LEB Gold Round 2: Leche Rio Breogan beat Palma by two after a very close game

There were only 2 rounds played so far and it's still very beginning of the Second Stage in LEB Gold. Here is the last round review presented by ESL.

Seventh-ranked Palma used its home court advantage to challenge Leche Rio Breogan in S'Arenal on Sunday. The visitors from Lugo managed to secure only two-point victory 76-74. However their fans expected much easier game. Leche Rio Breogan looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. Danish center Kevin Larsen (207-93, college: GWU) orchestrated the victory by scoring 21 points and 5 rebounds. Power forward Ivan Cruz Uceda (208-91, college: Miami, FL) contributed with 10 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. American guard Ronnie Harrell (201-96, college: Denver) replied with 19 points and 8 rebounds for Palma. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Leche Rio Breogan are looking forward to face HLA Alicante at home in the next round where they are favorite. Palma will play against Palencia and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Very important is a road loss of Leyma Basquet against HLA Alicante on Friday night. Visiting Leyma Basquet was crushed by HLA Alicante in Alicante 85-60. American point guard Justin Pitts (178-94, college: NW Missouri St.) scored 17 points to lead the charge for the winners and Alejandro Galan chipped in 12 points and 9 rebounds (was perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line) during the contest. Congolese forward Romaric Belemene (206-97) responded with 11 points and 5 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. HLA Alicante will play against Leche Rio Breogan in Lugo in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Leyma Basquet will play at home against Almansa and hopes to get back on the winning track.
A very close game took place in Almansa between Oviedo and Almansa. Oviedo got a very close victory on the road over Almansa. Oviedo managed to escape with a 1-point win 84-83 on Saturday evening. Alonso Meana notched 20 points (perfect from the field making all six shots) to lead the effort. Even 20 points by Filip Djuran did not help to save the game for Almansa. Both coaches tested many bench players in such tough game. Oviedo will meet at home Castello in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Almansa will play against Leyma Basquet in Coruna and hope to win that game.
Worth to mention about the upset in a game between Ourense and Real Murcia , which took place in Murcia. Ourense lost to Real Murcia in a road game 69-81. The best player for the winners was Juan Rubio who scored 15 points and 8 rebounds. Ourense's coach Gonzalo Garcia rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Real Murcia's next round opponent will be Melilla at home and are hoping to win another game. Ourense will play against Huesca and hope to win that game.

There were no big surprises in other games of round 2: Valladolid was beaten by Castello on the road 87-79. Granada won against Palencia on its own court 77-59. Melilla managed to outperform Real Canoe in a road game 79-70. Girona rolled over Burgos at home 93-73.
The most impressive performance of 2nd round was 15 points and 10 rebounds by Serigne Barro of Burgos.

Palma - Breogan 74-76

Seventh-ranked Palma used its home court advantage to challenge Leche Rio Breogan in S'Arenal on Sunday. The visitors from Lugo managed to secure only two-point victory 76-74. However their fans expected much easier game. Leche Rio Breogan looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. Danish center Kevin Larsen (207-93, college: GWU) orchestrated the victory by scoring 21 points and 5 rebounds. Power forward Ivan Cruz Uceda (208-91, college: Miami, FL) contributed with 10 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. American guard Ronnie Harrell (201-96, college: Denver) replied with 19 points and 8 rebounds and forward Jacobo Diaz (206-96, college: IUP) added 17 points in the effort for Palma. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Leche Rio Breogan are looking forward to face HLA Alicante at home in the next round where they are favorite. Palma will play against Palencia and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Breogan: K.Larsen 21+5reb+3ast, S.Quintela 13+1reb+5ast, M.Kacinas 11+7reb+2ast, I.Cruz Uceda 10+8reb+3ast, M.Soluade 8+1reb+3ast, A.Sollazzo 6
Palma: R.Harrell 19+8reb, J.Diaz 17+4reb+1ast, K.Kullamaee 13+1reb+1ast, P.Figueras 10+1reb+7ast, S.McDonnell 8+5reb+2ast, K.Jawara 4+1reb+1ast

