It was the second and final clash of the season between Bahamian professional basketball players Dwight Coleby and Zane Knowles as they battled in the Turkish Basketball League (TBL) on Monday. It was Coleby and his team, Merkezefendi Belediyesi Denizli Basket (18-8), who came out victorious, sweeping the season series. They secured an 85-81 road victory over Knowles and Balikesir Büyükşehir Belediyespor (15-10) at the Kurtdereli Spor Salonu in Balikesir, Turkey, on Monday.
This was the 11th straight victory for Coleby and his team as they share the top spot in the league with Samsunspor (18-8). It also marked their 13th victory in their last 14 games. The last time Denizli lost was back on January 16.
Balikesir is ranked eighth in the league.
Coleby finished with 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field to go along with seven rebounds in 30 minutes of play. Knowles was slowed down a bit, scoring four points on 2-for-2 shooting from the field to go with three rebounds in 30 minutes of play.
In the first quarter, the game was evenly matched. Coleby scored his first two points of the afternoon on two made free-throws with 5:49 remaining in the first quarter. He put his team up 12-11 at that point.
Later in the quarter, Coleby tied the game with a shot while being fouled by Knowles with 1:06 left in the first quarter. The score was tied at 25 at the end of the first period.
The game remained close in the second quarter until Denizli went on a 7-0 scoring run with 2:25 remaining in the period. Chauncey Collins, who finished with a game-high 37 points, put Denizli up 47-38 at the 1:13 mark of the second quarter. Denizli went into the half with a 47-38 lead.
At the beginning of the third quarter, Denizli went up by double digits. A bucket by Knowles at the 7:24 mark of the third quarter cut into that lead, 50-42. Balikesir continued to fight back, using an 18-4 scoring run to take a 58-54 lead. They held on to the lead before settling for a slim 63-62 advantage heading into the final period.
At the seven-minute mark of the fourth, Collins connected on a three-pointer to put his team ahead, 70-68. The game was close the rest of the way. Balikesir came within a single point, 79-78, with 34 seconds remaining in the game, but with their 10-game winning streak on the line, Denizli went on a 4-0 run to extend their lead to 83-78 with 10 seconds left in the game. They held on to win.
Myles Mack led the way for Balikesir with 20 points.
It was an evenly matched game but Denizli shot the ball better from the field, 48.3 percent to 39.7 percent.
Denizli has four games remaining on the schedule –two home and two away games. Their next game is a key home matchup against Samsunspor at Pamukkale Üniversitesi Spor Salonu in Denizli, Turkey, on Monday April 19. That game gets underway at 4 p.m. local time in Denizli, 9 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) in The Bahamas.
Balikesir is scheduled to play five more games. Their next game will be a matchup against Akhisar Belediye Basketbol on the road at Akhisar Belediye Spor Salonu in Manisa, Turkey, on Saturday. That game gets underway at 2 p.m. local time in Manisa, 7 a.m. EST.
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source https://thenassauguardian.com/bahamian-big-men-meet-in-the-middle/
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