilic (190-C-85, agency: Global Sports Plaza) of Student. She is a center in her 2nd season at Student. In the last game Ilic recorded impressive double-double of 26 points and 14 rebounds. Of course she lead Student to another comfortable win 67-52 over slightly higher-ranked Radnicki KG (6-7) being unquestionably team leader. Student's 7th position in the standings has not changed. Her team is not often considered as one of the league's best with a mere 6-7 record. Ilic is well-known at Student and she already established her position as one of the team's leaders. She belongs to the best scorers in the league with 17.2ppg (#7). She also registered 9.8 boards per game.

Third place about best performers goes to another Celarevo's star - forward Sonja Maric (185-F-85). Maric showcased her all-around game by recording 19 points, twenty one rebounds (!!!) and six assists in the last round. She was another key player of Celarevo, helping her team with a 91-76 easy win against the lower-ranked Proleter (#9, 4-9). Celarevo needs these victories very badly if they think about getting closer to top teams. Their record at this point is 7 victories and 6 lost games. Maric has a great season in Serbia. After 12 games, she made it on the list of the league's leaders in points with 21.1ppg (4th best) and rebounds with 10.0rpg (5th best).

Other top performing players last week:
4. Jovana Cica) of Beocin - 30 points and 11 rebounds
5. Tamara Ruzic (181-G-79) of Jagodina 2001 - 22 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists
6. Milica Beljanski (185-F-83) of Spartak - 24 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists
7. Marina Vasic (87) of Student - 24 points and 5 rebounds
8. Mirjana Velisavljevic (188-C-78) of Sabac - 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists
9. Ljubica Carkic (187-C-82) of Proleter - 23 points and 7 rebounds
10. Jelena Marinkov (185-C-90) of Proleter - 24 points and 10 rebounds

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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SPAIN - Women

Standings - LFB

LFB Standings

1. Ros Casares		11-0
2. Perfumerias		10-1
3. Rivas Ecopolis		8-3
4. Mariana		8-3
5. Girona		8-4
6. Mann Filter		7-4
7. Cadi la Seu		6-5
8. Gran Canaria		5-6
9. Burgos		4-7
10. Cajarural		4-7
11. Hondar.-Irun		2-9
12. Real C.Vigo		2-9
13. Navarra		2-10
14. Ibiza		1-10

Stats Leaders - LFB

Points Per Game

Astou TRAORE
  Mariana
  (182-F/C-81)
  Avg: 21.2

1. Traore, Mariana	21.2
2. Moss, Gran Canaria	20.5
3. Mosby, Cajarural	17.5
4. Ross, Cadi la Seu	17.5
5. Yacoubou-D., Ros	16.7
6. Murphy, Ros C.	16.6
7. Morrison, Burgos	16.5
8. Bonner, Perfumer.	16.3
9. Ferrari, Mariana	16.2
10. Vega, Girona	15.6

Rebounds Per Game

Angelica ROBINSON
  Girona
  (196-F-87)
  Avg: 12.6

1. Robinson, Girona	12.6
2. Morrison, Burgos	10.8
3. Ble, Gran Canaria	9.9
4. Lyttle, Ros Casar.	9.3
5. Dennett, Ibiza	8.5
6. De Souza, Perfumer.	8.4
7. Swords, Mariana	8.4
8. Yacoubou-D., Ros	8.3
9. Ndour, Gran Canaria	8.2
10. Vega, Girona	7.9

Assists Per Game

Laia PALAU
  Ros Casares
  (178-G-79)
  Avg: 5.5

1. Palau, Ros Casares	5.5
2. Infantes, Burgos	5.5
3. Ocete, Mariana	5.3
4. Ferrari, Mariana	4.3
5. Dominguez, Ros C.	4.1
6. Morales, Ibiza	3.7
7. Jordana, Girona	3.6
8. Ouvina, Mann Filter	3.3
9. Xargay Casad., Per.	3.3
10. Honti, Ros Casar.	3.1

Steals Per Game

Adrianne ROSS
  Cadi la Seu
  (173-G-84)
  Avg: 3

1. Ross, Cadi la Seu	3.0
2. Ouvina, Mann Filter	2.6
3. Scanlon, Ibiza	2.5
4. Murphy, Ros C.	2.2
5. Lyttle, Ros Casar.	2.1
6. Karklina, Cadi la	2.1
7. Cruz, Rivas Ecopol.	2.0
8. Parham, Cajarural	2.0
9. Garcia, Cajarural	1.8
10. Garcia, Cadi la S.	1.8

