Eight years ago, they were defeated by Khimki in the first Eurocup final, after that they played a notable role, and tonight they finally won this competition.
In its second Eurocup final, Gran Canaria defeated Turk Telekom (71:67) in the Canary Islands, won this competition for the first time in history and qualified for the Euroleague. The branch played in the Euroleague for the first time in the 2018/2019 season.
An excellent job was done by the former Slovenian basketball player Jaka Lakovič, who joined the club last summer and tonight won the biggest trophy in his independent coaching career. Lakovič was an assistant to Igor Kokoškov when Slovenia won the Eurobasket in 2017.
The Spanish team is the best example of how much home field advantage means in this competition. Granka was never defeated at home in the group stage, then in the knockout round it was better than Bursa, Paris, Huventud and tonight against Turk Telekom, which it defeated both times in the group stage. Total - 13 matches and 13 wins at home in the Eurocup.
In a match with many oscillations, the first quarter was very efficient, the teams were accurate for two and three points, so after 10 minutes it was 29:23 for the Spanish team.
In the second period, the visitors were eclipsed - Turk Telekom scored only one point in almost seven minutes, Granka went to 22 points (46:24, Slaughter's points), and after 20 minutes it was 50:33.
At the beginning of the third quarter, Granka had a plus 20 (53:33), so that the guests with six tied points would approach 53:39, and then with a new series of 8:0 they would come to 55:47.
Turk Telekom was the better team in those moments, after Sestina's three-pointer, they came to minus six (61:55), and after Grenta's point, it was 64:62 (five minutes to the end).
The Turk Telekom basketball players had a chance to turn the ball around, but at first they were not accurate, and then on the counterattack, Taylor made a foul in the attack in a one-on-one situation. The teams were scoreless for almost two minutes, the score was still 64:62 for the hosts, and then, three minutes and 12 seconds before the end, Šurn hit a three-pointer, Granka went to 67:62 and the guests could no longer threaten.
Šurna led Gran Canaria to victory with 18 points. Slaughter scored 15, Albisi 13, and Brusino 11.
Montenegrin basketball player Jovan Kljajić, who plays for Gran Canaria, did not play tonight.
At Turk Telekom, Jones and Butiel finished the match with 17 points each. Grent scored 16.
Tonight, Gran Canaria became the fifth Spanish club with the Eurocup trophy. Valencia won this trophy four times (2003, 2010, 2019 and 2021), Real Madrid was the best in 2007, Juventud in 2008, and Unicaja from Malaga in 2017.
Bonus video:
