Game Center: Round 5

There are seven games to come on Wednesday night

Tuesday, October 28

Panionios Cosmorama Travel Athens 87-91 Dolomiti Energia Trento

Dolomiti Energia Trento used a fourth-quarter rally to shock Panionios Cosmorama Travel Athens 87-91 in their Group B clash on Tuesday night in the Greek capital. Trento improved to 2-3 record, while Panionios lost its fourth consecutive game as not even a coaching changed helped it avoid dropping to 1-4 record.

For Trento, which trailed by as many as 13 points in the third quarter, and took its first second-half lead with under 3 minutes to go in the game, DeVante Jones led the way with 20 points and 6 rebounds. DJ Steward had 18 points while Matas Jogela netted 16. Nate Watson had 20 points, while Matt Lewis and Giorgos Tsalmpouris scored 18 apiece in a loss by the home team coached by Ilias Zouros.

Hamburg Veolia Towers 76-95 U-BT Cluj-Napoca

U-BT Cluj-Napoca claimed a 95-76 win over Veolia Towers Hamburg at Inselpark Arena to improve to 3-2 in the BKT EuroCup. Fatts Russell led the way with 26 points, setting the tone early and guiding his team throughout the game. Despite Hamburg’s efforts to close the gap in the second half, Cluj maintained its rhythm and composure to secure the victory on the road.

Alongside Russell, Dusan Miletic added 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks, while Mitch Creek contributed 9 points and 5 rebounds for a PIR of 18. For Hamburg, Leonard Thorpe finished with 18 points and 6 assists and Zacharie Perrin posted 17 points, 7 rebounds, while Carlos Stewart chipped in 11 points.

Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem 103-76 Aris Thessaloniki Betsson

Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem comfortably defeated Aris Thessaloniki Betsson 103-76 on Tuesday night at Hala Sportova Rank Zeravica. Igor Milicic’s first game as Aris head coach saw his team make a competitive start, attacking in transition through the rapid pace of Bryce Jones. Jerusalem pushed back, earning a one-point lead heading into halftime.

The third quarter is when everything changed; the home team pulled away, scoring and defending as a unit to carve out a double-digit advantage. Jared Harper and Khadeen Carrington shot confidently, growing the lead down the stretch and with Justin Smith dominating the paint, Jerusalem were simply too much for the visitors. Despite losing the battle on the boards, the hosts finished with 9 more assists, 6 fewer turnovers and hit 50% of their shots from beyond the arc.

Harper played the starring role, adding 2 steals and 8 assists to his 18-point scoring performance. Smith, Carrington, Cassius Winston, Anthony Lamb and Yovel Zoosman all also scored in double figures. The victory moves the hosts to 3-2, while Aris falls to 2-3. Bryce Jones led Aris with 18 in defeat.

Wednesday, October 29

Besiktas GAIN Istanbul vs. Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse (17:00 CET)

A heavyweight battle at the top of Group B will see second-placed Besiktas (3-1) attempt to end Bourg’s (4-0) unbeaten start to the season. The Turkish team did exactly that last week, handing Ulm its first loss in a thriller thanks to Anthony Brown’s last-gasp game-winning triple. Brown will feature prominently in what promises to be a long-range shoot-out between the third (37.7%) and second-best (39.6%) most accurate teams from three-point territory. Among Bourg’s deep threats is Antony Labanca, who recovered from a slow start to the season by blasting 6-of-8 triples in last week’s easy win over Lietkabelis and now will look to stay hot in Istanbul.

Lietkabelis Panevezys vs. Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (18:00 CET)

Struggling Lietkabelis (1-3) will look for a return to winning ways with a visit from dangerous Buducnost (2-2). The teams experienced precisely mirroring fortunes last week, with Lietkabelis – which has lost three in a row – suffering a 28-point thrashing at Bourg while Buducnost cruised to the same winning margin over Panionis. Forward Paulius Danusevicius is performing at a high level for the Lithuanian team with 11 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, but the host must improve a defense which has allowed 89 points per game if it wants to slow down the likes of sharpshooting Axel Bouteille, who scored 16 points without a miss last time out.

NINERS Chemnitz vs. ratiopharm ulm (19:00 CET)

A German derby between two teams aiming to bounce back into winning ways will see Chemnitz (1-3) host Ulm (3-1) for the first time on the continental stage. Chemnitz is licking its wounds from last week’s last-gasp home loss to London, when 17 points and 9 rebounds from the consistent Kevin Yebo wasn’t enough to lift an otherwise below-par offense. Chemnitz does possess the EuroCup’s best two-point conversion rate (65.9%), so Ulm will need improved defense after allowing 101 points against Besiktas to suffer its first loss last week. The visitor will again be powered by dynamic forward Chistopher Ledlum, who has netted 20, 26 and 25 points in the last three games.

Slask Wroclaw vs. Umana Reyer Venice (19:00 CET)

Climbing into the top six is the target as Slask (2-2) welcomes Reyer (1-3). The Italian team is aiming to achieve its first road win after suffering heartache last week with an overtime loss at Cluj, where center Chris Horton confirmed his power in the paint by recording a second consecutive double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds). This week he will be confronted by Stefan Dordevic, who has averaged 7 rebounds over the last three games for a Slask team which is unbeaten so far at home. The Polish team is the second best rebounding unit in the EuroCup (39.3 boards per night), so Reyer will have to be ready for a physical battle.

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana vs. Neptunas Kleipeda (19:30 CET)

Cedevita (3-1) will aim to overcome the disappointment of its first defeat by stopping the rise of Neptunas (1-3). The visiting team gained its first win of the season last week by downing Hamburg, and will again put its offense in the hands of Arnas Velicka, who leads the EuroCup with 8.2 assists per game. Cedevita, in contrast, is coming off its first loss after a setback at Bahcesehir, and will hope for another strong contribution from Aleksej Nikolic (17 points per game). Neptunas will take encouragement from the fact that it leads the competition in rebounding (40.3 per night), while Cedevita ranks last (31.5), so the Lithuanian team will attempt to dominate through physicality.

London Lions vs. Turk Telekom Ankara (20:30 CET)

Two rapidly improving teams go head to head as London (2-2) welcomes Turk Telekom (2-2). Both have recovered from 0-2 starts to win their last two games, with London triumphing on the road last week behind 20 points from the consistent Kameron McGusty, whose strong inside presence will threaten the Turk Telekom defense. But the visiting team was very strong defensively in Round 4’s comfortable road win at Trento, where Jordan Usher led the team with his all-round game (13 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals). Turk Telekom forces more turnovers than any other team (17 per game), so London’s key guard Tarik Phillip will have to take more care after committing 7 turnovers last week.

BAXI Manresa vs. Bahcesehir College Istanbul (20:45 CET)

The week concludes with a titanic tussle between two of Group A’s pacesetters as Manresa (3-1) welcomes unbeaten Bahcesehir (4-0). The Spanish team has won three straight behind the consistent scoring of Alfonso Plummer (17 points per game during the winning run) and a rock-solid defense which has allowed just 77.8 points per game and restricts its opponents to an average of 13.8 assists (second-best in the EuroCup). That toughness will be tested by a Bahcesehir team which has scored at least 92 points in every game and leads the competition in assists (23.3 per game), powered by multi-skilled big man Trevion Williams (13.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists per night).