The hosts outscored their opponents 25-8 in the third quarter to break the game open
Aris gears up after the break to eliminate Neptunas
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 17 of 18
Regular Season
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Aris Thessaloniki BetssonARI
8364
Neptunas KlaipedaNEP
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Overview
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Aris turned a must‑win into a statement, beating Neptunas Klaipeda 83–64 to keep its playoff push alive. The two teams entered the night tied for seventh, but Aris’s second‑half dominance and a suffocating third quarter flipped the race in the hosts’ favor.
“For us, this is the most important game of the season, and I’m trying to put this mentality to my players,” Aris head coach Igor Milicic explained just minutes before tipoff against Neptunas Klaipeda.
Despite losing four of their last five games, the Greek side arrived in good spirits after a resounding domestic win over EuroLeague powerhouse Panathinaikos Athens the previous weekend.
That momentum didn’t translate early. Neptunas took control in the first quarter, leading 21–16 behind an unstoppable Rihards Lomazs. The Latvian guard stayed hot in the second period, finishing the first half with 19 points on an impressive 6-of-7 shooting, helping the visitors trail by just six at halftime, 40–34.
But everything changed after the break. Lomazs would not score again, and the blackout extended to the rest of his team.
“I think our effort in the second half changed the game,” Aris guard Bryce Jones said afterward. “Lomazs got off to a hot start. We just had to key in on him. He was the only guy who really had it going for them. Once we figured that out, we just wanted to be extra physical. I feel like they were too comfortable in the first half doing what they wanted. In the second half, we were more physical with them and used our athleticism to our advantage.”
That adjustment completely shifted the game’s rhythm. Neptunas managed just 8 points in the third quarter and recorded a -3 PIR in those 10 minutes. Meanwhile, Aris went a perfect 9-of-9 on two-pointers, scoring 25 points to build a comfortable lead, 52–36, midway through the period. Jones added 6 points and 2 assists in that stretch, helping establish the foundation for what would become an easy win. The hosts never looked back and kept stretching the gap.
“It got us a good lead, and this time we sustained it,” Jones celebrated. “We kept building from it, got it up to around 30 points. That’s a big step for us. Normally, we’ve been having leads and then losing them, making it close. Now we’re showing signs that we can put teams away. That’s a good sign heading into the end of the season.”
The victory, combined with U-BT Cluj-Napoca’s loss, leaves Aris on the verge of securing a playoff spot with a win in Romania next week - an improvement over last year’s performance.
“The next one is just as critical,” Jones said. “I feel like if we have the same mindset that we have now going into that game, I think we’ll have a great chance of winning. I believe in this team. We just need the support, which we have, and we’ve got to go in there, focus, play physical, and do what we do: play together, and we should come out with a win.”
“We are really happy that we stepped up big when we needed it the most. That was a do-or-die game,” Milicic reflected. “We keep ourselves in the race for the second round, so we cannot ask for more. I think this is a big, big step forward for us, especially compared to last year, when the team had only three wins. This year, we are chasing the second stage until the very last round. We’ll prepare everything and do all we can to accomplish success.”
