In the 26th round of the EuroLeague, Baskonia hosted Asvel on the court of the Fernando Buesa Arena. The home team won by 94:80.
Khalifa Diop and Tadas Sedekerskis missed this game for the home team due to injuries. On the other side, Youssoupha Fall and Nando de Colo did not play for Asvel.
The first quarter was extremely exciting, as we witnessed seven lead changes. However, the opening ten minutes were completely dominated by Codi Miller-McIntyre. The Baskonia guard assisted on every basket his team made in the first period, allowing Baskonia to lead 23:20 before the continuation of the game.
As time passed, Dusko Ivanovic’s men managed to increase their lead. Vanja Marinkovic played exceptionally well, helping Baskonia reach a double-digit lead for the first time (35:24). During these moments, Noam Yaacov and Paris Lee tried to keep Asvel within a reasonable deficit, but they couldn’t succeed in their attempt. Although they managed to reduce the deficit to just six points on several occasions, Baskonia led by their largest margin of 52:39 after 20 minutes of play.
Moreover, the brilliant Miller-McIntyre set a new EuroLeague record with 12 assists in the first half. This had never been achieved before.
Job number one for a point guard is to set up his teammates. That's exactly what @CMMPatience did in the first quarter against Asvel.
— Basketball Sphere (@BSphere_) February 8, 2024
All seven of Baskonia's baskets were assisted by him#Baskonia #cmm pic.twitter.com/iHKy6WTRN5
Although Joffrey Lauvergne established control in the paint at the beginning of the second half, Miller-McIntyre continued to facilitate for his teammates and quickly surpassed his own career-high record of 15 assists in a single game. In this way, he maintained the home team’s lead, which was 71:61 before the final quarter.
Asvel opened the decisive period with a 5:0 run, but Miller-McIntyre and Matt Costello responded with two consecutive three-pointers to make it 77:66. As time passed, it became increasingly clear that Baskonia would win, and the only question remaining was whether we would witness a new EuroLeague record for assists in a single game. That ultimately happened with a spectacular alley-oop pass to Chima Moneke for assist number 20, while Miller-McIntyre also achieved a triple-double with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 20 assists!
He has done it!
— Basketball Sphere (@BSphere_) February 8, 2024
Codi Miller-McIntyre (@CMMPatience) has broken the EuroLeague record for most assists in a single game.
He leaves behind Facundo Campazzo and Stefan Jovic who had 19.
And also he has a triple-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds 👏👏👏.#baskonia #cmm pic.twitter.com/RD6CnMAIUn
The top scorer for Baskonia was Markus Howard, who contributed 18 points. Codi Miller-McIntyre recorded an impressive triple-double with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 20 assists, while Vanja Marinkovic finished with 12 points. On the opposing side, Joffrey Lauvergne led with 20 points.
In the next round of the EuroLeague, Baskonia will host Milano, while the French representative will face Anadolu Efes at home.
BASKONIA – ASVEL 94:80 (23:20, 29:19, 19:22, 23:19)
Arena: “Fernando Buesa Arena”, Vitoria
Referees: Belosevic, Nikolic, Pastusiak
Baskonia: Howard 18, Raieste 6, Chiozza, Marinkovic 12, Miller-McIntyre 11p 11s 20a, Diez 8, Rogvakopoulos 3, Kotsar 8, Costello 14, Theodore , Hrabar, Moneke 14
Asvel: Scott 9, Thomas 5, Lee 6, Kahudi 2, Lauvergne 16, Luwawu-Cabarrot 2, Dallo, Jackson 14, Lighty 7, Ndiaye 8, Yaacov 11