Eurobasket A started better and controlled the first half for long stretches. Coach Roberto Schiano's team opened 5-0, then moved to 16-9 before closing the first quarter 16-11. Early scoring came from Miguel Alonso (EURA), who had the first 3 points, and Valentin Mitov (EURA), while Michele Simonato (EURA) gave stability around the basket. Eurobasket's biggest lead came in the second quarter at 24-16.
Eur. Investment Bank A stayed close through Miguel Llevenes (EIBA) and Drini Manjani (EIBA). After trailing 32-29 at halftime, EIBA changed the game in the third quarter. They opened the half with a 7-0 run to go ahead 36-32, and later pushed from 38-36 to 44-38 with another 8 unanswered points. That 15-6 quarter was the turning point.
The fourth quarter stayed close. Eurobasket came back from 38-44 to 46-46, mainly through Simonato and Giovanni Carandente (EURA). In a close game, EIBA were the winners because they answered every comeback: Tudor Maldarescu's three-pointer made it 49-46, then Llevenes and Rezvan-Alexandru Purice (EIBA) were decisive in the final minutes. EIBA's highest lead reached 72-62.
Llevenes led all scorers with 26 points and had several key late baskets. Manjani added 20 and helped fuel the third-quarter swing despite heavy foul trouble. Lan Horvat Kovac (EIBA) contributed 10, including important second- and third-quarter shooting. For Eurobasket, Simonato scored 20, Mitov added 15, and Maillet finished with 11. Panagos also gave useful late scoring from the line.
(AI generated)