Last 16, Game 1 MVP: Preston Shumpert, Besiktas Cola Turka
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An outstanding shooting night in the most balanced series of a new round made Preston Shumpert of Besiktas JK Colaturka the MVP for the Last 16's first leg. After wrestling host Red Star to an 80-80 tie in Belgrade, Serbia, if Besiktas has any advantage going into the return leg in Istanbul on March 18, it has Shumpert to thank. He was unstoppable against Red Star, pouring in 32 points on 9-for-12 two-point, 2-for-4 three-point and 8-for-10 free-throw shooting. He added 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 7 fouls drawn to amass a performance index rating of 35, more than any other player in the first-leg games of eight Last 16 series. He had plenty of competition. Chris Owens of Galatasaray Cafe Crown also had a monster individual performance in his team's 99-74 home win against Kalise Gran Canaria. His 27 points on 11-for-16 two-point, 1-for-1 three-point and 2-for-2 free-throw shooting, plus 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 5 fouls drawn, gave Owens a 34 index rating. Right behind came Victor Sada of Akasvayu Girona, whose 13 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 8 fouls drawn were good for a 33 index rating and helped his team grab a 71-80 road win against Hemofarm. His teammate, Marc Gasol, followed with a 30 index rating, while Rawle Marshall of Hemofarm and Darjus Lavrinovic of Unics, each with a 29 index rating, completed the top individual performances of the week.
Individual highs: Robertas Javtokas, Dynamo Moscow, 12 rebounds
Shumpert not only earned Last 16 first-leg MVP honors, but was also the week’s top scorer with 32 points. Robertas Javtokas of Dynamo Moscow pulled down 12 rebounds in his team's road win against Lukoil Academic. Sada dished 7 assists, more than anyone this week. Ricky Rubio of DKV Joventut collected 4 steals to lead everyone in that category. Dragisa Drobnjak of PGE Turow and Darjus Lavrinovic of Unics Kazan each had 3 blocks. Javtokas, with 13 points and 12 rebounds, and Jere Macura of Zadar, with 12 and 11, respectively, were the only players to register double-doubles this week.
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Wednesday, March 12, 2008
ULEBCup.com
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