Blocks Per Game

Jacinta MONROE
  Mann F.
  (193-F/C-88)
  Avg: 1.8

1. Monroe, Mann F.	1.8
2. Spears, Mariana	1.4
3. De Souza, Perfumer.	1.3
4. Bonner, Perfumer.	1.0
5. Stevenson, Cadi l.	1.0
6. Swords, Mariana	0.9
7. Parham, Cajarural	0.8
8. Dennett, Navarra	0.8
9. Pirsic, Ibiza	0.8
10. Morrison, Burgos	0.8

Spanish LFB round 11 best performance: Astou Traore - by Eurobasket News
Senegalese power forward Astou Traore (182-F/C-81, agency: Josep and Nicolas) put on an extraordinary performance in the last round for Mariana, receiving a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 11.
The 30-year old player had a double-double of 29 points and 12 rebounds, while her team outclassed Navarra (#13, 2-10) with 27-point margin 100-73. Mariana is placed at 4th position in Spanish LFB. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Mariana will need more victories to improve their 8-3 record. Traore turned to be Mariana's top player in her first season with the team. Astou Traore has solid league stats. She is league's best scorer averaging so far 21.2ppg. Traore is in league's top in and averages impressive 53.8% FGP and 51.4% from behind 3-point line.

The second best player in last round's games was 29-year old Brazilian Erika De Souza (197-C-82, agency: Josep and Nicolas) of league's second-best Perfumerias. De Souza had a very good evening with a double-double of 24 points and 15 rebounds. It was enough for Perfumerias to edge the lower-ranked Girona (#5, 8-4) 79-73. Perfumerias' second position in the standings has not changed. Her team belongs to top of the standings with 10-1 record and is considered one of the main candidates for the league title. De Souza is a newcomer at Perfumerias, but is already one of team's top players.

Third on the list of top players last round was American forward Bernice Mosby (186-F-84) of Cajarural (#10). Mosby scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds. She was a key player of Cajarural, leading her team to a 87-54 easy win against slightly lower-ranked Hondar.-Irun (#11, 2-9). The chances of Cajarural not to end season at such low position in the league, however are less than slim as they have already lost 7 games, recording just four victories. With bigger assistance of his teammates, Mosby could try to bring Cajarural's a little bit higher in the standings. Mosby has individually a great season in Spain. After only 9 games, she made it on the list of the league's leaders in points with 16.6ppg (6th best).

Other top performing players last week:
4. Sancho Lyttle (192-C-83) of Ros Casares - 16 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists
5. Carolyn Swords (198-C-89) of Mariana - 22 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists
6. Anna Cruz (173-PG-86) of Rivas Ecopolis - 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists
7. Adrianne Ross (173-G-84) of Cadi la Seu - 19 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists
8. Ann Wauters (194-C-80) of Ros Casares - 16 points, 11 rebounds and 2 assists
9. Angelica Robinson (196-F-87) of Girona - 20 points and 12 rebounds
10. Aja Parham (183-G/F-84) of Cajarural - 21 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists

The Player of the week is choosen based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

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SWEDEN - Women

Key's double-double lands her Player of the Week award - by Eurobasket News
26-year old guard Ashley Key (177-G-85) put on an amazing game in the last round for Mark Basket and receives a Eurobasket.com Player of the Week award for round 13.
She had a double-double of 36 points and 12 rebounds, while her team edged out 08 (#6, 6-7) 71-70. Mark Basket maintains the 4th position in Swedish Damligan. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. Mark Basket will need more victories to improve their 9-4 record. In the team's last game Key had a remarkable 80.0% from 2-point range. She has many years of experience at Mark Basket, through which he has constantly improved. North Carolina State University graduate has very impressive stats this year. Key is league's best scorer averaging so far 23.5ppg. Key is in league's top in assists (2nd best: 5.3apg) and averages solid 4.6spg and 52.5% FGP.

Second best performed player last round was Christy Bacon (182-G/F-80) of Solna Vikings. She is American swingman in her 5th season at Solna Vikings. In the last game Bacon recorded impressive double-double of 16 points and 16 rebounds. Of course she lead Solna Vikings to another comfortable