Rilski Sportist won over Cherno more Ticha with 88:87 (19:13, 16:25, 25:20, 21:23, 7:6) after overtime as the host at the "Arena SamElion" in Samokov in the second match of the final series of the National Basketball League for Men (NBL). Thus, the champions took a 2:0 lead and came only one success away from defending their title. In the playoff for the gold, three wins out of five possible matches are played, BTA reported.
The third match will be held on May 29 (Thursday) at 7:15 p.m. at the "Congress" hall in the Palace of Culture and Sports in Varna. A possible fourth match will take place on May 31 (Saturday) at 7:15 PM again in Varna, and if a fifth match is necessary, it is planned for June 3 (Tuesday) at 7:15 PM in Samokov.
The rivals played a contested first quarter, in which the guests led twice, including 13:11 after a basket by Tsvetomir Chernokozhev with two and a half minutes remaining in the period, but by the end of it the basketball players of Rilski Sportist turned the lead to 19:13 in their favor.
The hosts held the initiative for most of the second quarter, although the Varna team managed to reach a draw several times. Rilski Sportist led by 31:26 three and a half minutes before the end of the first half, but in the remaining time, the basketball players of Cherno More Ticha scored 10 unanswered points for a lead of 36:31, and at the break the score was 38:35 in their favor.
The third period was almost entirely dictated by the guests for about nine minutes of play, but the team from Samokov made a turnaround, catching up with the deficit from 50:56 to 57:56 and before the fourth 10 minutes Rilski Sportist had a lead of 60:58.
The team from Samokov retained the lead and two minutes before the end of regular time pulled away with 77:71. Chernokozhev and Nikolay Stoyanov scored for Cherno More Ticha, shortening the distance to 2 points, and with 12 seconds remaining, the difference became 1 point after two accurate free throws by Michaelin Scott for the team from Varna. Rilski Sportist guard Deyan Karamfilov was also accurate from the penalty line and gave the hosts the lead - 81:78, but in the last second Rodney Purvis made a three-pointer, which tied the score at 81:81 and sent the game into overtime.
In the additional five minutes, the game went basket for basket and neither team was able to break ahead. In the final second, Ivan Spirov, falling, fouled Deyan Karamfilov, who scored once on his first attempt to bring success to the Samokov team.
Alan Arnett was the most productive for the winners with 19 points and 4 rebounds. Alex Simeonov contributed with 15 points and 7 rebounds, and Jure Planinic finished with 13 points and 7 rebounds. For the Bulgarian Cup winner Cherno More Ticha, Michaelyn Scott scored 23 points, adding 7 rebounds and 7 assists, while Nikolay Stoyanov chipped in with 19 points and 3 rebounds.