Rivas Ecopolis Edge Bourges

Rivas Ecopolis won a thriller at home over Bourges Basket in their Round 2 opener on Tuesday night.

Asjha Jones had 16 points, including four late free-throws, as the Spanish club prevailed 65-59.

In a tight game from start to finish, Bourges got a jumper from Jennifer Digbeu and a three-ball from Catherine Joens to knot the contest at 59-59 with 18 seconds to go.

Rivas called a timeout and when play resumed, Elisa Aguilar drew a foul from Emmeline Ndongue and sank two free-throws.

Bourges coach Valerie Garnier then decided to call a timeout and got the ball to Digbeu but her lay-up stayed out and Jones rebounded before being fouled by Ndongue.

Jones sank two free-throws to push the Rivas lead to 63-59.

Celine Dumerc attempted a long-range shot for Bourges and Jones drew another foul and sank both free-throws for the 65-59 final.

Rivas were sensational at the line, sinking 19 of 21 on the night.

Amaya Valdemoro, playing for the first time since suffering two wrist fractures, had 14 points on three of six shooting.

She was a perfect seven of seven at the line.

Bourges were led by Stella Kaltsidou's game-high 17 points.

Quotes Rivas Ecopolis vs. Bourges Basket

Bourges Basket Head Coach Valerie Garnier
"We did a good job in the first half stopping Asjha Jones from scoring, but lost our aggressiveness in the second half, you can see that by the fact that we shot ten free throws while Rivas shot 21. They grabbed many rebounds, and we were losing our aggressiveness. We tried to win, as we are going to do the same in Friday's game, but obviously you cannot see the future."

Rivas Ecópolis Head Coach Miguel Méndez
"We're so happy about winning such a great team, especially after all the problems we've had to face this season so far. We understood that this game was about fighting, going after any ball, playing with intensity until the end, and that's what we did. We played great defence in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter. Amaya did a great job, we all know she's capable of playing like this just after coming back, but it's also been a great team effort, we wouldn't have gone anywhere without the defence or Cruz, the intangibles of Nicholls, the leadership of Elisa, etc. Now we're facing a really tough challenge playing in Bourges."

Bourges Basket player Cathy Joens
"Anna Cruz is a big defender, that's what she does and she does it great. But this is a team sport, you cannot take one single duel for the whole thing. We let them score many points in the end. Playing at your home court is also a big help, and we have 3,000 fans coming to our games on a regular basis, so we hope to make the best out of it in the second game, I'm sure we're coming back to Rivas next week."

Rivas Ecópolis player Anna Cruz
"It was all about defending the right way, we know they're tougher physically speaking, so we had to step up on intensity. We played better in the second half, and dreaming of advancing to the Final Eight, that would be such a great thing for us."

Quotes Rivas Ecopolis vs. Bourges Basket

Bourges Basket Head Coach Valerie Garnier
"We did a good job in the first half stopping Asjha Jones from scoring, but lost our aggressiveness in the second half, you can see that by the fact that we shot ten free throws while Rivas shot 21. They grabbed many rebounds, and we were losing our aggressiveness. We tried to win, as we are going to do the same in Friday's game, but obviously you cannot see the future."

Rivas Ecópolis Head Coach Miguel Méndez
"We're so happy about winning such a great team, especially after all the problems we've had to face this season so far. We understood that this game was about fighting, going after any ball, playing with intensity until the end, and that's what we did. We played great defence in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter. Amaya did a great job, we all know she's capable of playing like this just after coming back, but it's also been a great team effort, we wouldn't have gone anywhere without the defence or Cruz, the intangibles of Nicholls, the leadership of Elisa, etc. Now we're facing a really tough challenge playing in Bourges."

Bourges Basket player Cathy Joens
"Anna Cruz is a big defender, that's what she does and she does it great. But this is a team sport, you cannot take one single duel for the whole thing. We let them score many points in the end. Playing at your home court is also a big help, and we have 3,000 fans coming to our games on a regular basis, so we hope to make the best out of it in the second game, I'm sure we're coming back to Rivas next week."

Rivas Ecópolis player Anna Cruz
"It was all about defending the right way, we know they're tougher physically speaking, so we had to step up on intensity. We played better in the second half, and dreaming of advancing to the Final Eight, that would be such a great thing for us."