Beşiktaş routs Efes to get closer to title

ISTANBUL

Beşiktaş Milangaz players salute their fans after crushing Anadolu Efes 81-55 in one of the most lopsided wins of the Turkish Basketball League final series history. AA photo

Beşiktaş Milangaz is now just one win away from its first basketball league title in more than three decades.

The Black Eagles took a 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven Beko Turkish Basketball League (TBL) series against Anadolu Efes and will win the national title if it manages to win game five tomorrow.

Although the series is not over, Beşiktaş Milangaz has reason to be confident with its performance throughout the series, especially in game four. On June 5, Beşiktaş Milangaz crushed Anadolu Efes 81-55 in one of the most lopsided wins of TBL final series history.

David Hawkins produced 23 points, seven assists and five rebounds to lead Beşiktaş Milangaz, while Puerto Rican point guard Carlos Arroyo was the second highest scorer for the Black Eagles, adding 13 points to the rout.

Erwin Dudley and Pops Mensah-Bonsu each scored 12 points, adding 19 rebounds combined to create a powerful presence in the paint.

A hapless Anadolu Efes scored 12 points from Turkish forward Kerem Gönlüm and 10 points from Sasha Vujacic.

Coach Ergin Ataman underlined the importance of the team’s defensive performance in the demolition job.

“We pushed the tempo up from the first minute on,” said Ataman, who was at the Efes helm when the team last won the league in 2009. “[Beşiktaş guard] Mehmet Yağmur pressed their guards and Efes’ offense went into a deadlock. They were forced into difficult shots and a number of 24 second shotclock violations,” he said. “We were very good today, we played intelligently … But we still have one match to win,” he added.