Polkowice Send Gala Packing

Nnemkadi Ogwumike was instrumental for CCC Polkowice, with a 21-point, 12-rebound double-double

Turning Point: Galatasaray looked to have taken the initiative in the closing minutes but as CCC Polkowice began to wobble, Magdalena Leciejewska came up with two huge plays, hitting a tough jump shot and then hustled an offensive rebound on the weak side to draw the foul. It was the only shot she made all night.

Game Heroes: Nnemkadi Ogwumike had a big game and claimed a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds whilst Laia Palau showed her veteran leadership with 10 assists and seven rebounds.

Stats Don't Lie: Galatasaray showed why they are the worst three-point shooting team in EuroLeague Women with another shocking perimeter display, only managing to make one-of-14 from long-range.

CCC Polkowice dug out a historic first victory at the EuroLeague Women Final Eight with a 58-51 success to extinguish Galatasary and set up a winner-takes-all showdown with Good Angels Kosice for a place in the semi-finals.

The third meeting between both clubs this season followed a familiar pattern, a defensively dominated duel which wasn't decided until crunch time.

Galatasaray held the upper hand early, but a shocking 27-9 second quarter punished them as they missed the chance to make the last four, leaving head coach Ekrem Memnun downbeat.

He said, "It is not the end of the world, but this has been a very bad tournament for us.

"We haven't played good basketball and we especially haven't played good defence, so it is difficult for me to say anything more about our performances."

Leading 19-10 after the first quarter, it had looked like Galatasaray might be able to push on, but back to back threes by Belinda Snell and a beautiful assist by Palau for Ogwumike, helped CCC Polkowice to post a stunning 19-2 run.

It meant that by half-time, the Polish club had turned the game on its' head and were 37-28 in front, although they began to struggle after the re-start, with no points in a five minute spell.

Another three-pointer from Snell brought some relief - as did Gala subsequently managing only one more basket during the next five minutes and even that was a buzzer beater inside by Sylvia Fowles.

It meant Gala still trailed by nine points at 44-35 by the end of third quarter, but they initiated a 12-6 scoring burst to make it a one-shot game with less than four minutes to set up a dramatic finale.

As Polkowice began to wonder if they might be victim of a sucker-punch, Leciejewska came up with her two huge plays, before Valeriya Musina and Snell made the free-throws needed to help grab a precious win.

The news was also welcomed by local fans with UMMC Ekaterinburg now guaranteed to move into the next round as the top qualifiers from their group.