Group E recap: Strasbourg take first place; Gillet hits the shot of the season

MIES (Switzerland) - EWE Baskets Oldenburg were just 3.3 seconds away from a spot in the Play-Ins, but Pierre-Antoine Gillet is a legend in Oostende for a reason.

The Belgian international hit the biggest shot of the season so far, a three-pointer from nine metres out, to give Filou Oostende a win over Pinar Karsiyaka which - paired with a SIG Strasbourg win over Oldenburg - was just enough to squeeze the perennial Belgian champs into the Play-Ins, as third in the group.

There was a strong possibility of a four-way tie at 3-3, but SIG Strasbourg decided to break that script early on in their matchup with EWE Baskets Oldenburg. The German side led for just two minutes of the game, the rest belonged to the French juggernauts.

Even when Oldenburg put together one final run to make it interesting, Tyrus McGee and Phil Booth found the panacea for the poison, never allowing the Germans to make it a one-possession deficit. It finished 85-77, pushing SIG to 4-2 at the top of the group and straight  into the Round of 16.

This will be their fourth straight sweet 16 appearance, with the run starting back in 2021, when they reached the Semi-Finals at the Final 8 in Nizhny Novgorod.

Booth is the undisputed leader of this generation, putting up 19 points and 6 assists, while getting help from his backcourt partners Quinton Hooker (15pts) and McGee (13pts). Paul Lacombe and Hugo Invernizzi combined for 23 to give coach Massimo Cancellieri a more balanced attack in a crucial game.

Even with this defeat, Oldenburg still could've made it to the Play-Ins as the third seed. They needed Pinar Karsiyaka's help, and since the game in France ended a couple of minutes earlier, Oldenburg probably started celebrating when they saw KSK take the lead with just over 10 seconds to play in Belgium.

With Filou Oostende in desperation mode, one man kept his heart rate steady.

Pierre-Antoine Gillet hit a three-pointer from way beyond the line, and it was all about the number three. His three gave Oostende the lead with 3.3 to play, and since Karsiyaka failed to score on their last possession, that three also sent Oostende to #3 in the group with a 3-3 record.

The final score said 78-76 Oostende, keeping them alive in the hunt for another spot in the Round of 16. Khalil Ahmad and Damien Jefferson had 19 apiece, Gillet finished with 16, while Matthias Tass played a productive 16 minutes with 12 points off the bench.

Vernon Carey's 22-point, 10-rebound double-double was not enough for Karsiyaka.

SIG Strasbourg will now move to Round of 16 Group I, right next to Unicaja, waiting for two Play-In winners.

Pinar Karsiyaka and Filou Oostende still don't know who their Play-In opponents will be, since the neighboring Group F also presents a chance of a four-way tie at 3-3 on Wednesday.