McLean leads Alba Berlin past Neptunas 89-66

ALBA Berlin used a dominant defense to right its ship in Group B by blasting Limoges CSP 89-66 for its first regular season victory Friday at O2 Arena in the German capital. It marked the biggest victory margin for ALBA in more than five seasons in the competition this century, following a 22-point win over Zalgiris Kaunas in the 2012-13 Top 16. Both teams now have 1-3 records and are tied with Cedevita Zagreb for fourth place the group. A 23-4 run that bridged halftime put ALBA in control for good. Rookie forward Niels Giffey hit 4 three-pointers on the way to 18 points while Jamel McLean did the same damage inside to lead the winners. Alex Renfroe followed with 15 points, Leon Radosevic 12 and Cliff Hammonds 11. Renfroe and Hammonds split 11 of ALBA's 22 assists. Nothing went right for Limoges, which got 17 points from Jamar Smith and 13 from Ramel Curry, but suffered 31% two-point and 27% three-point shooting at the hands of the ALBA defense.