Geraldine shines in Europe

Geraldine Robert (184-F-80) has a great contribution for her French Villenueve in Europe. Latvian champions TTT Riga defeated Villenueve in the Euroleague Qualifying Round 77:70 in Riga to finish the stage at 4-6 record. Both teams however failed to make it to the Last 16 stage. TTT Riga finished at the fifth spot, while Lille remained at the bottom of the ladder at 3-7. Tatyana Troina scored 11 points in the starting frame and TTT Riga ensured a 22:14 lead for the hosts. Fatimatou Sacko answered with 8 second-quarter points to ignite a comeback effort from Villenueve. Lille organized a 9:2 run that put the visitors ahead by 2 late in the first half. Essence Carson closed the half with 4 straight points as TTT Riga held a 36:34 advantage at halftime. The lead changed hands for numerous times in the third frame. Finally Tatyana Troina, Elizaveta Kityzina and Essence Carson spurred the hosts to a 53:46 advantage late in the third quarter. Laurie Datchy and Fatimatou Sacko allowed Lille to enter the fourth period trailing by only 2 points. Laurie Datchy and Geraldine Robert tipped off the fourth quarter with 7 unanswered points to propel the visitors to a 60:55 advantage. TTT Riga reacted immediately as they exploded with a 14:0 rally to pile up a 9-point lead. The French team never got closer than 4 points and TTT Riga secured another win in the Euroleague action. Tatyana Troina topscored with 26 points for TTT Riga. Essence Carson added 16 points, while Merike Anderson had 11 points for the winning team. Fatimatou Sacko answered with 26 points and 7 boards for Lille. Geraldine Robert delivered 17 points, 8 boards and 5 assists in the loss.
Before that French Lille added pain to Umana Reyer sending those to the second straight defeat in the Euroleague action. In the meantime it was just the third success for Lille in this edition of the top women's club basketball tournament. Umana Reyer slipped at 7-2 record but still remained on top of Group B, while Lille could not climb out of the last spot in the ladder. Iziane Castro and Ljubica Drljaca gave Lille a 12:5 lead midway through the opening stanza. Iziane Castro later finalized her 11-point first quarter haul and secured a 19:13 advantage for the visitors. Sacko, Jolene Anderson and Iziane Castro opened the second frame with 9 unanswered points for Lille. Venezia came back to life only late in the second term. Simona Ballardini and Sottana capped the first half with back-to-back buckets to trim the deficit to 6 points. Geraldine Robert and Florence Lepron however restored a 10-point buffer early in the third stanza. Lille kept in front throughout the rest of the period and led by 6 points 57:51 before the final quarter. Mariangela Cirone and Jenifer Nadalin gave hope to the fans as they dragged the hosts within 4 points with under two minutes left. Jenifer Nadalin then made it 66:69 with just 65 seconds to go. However Iziane Castro, Laurie Datchy and Ljubica Drljaca buried 4 free throws to silence the home team. Iziane Castro finished the game with 25 points to lead Lille. Ljubica Drljaca added 14 points in the winning case. Simona Ballardini knocked down 16 points and 6 rebounds for Umana Reyer. Daliborka Jokic had 15 points and 8 boards in the loss.