San Lorenzo rally late to top Vipers, repeat third-place finish

TENERIFE (Spain) - San Lorenzo de Almagro came back from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to top Rio Grande Valley Vipers 96-90 in the Third-Place Game of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2020, stepping on the podium for the second year in a row.

The reigning DIRECTV Liga de las Americas champions poured in 25 points in the final five-minute stretch to turn the tables on the 2019 NBA G League winners in what was a textbook game of runs.

"Of course we wanted to be in the final, but on the last day of a tournament  like this there are only two teams leaving with a victory, and that will be us and the champions. Our organization, our fans, we want to win every single game. A win is a win, so we feel good to have taken third place," said San Lorenzo head coach Nestor Garcia.

Isaiah Taylor converted a pair of free-throws 7:58 from the final buzzer to spark an 11-0 Vipers run that Jabari Brown capped with a triple, and the Texas team grabbed an 81-71 lead 6:04 from the end.

The Argentinian champions stopped the rot however and after Luciano Gonzalez drilled a trey, Dar Tucker scored with a layup to put San Lorenzo back in front, 84-83 with 2:52 left on the clock.

Nicolás Aguirre converted two free-throws and, after the Vipers misfired on the other end, he followed up with a layup to give San Lorenzo some much needed breathing space, 90-85 with 1:21 remaining.

The Vipers called a timeout and drew a play for Brown, who knocked down a three, but Justin Williams responded by converting a three-point play for the Buenos Aires side to seal their comeback win.

Dar Tucker led five San Lorenzo players in double digits with his 21 points and added 3 rebounds and 2 steals, while Maximo Fjellerup chipped in with 13 points in just 13 minutes of action off the bench. For the Vipers, Taylor finished with a team-high 19 points while Jarrel Martin collected a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds in defeat.