FIBA EuroCup Women
Dinamo Banco di Sardegna 63-73 London Lions (15-17, 15-15, 12-18, 21-23)
Dinamo – Holmes 17, Gustavsson 16, Carangelo 15; Lions – Herbert Harrigan, Winterburn 15, Battle 10

Airhorns echoed around Palasport Roberta Serradimigni in Sardinia, Italy, every time the London Lions took a shot, but that didn’t stop the visitors from taking a win against Dinamo Banco di Sardegna for the third game in Group J of the FIBA EuroCup Women.

This was in part thanks to the WBBL side’s imports. Technically, Mikiah Herbert Harrigan is a Brit, but her legendary career with the South Carolina Gamecocks and in the WNBA has certainly influenced her USA style of play – and she showed up big in this contents. To kick things off early, however, was the veteran Katsiaryna Snytsina.

They weren’t working alone, as Holly Winterburn’s defence caused havoc for the home team, and she helped her teammates pick up blocks and steals, while Ty Battle found her place on the charity stripe to keep the scoreboard ticking over in the first quarter.

There was no great discrepancy between the teams in the first 10 minutes, and it’s no surprise considering the quality of  Dinamo’s roster. The likes of WNBA-level talents Joyner Holmes and Sam Thomas, as well as former U-Conn Huskie Anna Makurat meant they were always going to be in with a chance despite going into the game at the bottom of the group.

Holmes in particular showed why she has been a valuable player for the likes of New York Liberty, Las Vegas Aces and most recently the Connecticut Sun on a tough turnaround jumper to draw it level at 9-9. The Lions took the slight edge, however, at the end of the first quarter. 

It took a few possessions to get going in the second, but the spark for London came from Shequila Joseph who grabbed three offensive rebounds in 10 seconds, the last one of which found its way to Kennedy Leonard via Battle for an open three. 

Good defence by Sardegna at the end of the half forced the Lions into a 24-second violation, and Holmes hit a three before the end of the second quarter to keep the deficit at two points.

Perfect defence to open the third almost forced the home team into their own shot clock expiration, but a ridiculous prayer shots from Dinamo’s Debora Carangelo banked in to open the scoring.

The home team’s gameplan was clear: rotate the ball around the guards above the perimeter to open up the middle for Holmes. It worked at times, but it meant the Lions gameplan could focus on the lead threat. They pressured her into multiple turnovers, including a block from behind by Herbert Harigan – who might be one of the best shot blockers in Europe right now – and Battle was able to read the passing lanes for multiple steals as Sardegna forced the pass inside. At the end of the 40 minutes, Holmes struggled for efficiency and shot just 33 per cent overall.

Meanwhile, Herbert Harrigan kept answering for the Lions, including a beautiful turnaround fadeaway in the lane after the feed from Winterburn. London made tough buckets throughout the third, including Battle bucket that bobbled around the basket and down, and line drives from Winterburn, whose first step couldn’t be stopped. This flurry opened a gap of 12 by the middle of the third. A huge three from Dinamo’s Giulia Ciavarella at the buzzer closed the gap to eight, and it gave the home team momentum heading into the fourth.

With renewed defensive intensity and a revived home crowd, Dinamo forced the Lions into turnovers and missed shots to start the fourth. When Sardegna’s Elin Gustavsson broke free for a layup to cut the gap to six the volume from the audience reached new levels. 

It got even closer a few possessions later when Winterburn missed an open layup and Dinamo got off to the races. Holmes led the break and found Gustavsson with a beautiful no-look assist in a two on one situation.

Lions coach Mark Clark called a timeout to get his team back on track, and it was the 37-year-old sharpshoot from Belarus, Snytsina, who calmly rose up for a three and nailed it to get the visitors’ nerves under control. This was followed by a Winterburn layup and a Herbert Harrigan three, then good ball movement found Battle under the basket for the easiest two points of the game. The Lions were back up by 11.

London’s defensive intensity picked back up, and the mini run physically deflated Dinamo. Good rebounds and a Battle steal led to open shots, which gifted five quick points to Herbert Harrigan off Winterburn passes.

The horns kept blaring out until the final buzzer, and Dinamo made great efforts to close the gap, which could be crucial in a points difference situation if they finish third in the group. But the win gave the Lions two out of their first three to sit in second place in the group. A top two finish will guarantee they advance to the first round of the playoffs – they still have three games to play before that is all decided, including two at home so they will need plenty of support upon their two return trips to London.

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