Alicante - Coruna 85-60

Very important is a road loss of Leyma Basquet against HLA Alicante on Friday night. Visiting Leyma Basquet was crushed by HLA Alicante in Alicante 85-60. They made 21-of-25 charity shots (84.0 percent) during the game. Leyma Basquet was plagued by 24 personal fouls down the stretch. American point guard Justin Pitts (178-94, college: NW Missouri St.) scored 17 points to lead the charge for the winners and forward Alejandro Galan (207-99) chipped in 12 points and 9 rebounds (was perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line) during the contest. Five HLA Alicante players scored in double figures. Congolese forward Romaric Belemene (206-97) responded with 11 points and 5 rebounds and Nigerian-American power forward Lotanna Nwogbo (203-93, college: Longwood) scored 12 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. HLA Alicante will play against Leche Rio Breogan in Lugo in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Leyma Basquet will play at home against Almansa and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Top scorers:
Alicante: J.Pitts 17+3reb+3ast, J.Zohore 13+4reb, A.Galan 12+9reb+1ast, N.Allen 11+3reb+1ast, T.Urtasun 10+2reb+5ast, S.Gjuroski 9+1reb+1ast
Coruna: L.Nwogbo 12+2reb+2ast, R.Belemene 11+5reb+2ast, R.Jakstas 9+2reb+1ast, J.Vega 7+3reb+1ast, D.Pena 6+2ast, O.Matulionis 5+4reb+3ast

Almansa - Oviedo 83-84

A very close game took place in Almansa between Oviedo and Almansa. Oviedo got a very close victory on the road over Almansa. Oviedo managed to escape with a 1-point win 84-83 on Saturday evening. Point guard Alonso Meana (180-0, college: UIS) notched 20 points (perfect from the field making all six shots) to lead the effort and American guard Elijah Brown (193-95, college: Oregon) supported him with 18 points. Even 20 points by Serbian guard Filip Djuran (195-91, agency: Dynamics Global Management) did not help to save the game for Almansa. Serbian Nikola Cvetinovic (203-88, college: Akron) added 16 points and 5 rebounds for the hosts. Four Almansa players scored in double figures. Both coaches tested many bench players in such tough game. Oviedo will meet at home Castello in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Almansa will play against Leyma Basquet in Coruna and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Oviedo: A.Meana 20, E.Brown 18+1reb, M.Norelia 9+8reb, P.Ferreiro 7+1reb+1ast, O.Arteaga 7+4reb+2ast, C.Oluyitan 6
Almansa: F.Djuran 20+3reb+2ast, N.Cvetinovic 16+5reb+1ast, B.Harris 11+2reb+8ast, J.Nogues 10+2reb+1ast, C.Bivia 6+3reb+3ast, J.Gonzalez 5+2ast

Castello - Valladolid 87-79

No shocking result in a game when Castello beat Valladolid in Castellon 87-79. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 25 assists. The best player for the winners was guard Eduardo Duran (190-91) who scored 21 points. Dutch forward Kai Edwards (206-97, college: N.Colorado) chipped in 13 points and 9 rebounds. Four Castello players scored in double figures. Dutch forward Joey van Zegeren (208-90, college: Northwestern, agency: Duran International) produced 12 points and 9 rebounds and American point guard Reed Timmer (185-95, college: Drake) added 12 points and 8 assists respectively for the guests. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Castello's next round opponent will be Oviedo on the road. Valladolid will play against Granada and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Castello: E.Duran 21+4reb+3ast, K.Edwards 13+9reb+2ast, J.Jose Garcia 12+4reb+1ast, A.Adala Moto 10+3reb, O.Alvarado 10+1reb+9ast, J.Faner 9+3reb+5ast
Valladolid: J.Melwin Pantzar 12+1reb+2ast, R.Timmer 12+2reb+8ast, J.van Zegeren 12+9reb+1ast, A.Mason 10+1reb+3ast, S.De La Fuente 9+5reb+3ast, N.Martin 7+5reb+3ast

Granada - Palencia 77-59

Very expected game when Palencia lost on the road to Granada 77-59. The best player for the winners was American-Liberian swingman Thomas Bropleh (196-91, college: Boise St., agency: Duran International) who scored 21 points (was perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line). Point guard Lluis Costa (187-93) chipped in 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Serbian-Portuguese center Sasa Borovnjak (206-89, college: Penn St., agency: 011 Sports) produced 13 points and 5 rebounds and Argentinian-Italian point guard Nicolas Richotti (183-86) added 13 points respectively for the guests. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Granada's next round opponent will be Valladolid on the road where they are favorite. Palencia will play against Palma and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Granada: T.Bropleh 21+4reb+3ast, C.Diaz 15+3reb+1ast, L.Costa 10+7reb+4ast, D.Iriarte 8+1reb, A.Murphy 7+4reb+2ast, B.Fall 7+4reb
Palencia: N.Richotti 13+3reb+2ast, S.Borovnjak 13+5reb+1ast, L.Massarelli 10+1reb+2ast, P.Purifoy 9+4reb, L.Cugini 5+2reb, D.Rodriguez 5+2reb+3ast

