Bulgaria Boost Prospects In Group B

Bulgaria forward Hristo Nikolov led all scorers with 26 points in his best game of the Qualification Round so far

A 26-point haul by Hristo Nikolov helped Bulgaria complete a terrific 94-77 success against Azerbaijan to boost their chances of progressing from Group B of the EuroBasket Qualification Round.

Having been soundly beaten 88-73 in Baku, the home team didn't waste any time in setting about gaining revenge.

They jumped out to a healthy 18-7 lead which set the tone for a great opening quarter which saw them increase their advantage to 26-13.

In a real contrast of styles, Bulgaria wasn't exactly shy in trying their luck from downtown whilst Azerbaijan relied on pounding away inside via Charles Davis and Aleksandr Rindin, a strategy which helped them to cut the gap to six points at the interval.

However defensively, Azerbaijan was far too lax and that allowed Bulgaria to re-establish their superiority when the teams returned for the second half.

The hosts poured in 31 points during the third quarter to give them a 68-47 cushion going into the final ten minutes.

With both teams perhaps having one eye on basket difference and a possible impact in a potential future tie situation, Azerbaijan threatened a fightback with a 15-7 run but Bulgaria finished with a flourish to secure a super win.

Ivan Lilov registered an excellent 17 points in 19 minutes for the winning team whilst Orhan Haciyeva was the stand-out performer for Azerbaijan with an impressively efficient 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Quotes Bulgaria vs. Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan assistant coach Elshan Yusubov
"It was very physical game, from start to finish. Bulgaria started the game well, were on 14 points. We missed a lot of shots. In the second half Bulgaria again started well, we were tired. We fought till the end, so the difference is not so big. Now we are going to fight with Sweden. Not everything is lost."

Bulgaria head coach Rosen Barchovski
"We played very well, but we are sorry that we allowed the opponent to score some easy shots. We needed a bigger difference to sleep better. We tried to work for this game, we knew that they will be more tired in the end of the game. Every point is very important. But the result is good. Now we need two wins to qualify. I believe there will be fair play between Azerbaijan and Sweden."

Azerbaijan player Charles Davis
"The Bulgarians had a very good start to the game, we tried and cut off the difference. We have to go home now and to think. We have our chances and will fight against Sweden."

Bulgaria player Hristo Nikolov
"Maybe we were not concentrated enough in the end of the game. We have to work on this moment. We did our best and we had this result, but we made a lot of mistakes. We succeeded to stop them and that is why we won. I think we are good enough to fight and even to win in Germany. It is not Spain. We have our talent and have to work a lot to improve some things. We will fight."