An exciting week for Tanisha Wright and Rebecca Allen as both players were able to help their teams advance on to the EuroCup Round of 8 last week. While Wright’s team remains unbeaten in the tournament, sweeping Nice in the Round of 16, Allen’s Good Angels team completed an upset over Flammes. Although they lost last week despite 11 points from Allen, Good Angels advanced on their aggregate score.
It is not too often that Liberty players have the opportunity to face one another head-to-head overseas, but there were three Liberty teammates on the court when Besiktas and Abdullah Gul squared off in Turkey over the weekend.
It was Wright’s squad that was able to pick up an 82-76 win over Shavonte Zellous and Kiah Stokes, and all three turned in strong performances. Wright had 9 points with 7 rebounds, and 7 assists for Kayseri, and Zellous and Stokes both scored in double figures, as Zellous finished with 19 points, and Stokes scored 16 points with 15 boards.
The newest member of the Liberty, center Kia Vaughn, is enjoying a successful season in the Czech Republic with USK Praha. Vaughn is averaging double figures in both the Czech and EuroLeaugue, with USK Praha currently sitting in 1st in the Czech League at 17-0, and tied for 2nd in Group A of the EuroLeague.
In Russia, Epiphanny Prince and Dynamo Kursk posted two wins, moving to 10-0 in the EuroLeague and 14-1 in Russia. Meanwhile, after Amanda Zahui B and Orenburg were upset 60-50 in EuroLeague action, despite 14 points and 15 rebounds from Zahui B, Nadezhda bounced back to beat Kazanochka 78-56 in their domestic league.
LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Shavonte Zellous – Besiktas
Her team may not have been able to pick up the win in a narrow defeat against Tanisha Wright and Abdullah Gul, but Shavonte Zellous turned in another impressive stat line, scoring 19 points with a pair of 3-pointers and 6 assists. She is now ranked 8th in the Turkish League in scoring at 16.6 ppg, which pairs nicely with 5.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
Slovakia-Extraliga (12-1, Ranked 1st)
Eurocup Round of 8 (Defeated Flammes in Round of 16)
EEWBL (7-1, Ranked 2nd)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #5 R. ALLEN (Slovakia) | 13 | 19.5 | 54 | 96 | .563 | 19 | 32 | .594 | 23 | 28 | .821 | 3.8 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 14.5 |
| #5 R. ALLEN (EuroCup) | 8 | 25.4 | 17 | 41 | .415 | 15 | 28 | .536 | 26 | 33 | .788 | 5.9 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 13.1 |
| #5 R. ALLEN (EEWBL) | 5 | 17.8 | 12 | 24 | .500 | 6 | 15 | .400 | 7 | 9 | .778 | 4.2 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.8 |
It was a big week for Rebecca Allen and Good Angels as they completed the upset of Flammes in the EuroCup Round of 16 to advance to the Round of 8. Although Kosice lost 72-58 in the 2nd leg of the matchup, they advanced on the aggregate score. Allen finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 steals in that road game, and is averaging 13.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game in EuroCup action. Over the weekend Good Angels resumed Slovakian League play and cruised past Samorin, 94-71. Allen came off the bench to score 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting in 20 minutes. Good Angels will face BAM Poprad on Feb. 4, then begins the next stage of the EuroCup Tournament against Cegledi EKK on Feb. 9.
Czech Republic-ZBL (17-0, Ranked 1st)
EuroLeague Group A (8-2, Ranked 3rd)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #1 K. VAUGHN (Czech Republic) | 11 | 16.4 | 53 | 79 | .671 | 0 | 3 | .000 | 15 | 22 | .682 | 4.6 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 11.0 |
| #1 K. VAUGHN (EuroLeague) | 10 | 29.0 | 53 | 101 | .525 | 0 | 3 | .000 | 13 | 16 | .813 | 5.7 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 11.9 |
The newest member of the Liberty Kia Vaughn and USK Praha picked up two blowout wins over the past week, remaining unbeated in the Czech League standings and maintaining pace with Fenerbahce for 2nd place in Group A of the EuroLeague standings. Vaughn played just 5 minutes with 2 points and 3 rebounds and USK Praha beat Slovanka 108-41. In EuroLeague action, the outcome was nearly the same, as a 96-47 win over Mersin BSB meant just 19 minutes for Vaughn, where she scored 8 points. She is averaging 11.0 ppg in the Czech League and 11.9 ppg in EuroLeague so far this season. USK Praha faces Lattes Montp. on Feb. 1.
