Omonoia beat ENAD to enter the national basketball cup draw

GIORGOS Konstantinou scored 22 points to help Nissan Omonoia overcome Ydra Asphalistiki ENAD 83-60 in the national basketball cup elimination game on Tuesday night at the Tassos Papadopoulos Eleftheria Athletic Center in Nicosia.

The hosts took an early 19-13 lead after the opening period and then increased their advantage to nine points by the half time break at 39-30. The Ayios Domethios team was struggling to get back in the game after the interval as Kyriakos Adamou’s men outscored their opponents 21-15 in the third period to enter the final ten minutes with a 15-point lead at 60-45. Another 15-point effort by the visitors was shut down by 23 points of Nissan Omonoia to set up the final score and complete their second convincing victory over Ydra Asphalistiki ENAD in five days.

Vladimir Zaric excelled for Nissan Omonoia with 14 points, while Dimitris Papadopoulos had 10. Nikola Tutus and Linas Juknevicius added nine points apiece.

“Considering all the problems we had lately, especially with injuries, we played the last two games on a very high level and it is obvious that our form is constantly improving. All the teams should respect us as nobody will have an easy time beating us,” commented Zaric after the game.

Jarhon Giddings led Ydra Asphalistiki ENAD with 21 points, while Chief Kicking Stallion Sims chipped in with 10.

The draw for the eight-finals, which will be held on the weekend starting January 8, of the national basketball cup was also conducted on Tuesday and Nissan Omonoia will take on the ruling champions Madisons APOEL.

“We were drawn to play against the currently best team in Cyprus; however, we do not give up in advance as we will give our maximum on the court as this game will be a great challenge for us,” Zaric added.

The national cup holders Proteas EKA AEL visit the capital as they will face Frederick Achilleas Kaimakliou at the Lefkotheo Indoor Arena, while Keravnos Strovolos host Pizza Express Apollon at the Kostas Papaellinas Arena in Strovolos.  BMC AEK host Intercollege/ETHA at the Kition Athletic Center in Larnaca.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.