Wonder girls win FIBA EuroCup
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 11, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Galatasaray made history this week when it became the first Turkish women’s team to clinch a European basketball trophy as it nabbed the FIBA EuroCup Women championship on Thursday night.
The Lions overcame a big first-leg deficit to beat the Italian side, Cras Basket Taranto, in an overtime thriller. After losing the first-leg game by 12 points last week, Galatasaray made perfect use of playing the deciding game on its home court, Ayhan Şahenk Sports Hall, and prevailed 82-61.
The comeback was reminiscent of the semifinal, when Galatasaray hit back from a 14-point first-leg deficit to achieve victory over Dynamo Kursk.
Sophia Young netted a game-high 27 points for Galatasaray, while Seimone Augustus scored 23 points.
Two free throws by Marina Kress with 34 seconds to go made the score 69-57 for Galatasaray, which went on to outscore the Italians 13-4 in front of a sold-out crowd.
The team’s star point guard, Işıl Alben, thanked fans for their unending support throughout the game. "They never stopped cheering for us, even when the score was too close. We believed in the victory, and they believed in us," Alben told the NTV channel. "But we already knew that we would never let this trophy fall out of our hands, once it came to this hall."
This is the second time that a Turkish basketball club has won a European title, following Efes Pilsen’s Korac Cup victory in 1996. The following year, Bursa side TOFAŞ came close to repeating the feat, but lost the trophy in the final. Galatasaray coach Okan Çevik was at TOFAŞ then.
"I told my players about that game, and that I still say, ’I wishÉ’ about that day," he said. "I told them to give everything they have on the court in order to avoid ’if onlys’ and ’I wishes.’"
"Trophies like that are not won easily, but Galatasaray knows what it’s like to be a European champion," added Çevik, referring to the football team’s UEFA Cup victory in 2000. "I am proud to win a European trophy for this community, which I have been a part of since I was 12."
Center Yasemin Horasan said the team should concentrate on the Teknosa Turkish Cup’s final eight games in Kayseri, starting Monday.
"We started out saying we want two trophies in five days," she said. "Of course the EuroCup was something great, but we have the Turkish Cup ahead, and that is a new target for us."
The comeback was reminiscent of the semifinal, when Galatasaray hit back from a 14-point first-leg deficit to achieve victory over Dynamo Kursk.
Sophia Young netted a game-high 27 points for Galatasaray, while Seimone Augustus scored 23 points.
Two free throws by Marina Kress with 34 seconds to go made the score 69-57 for Galatasaray, which went on to outscore the Italians 13-4 in front of a sold-out crowd.
The team’s star point guard, Işıl Alben, thanked fans for their unending support throughout the game. "They never stopped cheering for us, even when the score was too close. We believed in the victory, and they believed in us," Alben told the NTV channel. "But we already knew that we would never let this trophy fall out of our hands, once it came to this hall."
This is the second time that a Turkish basketball club has won a European title, following Efes Pilsen’s Korac Cup victory in 1996. The following year, Bursa side TOFAŞ came close to repeating the feat, but lost the trophy in the final. Galatasaray coach Okan Çevik was at TOFAŞ then.
"I told my players about that game, and that I still say, ’I wishÉ’ about that day," he said. "I told them to give everything they have on the court in order to avoid ’if onlys’ and ’I wishes.’"
"Trophies like that are not won easily, but Galatasaray knows what it’s like to be a European champion," added Çevik, referring to the football team’s UEFA Cup victory in 2000. "I am proud to win a European trophy for this community, which I have been a part of since I was 12."
Center Yasemin Horasan said the team should concentrate on the Teknosa Turkish Cup’s final eight games in Kayseri, starting Monday.
"We started out saying we want two trophies in five days," she said. "Of course the EuroCup was something great, but we have the Turkish Cup ahead, and that is a new target for us."