Paris Basketball hadn't played a game in two weeks, but it still hit top gear to beat BC Prometey 93-72 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup season.

Paris Basketball kicked off the rust and ran past BC Prometey 

Paris Basketball kicked off the rust of two weeks without a game to eventually [race past Prometey Slobozhanske, 93-72,](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/paris-basketball-races-past-bc-prometey-93-72-for-sixth-straight-victory/) for its sixth straight win in the BKT EuroCup. And it did so in usual Paris style.

Tuomas Iisalo’s team had not played a game since its Round 13 contest in the EuroCup on December 26, but Paris’s high-powered motor started revving back up in the second quarter.

“We can be satisfied. It’s good to start the new year with a win,” said Iisalo, whose team has not played in the French League since December 23. “Obviously you could see that we were rusty with some unnecessary turnovers. It took us some time to get going in the first half. But the guys took care of business and now we’re back in rhythm which is good for us.”

Paris has scored at least 93 in each of its last five, with the help of formidable guard Nadir Hifi contributing 26 points in a gain over London to maintain double-digits, while Prometey anticipate that Gian Clavell can maintain his backcourt form in after pairing 17 points with 6 assists to help defeat Cedevita.

Paris Basketball-Prometey Slobozhanske | Round 14 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

For TJ Shorts, who paced the home side with 18 points and 10 assists, he admitted that nothing comes close to real game action.

“You have so many practices, but nothing can replicate what you do in the game,” he commented. “So you saw a little bit of the rust in the first quarter and the second quarter, but if we do stick to the things that we do practice eventually it will start to click. And that’s what it did. It started in the second quarter. We just went back to our old ways and carried it out through the rest of the game.”

### Causing problems for Prometey

Paris did what it does so well: force turnovers and make its opponents pay. Prometey committed 17 turnovers with Paris grabbing 12 steals. And those miscues resulted in a 23-15 advantage in points off turnovers, with Paris committing 15 turnovers itself. Paris also outscored Prometey 25-12 in fastbreak points, getting easy points.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">2024 pour l’instant on aime bien 😈💥<br><br>On démarre l’année de la meilleure des manières à la maison avec vous 🖤❤️💙<br><br>On remet ça samedi à l’Accor Arena contre Monaco ? 👀 <a href="https://t.co/0yBPgWGlYL">pic.twitter.com/0yBPgWGlYL</a></p>&mdash; Paris Basketball (@ParisBasketball) <a href="https://twitter.com/ParisBasketball/status/1745197374375407888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Coach Iisalo, meanwhile, saw more potential in his team, which set a season high in turnovers, eclipsing the 14 from Round 4 – a double-overtime win at the London Lions – and Round 5 at Prometey.

“I think we could have scored 110 \[points\] if we didn’t turn it over and finished some layups,” he said. “But that’s not the point. The point is to find a way to win and that’s what the guys do time and time again.”

Even with the rust of not having played a game in two weeks.

More Paris News

Nadir Hifi of Paris Basketball shoots a three-pointer against Prometey Slobozhanske in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

It was another convincing display by Tuomas Iisalo's squad.

Paris kicked off the rust and ran past Prometey 

Paris Basketball v Prometey Slobozhanske (2024-01-10T19:30:00.000Z)

Slask Wroclaw notched its first home win in the EuroCup since December 21, 2022, when it defeated ratiopharm Ulm in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Slask Wroclaw’s smooth offense against ratiopharm Ulm ended its home curse

Slask Wroclaw fans could finally celebrate a home win on Wednesday as the team grabbed [a well-deserved 100-88 win over the visiting ratiopharm Ulm](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/slask-shocks-ulm-to-grab-first-home-win-100-88/), which was its first victory at Hala Orbita this season and the first since December 21, 2022. Despite having a slow start and trailing 9-13 midway through the first period, Slask soared in the second quarter to build a 15-point lead at halftime, which Ulm could not overcome in the second half.

One of the reasons why the home team became unreachable for Ulm was its fantastic and balanced offensive display, as Slask netted 31 points in the second quarter and 30 in the final stanza. Slask shot 60.5% from two on the night and 51.9% from behind the arc, as well as recording 24 assists.

Eliminated Slask target a shock result against an Ulm group bidding to end a two-game losing slump. The German champ triumphed in overtime when the teams met in Round 5 and the battle of big men could prove just as pivotal as it did that night with Trevion Williams and Dusan Miletic expected to face-off.

Slask Wroclaw-ratiopharm Ulm | Round 14 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

“First of all, congratulations for the fight. We were fighting from the beginning,” celebrated Slask head coach Jacek Winnicki. “The second thing \[is that\] we controlled the game. Our offense was really well organized, looking for the open guys. Our two point guards made 17 assists together, so it's much easier. \[We also got\] six players with double digits, so it means that that game was really well organized. And of course, we were really efficient when shooting trees”.

### McCollum, Klassen shined

As Coach Winniki pointed out, Slask backcourt excelled when it came to sharing and protecting the ball. Kendale McCollum provided 7 assists while turning it over just 3 times, yet Maerk Klassen went even further with a 13-point, 10-assist double-double on his debut, in which he lost just 2 possessions in 28 minutes.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="pl" dir="ltr">Dobranoc, wrocławianie! 🇮🇹<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/plkpl?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#plkpl</a> <a href="https://t.co/EqyIjpJPMl">pic.twitter.com/EqyIjpJPMl</a></p>&mdash; WKS Śląsk Wrocław - koszykówka (@WKS_SlaskBasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/WKS_SlaskBasket/status/1745209891470328019?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

One of the players that benefitted the most from the guards’ impressive play was Dusan Miletic. The Serbian big man had a slow start, finishing the first half with just 2 points, but he came up big after the intermission by netting 17, going for 11 in a row in the last period to end up killing Ulm.

