The last three tickets for the Cup’s “Round of 16” found their owners last night, with Makedones, E.A.K., and Famagusta Ballers achieving their goals in yesterday’s matches against Old Timers, Arthouros, and Wizards, respectively.
In the first match of the evening, Makedones-Dimco, despite facing stiff resistance from the Old Timers, appeared more composed in the end and secured the win-qualification with a score of 55-45. The game saw several lead changes; the visitors started better, but the hosts gradually balanced the game, turning it into a derby. Nearly four minutes before the end, the lead for Makedones was only +4 (46-42), but a dynamic 7-0 run by the hosts ultimately tipped the scales in their favor. Elias Chaldoupis was the standout for the winners with 17 points, supported by Chrysanthou and Vazoukis with 11 and 10 points respectively. For the visitors, Georgiou and Ioannou stood out, also scoring 11 and 10 points each.
A “big heist” was pulled off by E.A.K. in Limassol, snatching victory from Arthouros with a 61-66 win to secure the coveted qualification. Voris Karagiannis’s team made a remarkable comeback in the final stages, despite trailing throughout the match. About 6 minutes before the end, Arthouros led by +8 (55-47) and seemed poised for the win. However, the visitors managed to close the gap, equalizing at 61-61 with one minute remaining. Taking advantage of their slight numerical edge (E.A.K. fielded 6 players, while Arthouros had 5) and the composure of Savvas Kostakis in the closing moments, E.A.K. reached their goal. All E.A.K. players contributed significantly to the scoring, with Savvidis leading with 15 points, followed by Kostakis with 13. For the hosts, Zenkov stood out with 21 points and Antorkas with 20.
The most comfortable qualification of the night went to the Famagusta Ballers, who confirmed the predictions by defeating the Nicosia Wizards 78-51. Except for the early stages where the game was balanced, the Famagusta team gradually imposed their rhythm and had no trouble breaking the “Wizards'” resistance, even pushing the lead to +31 at one point. The Wizards tried to stay close until the end of the first half, but they seemed to run out of energy and options in the second half. Adamos Adamou was the top performer for the winners with 20 points, followed by Pittakis (15) and Apeslidis (13). For the visitors, Angelos Michailidis stood out with 18 points, supported by Orfanos (12) and Christodoulou (10).
Next Phase
In the Round of 16:
- Makedones will play away against Think Colour.
- E.A.K. will host KEP-Dikefalos Geriou.
- Famagusta Ballers will play away against the EUC Warriors.
