Simmons Steadies Baskonia Against Batemon's Late Rally (93-98)

Kosner Baskonia needed a breather and found it in Barris Nord, though it proved tighter than expected. Two days after their eighth consecutive EuroLeague loss, Velimir Perasović's team dominated iLERNA Lleida for three quarters and had to defend a slipping lead in the final frame. They improve to 5-2 in the Liga Endesa, among the league leaders.

Three quarters of Vitoria dominance
Simmons, making his league debut following his EuroLeague stint, set the pace from the opening tip. Baskonia won the first quarter 20-27 with solid three-point shooting and repeated the margin in the second (19-27). At halftime, the Vitoria side led by 15 (39-54) and had missed only a handful of three-pointers. They finished 14 of 23 from deep.

In the third quarter, Lleida stopped losing ground but didn't cut into the deficit. Zach Perrin, the power forward Baskonia unsuccessfully tried to sign last week, was the most active for the hosts in the paint: he finished with 16 points and a 22 rating. The quarter ended 62-78.

Batemon Brings the Scare
The final quarter belonged to Jordan Batemon. The point guard scored 20 of his 29 points in those ten minutes, going 4 of 5 from three-point range for the game, and led Lleida on a 31-20 run that brought them much closer to Baskonia. But the Vitoria side kept their composure: a three-pointer from Simmons down the stretch and sturdier defense on the final possessions sealed the 93-98 victory.

Simmons finished with 25 points, 8 assists and a 28 rating. Sasha Joksimović (15), AJ Lawson and DJ Stewart (12 each) and Chris Duarte, who also returned to the league (11 points and 6 rebounds), completed a well-balanced offensive attack. Lleida, who won the rebounding battle 36-28, remain in the lower standings at 1-6.