Krasnye Krylia Turn Back Amsterdam Comeback

Krasnye Krylia got on top of Amsterdam in the second quarter and stayed in front the rest of the way in a 78-69 EuroChallenge victory in the Netherlands.

The Russian club improved to 2-0 while their Dutch opponents dropped to 0-2.

With the game knotted at 17-17, Valdas Vasylius had a three-point play for the visitors to spark a 13-0 run that put them in front to stay although the Dutch club refused to go away.

They closed the gap to 50-48 late in the third quarter on a basket from Peter Mulligan.

With Krasnye Krylia trying to hold on, Amsterdam kept the pressure up in the fourth and pulled to within 73-69 with 56 seconds to play after a lay-up by Alton Mason.

Amsterdam were behind 74-69 just 41 seconds from the end when Mason was fouled while attempting a three-pointer.

He missed each of his free-throw attempts and Krasnye Krylia rebounded to kill the Dutch threat.

Andrey Trushkin finished with 16 points, five rebounds and four assists for the winners with Ralph Biggs pouring in 14 points and hauling in eight boards.

Amsterdam got 16 points from Mason while Sergio de Randamie contributed 14 points and seven boards.

Quotes Amsterdam vs. Krasnye Krylia

Andrey Ivanov, Krasne Krylia player:
"We played with a high level of concentration tonight which was needed to grab the important victory. We know that if we want to qualify for the next round it is important to at least win one away game."

Sergey Zozulin, Krasne Krylia head coach:
"We knew that Amsterdam won against Dynamo Moscow earlier this season which showed that they are a dangerous team to play against. So I am happy with the win and we are looking forward to the next game against Scavolino."

Ferry Steenmetz, Amsterdam head coach:
"Our game plan was to shut down the dangerous backcourt (Flores and Bremer), Flores was not even on the sheet which helped us. We did not allowe Bremer to score a three point shot. Unfortunately we did not manage to contain the other players from making three point shots due to a bad rotation in our defense. Samara is a good team, we played well."

Peter Mulligan, Amsterdam player:
"We played with a high intensity and especially the second half our play showed that we can play on a high level with team basketball. Unfortunately it was not enough for the win although it was close till the end. All in all it was a positive game that will give a boost to our confidence."

Mohamed Kherrazi, Amsterdam player:
"I was not happy with the way we started this game. I feel like we could have been more aware of the importance of this match. In the course of the game we stepped up which was positive."