PROTEAS EKA AEL downed Keravnos Strovolos at the Nikos Solomonides Arena in Limassol, while Intercollege/ETHA and Frederick Achilleas Kaimakliou recorded victories over Nissan Omonia and BMC AEK respectively in Nicosia to conclude Round 16 of the national basketball championship.
National cup holders AEL used a punishing final quarter to overcome Keravnos 72-57 with Quincy Taylor leading the way with 18 points.
The visitors from Nicosia held a seven-point lead at half time, but the hosts came back strong after the interval to take a one-point lead into the fourth period in which they scored 21 points, while keeping their opponents at bay to claim a well deserved victory and improve their record to 12-2.
Ilian Evtimov scored 16 points for AEL, while Yiannis Yiannoulis added 10. Aurimas Kieza had 11 points for Keravnos, while Aleksandar Damjanovic and Jarrett Hart added 10 points apiece.
At the Lefkotheo Indoor Arena Dion Harris poured in 31 points including five second-half three pointers to lift Kaimakliou over AEK 87-76.
The teams tradeds until the last three minutes of the third quarter when the Kaimakliou team increased the tempo of the game, closing down the period with an eight-point lead.
They continued in the same fashion throughout the last quarter, leading by as many as 21 points with just over six minutes remaining and they never looked back, securing the sixth regular season place in the standings, regardless of the results in the final two rounds.
Balsa Radunovic had a double-double for Kaimakliou with 23 points and 14 rebounds, while Omar Barlett chipped in with 12 points. Alen Trepalovac ledAEK with 14 points, while Brandon D’Angelo and Trent Strickland each had 13.
Ken Tutt netted 19 points to help ETHA beat Omonia 79-72 at the Tassos Papadopoulos Eleftheria Athletic Centre in Nicosia.
The Engomi team was leading throughout the game and deservedly came out victorious, providing themselves with an opportunity to battle Keravnos for the third regular season place as they both hold a 9-5 record and face each other on Sunday in Strovolos.
Mario Dundovic scored 14 points for ETHA, while Anthony King added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Ronnie McCollum and Nikolas Papadopoulos had 11 and 10 points respectively. Brandon Jenkins led Omonia with 18 points and a game-high six assists.
