KK Zagreb have one foot in the group stages of the EuroCup following their comprehensive defeat of BCM Gravelines in the first leg of their Elimination Round 2 qualifier.

The Croatians had a balanced attack, with guard Krunoslav Simon (17 points) and giant center Ante Tomic (16 points) leading the way.

Jurica Ruzic, Nikola Garma and Jakov Vladovic also got into double figures as the hosts built up a strong lead in the second quarter and never looked back.

American forwards Vincent Grier (16 points) and Joe Bunn (15 points) were the only players to show up for France's BCM, who will need a massive performance in next week's second leg in Dunkerque to turn the tie around.

A seven-point run put the Croats 19-12 ahead in the first quarter, and a three-pointer near the buzzer by Simon gave them a six-point lead (22-16) going into the second period.

The hosts pulled away further in those 10 minutes, with Garma's jumper and three-point play in the last 60 seconds making it 44-27 at half-time.

Zagreb established a 19-point cushion on three occasions in the third quarter and despite the best efforts of Bunn and Grier, BCM were being overrun.

By that stage, the Americans had scored 31 points between them but none of their team-mates had poured in more than five points.

The visitors went into the final period 65-47 down and saw a couple of early three-pointers by forward Stephen Brun move them to within 14 points (67-53).

But KK flexed their muscles late on, Ruzic - who finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds - becoming the tormentor-in-chief as they built a 23-point winning margin.

Simon's two late lay-ups were the final nails in BCM's coffin.