EFE
Morabanc Andorra secured a priceless victory for their Liga Endesa survival hopes, edging out La Laguna Tenerife 89-90 in a nail-biting contest that was decided by a last-second triple from the unstoppable Kyle Kuric.
The American shooting guard once again showcased his reliability from beyond the arc, sinking 6 of 6 three-point attempts, contributing to a standout individual stat line of 23 points and a valuation of 25.
Patty Mills hit two early threes to give La Laguna Tenerife a strong start (8-0), and the hosts led comfortably in the opening minutes (14-5) until Evans and Kostadinov sparked Morabanc Andorra’s scoring rhythm (18-15). Despite accurate shooting from Diego Bordón and Tim Abromaitis, Andorra kept the pressure on and trailed by just one point at the end of the first quarter (22-21).
Early in the second, Lithuanian Rokas Giedraitis caught fire, stringing together several positive plays to restore Tenerife’s comfort (34-25). Evans continued to fight (38-31), but La Laguna Tenerife finished the period strongly and took a nine-point lead into halftime (46-35).
The second half saw effective minutes from the Huertas-Shermadini duo (50-41), but Andorra awoke, with Okoye contributing two plays and Kostadinov throwing down a dunk to tie the game (50-47). Vidorreta turned to Fitipaldo, who provided a spark (56-47), but Rafa Luz and Kyle Kuric stepped up to scare the hosts, with another dunk from former Canarias player Kostadinov putting Andorra ahead (59-60).
The back-and-forth continued into the final period, but three threes from Mills and Huertas pushed the margin back in Tenerife’s favor (78-71). Brazilian point guard Huertas nearly broke the game open, but another familiar face in high-pressure Liga Endesa moments, Kyle Kuric, drew a 3+1 foul. Though he missed the free throw, the play had its effect on the scoreboard (82-81). A layup from Fitipaldo made it 84-82, but Kuric again changed the momentum from beyond the arc, hitting a triple to make it 84-85, and Evans extended the lead from the free-throw line (84-86).
The home side responded through their captain, with a two-pointer and a triple (89-86). Huertas sent the Santiago Martín crowd into a frenzy, sensing victory (89-86), only to witness yet another masterpiece from the Indiana-born shooter, who buried a triple after a dribble to seal the game (89-90).
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With this result, Andorra notches its eighth win of the season and now awaits the outcomes of Burgos and Gran Canaria to solidify its chances of survival in the final stretch of the campaign.