Real Murcia - Ourense 81-69

Worth to mention about the upset in a game between Ourense and Real Murcia , which took place in Murcia. Ourense lost to Real Murcia in a road game 69-81. The best player for the winners was forward Juan Rubio (196-95) who scored 15 points and 8 rebounds. Nigerian forward Jeffrey Solarin (193-92, college: Idaho St.) chipped in 13 points and 8 rebounds. Four Real Murcia players scored in double figures. Serbian guard Djordje Dimitrijevic (188-97, college: Mercer) produced 15 points and Armenian-American guard Andre Spight (191-95, college: N.Colorado, agency: Pensack Sports) added 13 points respectively for the guests. Ourense's coach Gonzalo Garcia rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Real Murcia's next round opponent will be Melilla at home and are hoping to win another game. Ourense will play against Huesca and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Real Murcia: J.Rubio 15+8reb+3ast, S.Gavrilovic 13+2reb+1ast, J.Solarin 13+8reb, C.Robinson 12+4reb, J.Martin 12+3reb, A.Norris 9+1ast
Ourense: D.Dimitrijevic 15+1ast, A.Spight 13+2reb+1ast, A.Joseph 8+6reb, D.Navarro 7+4reb, M.Uriz 6+2reb+2ast, A.Henriquez 5+3reb

Real Canoe - Melilla 70-79

Rather predictable result when Melilla won against Real Canoe in Madrid 79-70. They outrebounded Real Canoe 39-27 including 24 on the defensive glass. The best player for the winners was Latvian guard Andris Misters (194-92, college: Jacksonville) who scored 30 points. Naturalized Bosnian Nedim Djedovic (205-97, agency: BeoBasket) chipped in 9 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Melilla's coach Alejandro Alcoba allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. Center Jose Maria Gil (207-91, agency: Dynamics Global Management) produced 23 points and 6 rebounds and Icelandic point guard Sigtryggur Bjornsson (181-93, college: St.Mary's, agency: Duran International) added 12 points and 6 assists respectively for the hosts. Melilla's next round opponent will be Girona at home and it may be quite challenging game. Real Canoe will play against Caceres Basket and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Melilla: A.Misters 30+3reb+3ast, N.Sikiras 9+7reb, N.Djedovic 9+8reb+5ast, F.Toncinic 8+2reb+1ast, F.Ucles 8+9reb+3ast, A.Wintering 4+1reb+4ast
Real Canoe: J.Maria Gil 23+6reb+3ast, K.Bercy 13+4reb+2ast, S.Bjornsson 12+2reb+6ast, A.Martinez 8+6reb, D.de la Rua 5+3reb+4ast, B.Ogalue 4+1reb+1ast

Girona - Burgos 93-73

Not a big story in a game when Burgos was outscored on the road by Girona 93-73. The best player for the winners was Latvian center Davis Rozitis (215-90, college: Hawaii) who scored 18 points and 5 rebounds (perfect from the field making all nine shots !!!). Swingman Josep Busquets (202-99) chipped in 17 points. Rozitis is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Four Girona players scored in double figures. Senegalese center Serigne Barro (208-95) produced a double-double by scoring 15 points and 10 rebounds and point guard Ayoze Alonso (187-91) added 16 points respectively for the guests. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Girona's next round opponent will be Melilla on the road. Burgos will play against Basquet and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Girona: D.Rozitis 18+5reb+1ast, J.Busquets 17+4reb, O.Schaftenaar 12+3reb, P.Barral 10+4reb+6ast, C.Robert 10+3reb+1ast, K.Jonsson 8+3reb+1ast
Burgos: A.Alonso 16+3reb+1ast, S.Barro 15+10reb, A.Ruiz 13+1reb+1ast, M.Hall 7+6reb, R.Nicholas 5+2reb, B.Starr 5+1reb+2ast