Cajasol Seville won a hard game (89-81) against Kalise Gran Canaria and keep options to be next year again in ACB. Thanks to a great second half, in which local team scored 52 points, and mainly to the scoring show by Clay Tucker, sevillian team is now two games away from dangerous places.
Clay Tucker changed this team. He's right now virtually unstoppable, and proved to be the best scorer in years playing here in Seville. Alongside with him, Xavi Rey and Nick Caner-Medley give a strengh to the team that they didn't have in the first half of the season. Now the team has a good inside game, and Branko Milisavljevic makes all this work very well.
The team spent almost all the game in a 2-3 zonal defense. It's becoming one of the marks of Cajasol. Constant helps from one player to another, and run always they can. Xavi Rey, although is right now a little bit irregular, is a force inside the zone, specially when it's about intimidate rivals. He's tall, strong, long arms, and has a good timing to block shoots.
This time, Tucker didn't started as well as he should. The main reason? Maybe he was defending the wrong player, Carl English. Nobody can't defend the best scorer of the rival, and at the same time score most of the points of his team. He finishes exhausted. So when Ty Ellis tried to defend English, and he did it pretty well, Clay started to score, and the team started to work, as it proves 52 points in last 20 minutes.
Cajasol improved his 3-point percenteages, and keep defensive rebound safe away from Augustine, Freeland and Savané. It was crucial for the victory. And the moment of the game: a splendid dunk by Caner-Medley, which made all the arena stand up.
Anyway, Gran Canaria is playing a great season. It's one of the best teams in ACB league, and the play like a real team. It's one of the strange cases one player by player, they don't look quite impressive, but together they're hard to beat. This time Cajasol was better than them, just like that. Norris comitted fouls too fast, and he never felt confortable in the game. In different phases, Fisher and Moran tried to win the game, but Cajasol is really solid lately this season, and it seems they can keep the spot in ACB for the next season.
89 – Cajasol (19+18+23+29): Miso (5), Ellis (11), Tucker (23), Caner-Medley (19), Triguero (-) -starting five-, Rey (8), Milisavljevic (13), Savanovic (10) and Ignerski (-)
81 – Kalise Gran Canaria (19+23+17+22): Norris (4), English (13), Sanders (11), Savané (7), Augustine (7) -starting five-, Freeland (12), Moran (10), Mario Fernández (3), Kickert (5) and Fisher (9)