Russia-PBL (14-1, Ranked 2nd)
EuroLeague Group A (10-0, Ranked 1st)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #10 E. PRINCE (Russia) | 14 | 23.5 | 39 | 79 | .494 | 7 | 22 | .318 | 15 | 21 | .714 | 2.3 | 3.4 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 8.1 |
| #10 E. PRINCE (EuroLeague) | 10 | 27.2 | 32 | 58 | .552 | 3 | 16 | .188 | 7 | 10 | .700 | 1.9 | 3.2 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 8.0 |
It was a pair of easy wins last week for Epiphanny Prince and Dynamo Kursk as they improved to 10-0 in EuroLeague and moved to 14-1 in the Russian Premier League as it approaches the latter stages of the regular season. Prince scored 9 points with 4 rebounds, and 3 assists in a 65-43 in over Lattes Mont. in EuroLeague action, then had 4 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals as Kursk eased past Chevakata 85-54. Prince is averaging 8.1 points and 3.4 assists in Russia and 8.0 points with 3.2 assists in EuroLeague. Kursk will face a tough test against Fenerbahce in EuroLeague action on Feb. 1.
Russia-PBL (11-3, Ranked 3rd)
Euroleague Group B (7-2, Ranked 2nd)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #17 A. ZAHUI B (Russia) | 14 | 19.4 | 58 | 97 | .598 | 7 | 17 | .412 | 32 | 38 | .842 | 4.3 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 12.1 |
| #17 A. ZAHUI B (EuroLeague) | 10 | 28.9 | 45 | 95 | .474 | 4 | 26 | .154 | 30 | 37 | .811 | 9.2 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 13.2 |
Amanda Zahui B and Nadezhda Orenburg went 1-1 last week, falling to CCC Polkowice (Jamierra Faulkner) in EuroLeague group action, 60-50, before bouncing back to top Kazanochka in Russian League play, 78-56. Zahui B turned in her best performance of the week with a double-double against Polkowice, netting 14 points with 15 rebounds, but it was not enough to power her team to the win. In the one-sided Russian League win, she played just 18 minutes, scoring 6 points with 4 rebounds. Her EuroLeague numbers continue to impress, where she is averaging 13.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, ranking 5th overall in rebounding. Orenburg faces UNIQA Sopron in EuroLeague and Spartak N. in Russia in the coming week.
Turkey-KBSL (10-4, Ranked 4th)
EuroCup Round of 16 (Defeated Nice to advance to Round of 8)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #30 T. WRIGHT (Turkey) | 13 | 34.2 | 58 | 134 | .433 | 8 | 17 | .471 | 41 | 49 | .837 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 13.9 |
| #30 T. WRIGHT (EuroCup) | 8 | 26.4 | 40 | 62 | .645 | 0 | 3 | .000 | 22 | 26 | .846 | 2.5 | 4.0 | 2.4 | 0.0 | 12.8 |
Tanisha Wright and Abdullah Gul enjoyed a big week, as they easily advanced into the EuroCup Round of 8, still having yet to drop a match in the international tournament, before facing a tough test against a couple of Liberty teammates in Kiah Stokes and Shavonte Zellous in Besiktas, in which Wright’s squad prevailed 82-76. She played just 19 minutes to score 8 points in the 66-56 win over Nice in the 2nd leg of their EuroCup Round of 16 matchup. Two days later, she turned in an impressive stat line of 9 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists, and Kayseri edged a surging Besiktas squad. Abdullah Gul will face Mersin BSB this weekend before tipping off the next round of EuroCup action against Girona on Feb. 9.
Turkey-KBSL (8-7, Ranked 5th)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #2 S. ZELLOUS (Turkey) | 15 | 36.1 | 76 | 183 | .415 | 15 | 61 | .246 | 52 | 63 | .825 | 5.4 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 16.6 |
It was another strong performance for Shavonte Zellous but her Besiktas squad came up just short in a meeting against Liberty teammate Tanisha Wright and Abdullah Gul. Zellous knocked down a pair of triples on the way to scoring 19 points with 4 rebounds, and 6 assists, increasing her scoring average in Turkey to 16.6 ppg, good for 8th in the league. She is also averaging 5.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game. Besiktas returns to action this weekend against Adana ASKI.
Turkey-KBSL (8-7, Ranked 5th)
| GM | MIN | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3FG | 3FGA | 3FG% | FTM | FTA | FT% | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | |
| #41 K. STOKES (Turkey) | 11 | 35.3 | 62 | 102 | .608 | 1 | 1 | 1.000 | 20 | 27 | .741 | 15.3 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 13.4 |
A big game from Kiah Stokes was not enough to lead Besiktas to a win against her Liberty teammate Tanisha Wright and Abdullah Gul over the weekend in Turkey. Moving all the way up to 5th in the league table, Besiktas fell to 4th ranked Kayseri 82-76, as Stokes scored 16 points with 15 rebounds. For the season, she is still easily averaging a double-double of 13.4 points and 15.3 rebounds, shooting .608 from the field and easily leading the league in rebounding. Besiktas will return to action against Adana ASKI on Feb. 4.