“First of all, I want to congratulate my teammates and the coaching staff. This whole month, we had some ups and downs, we had some injuries, but this game showed that we can play, we played very well,” Miletic claimed. “We shared the ball, we trusted each other, and I believe this game is going to change a lot of things for us from this.”

More Slask News

Marek Klassen and Hassani Gravett of Slask Wroclaw come together during their team's 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Round 14 clash against ratiopharm Ulm.

The Polish side grabbed its first home win since December 21, 2022.

Slask’s smooth offense against Ulm ended its home curse

Slask Wroclaw v ratiopharm Ulm (2024-01-10T19:00:00.000Z)

Joventut Badalona defeated the Hamburg Towers 90-96 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Joventut Badalona comes out on top at Hamburg Towers, 90-96

Joventut Badalona secured a 90-96 victory at Veolia Towers Hamburg in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season. The Spanish side improved its regular-season record to 9-5 in Group A, while Hamburg fell to a 2-11 mark.

A fast-paced matchup in Hamburg produced top-quality basketball, with the rollercoaster going down to the wire before center Ante Tomic clinched it for Joventut with the last 6 points of the game.

Game News

Tomic paced the visitors with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrew Andrews racked up 19 points and 11 assists in a balanced and flowing effort on the offensive end. Andres Feliz posted 17 points and 6 assists, Vladimir Brodziansky netted 13 points and Tyler Cook chipped in with 12 for the visitors.

At the other end, Vincent King paced Hamburg with 17 points. Aljami Durham scored 16, while Nico Brauner, Aleksadar Dziewa and Jonas Wolfarth-Botterman chipped in with 10 apiece for the home team.

Game Videos

Hamburg led for much of the first half, but a late rally from Joventut allowed the visitors to take a slender 52-53 lead into the locker room at halftime, with Andrews scoring 15 points in the opening 20 minutes.

Joventut pulled away to 68-73 at the end of the third quarter before Hamburg came storming back early in the fourth with a 7-0 run, which resulted in a tit-for-tat battle until the very end.

Hamburg looked the more likely winner when it carved out an 88-83 advantage in the home stretch, only for Joventut to nose ahead 88-89 on the back of a four-point play from Feliz.

With the score tied 90-90, Tomic took over and forced Hamburg into submission to earn the player of the game award after a rip-roaring contest.

Ante Tomic of Joventut Badalona has possession against Veolia Towers Hamburg in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The Spanish side is within touching distance the postseason after a hard-fought win in Germany.

Joventut comes out on top at Hamburg, 90-96

Veolia Towers Hamburg v Joventut Badalona (2024-01-10T18:30:00.000Z)

Reyer Venezia beat Beşiktaş Basketbol 106-96 in overtime in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Reyer Venezia downs Beşiktaş Basketbol in overtime, 106-96

Umana Reyer Venice brought an end to its four-game losing streak with a 106-96 overtime victory over Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup season. The hosts were dominant in the first half and even led by 18, but Besiktas bounced back after the break to send the game to overtime. Reyer stepped up in the extra period, however, to improve to a 5-9 record and remained in the playoff race, while Besiktas dropped to 8-6.

Kyle Wiltjer led all scorers with a career-high 32 points, having gone 7-for-11 from deep. Marco Spissu netted 17, Rayjon Tucker had 16, Mfiondu Kabengele scored 14 and Parks paired his 13 points with 10 rebounds. For Besiktas, Derek Needham scored a season-high 27 points after drilling a career-high 8 triples. Jonah Mathews recorded 17 points, Angel Delgado finished with a 15-point, 16-rebound double-double and Matthew Mitchell had 10 points.

The latter opened the scoring with a midrange jumper, but Aamir Simms responded with a triple at the other end to put Reyer ahead, 3-2. Mathews and Delgado scored back-to-back baskets before Marko Simonovic netted his first-ever bucket for Besiktas to make it 5-8. A Spissu triple was followed by a Simonovic dunk in transition, but the Reyer guard drilled another one from deep to put the hosts in front, 11-10. Kabengele hit a couple of free throws to open his account on his Reyer debut, but Simonovic took his tally to 6 points. Then, Rayjon Tucker completed a three-point play and Kabengele scored another 4 points for a 20-14 Reyer cushion. A Mathews bucket and 2 free throws from Yigit Arslan brought Besiktas within 20-18 heading into the second quarter.

A Wiltjer triple was followed by a Davide Casarin basket and a couple of Kabengele buckets from inside as Reyer extended its lead to double digits, 29-18. Delgado responded with a basket, but a red-hot Wiltjer nailed 3 triples in a row for a 38-20 Reyer advantage. Spissu and Needham traded three-pointers after a Mathews three-point play and Amedeo Tessitori scored in transition, with Reyer maintaining a comfortable lead, 43-26. A couple of Needham triples allowed Besiktas to trim the deficit to 48-34, but 2 Wiltjer free throws and a Parks bucket from inside ensured that Reyer took a 52-38 lead into the second half.

After the break, the two teams were scoreless for a minute and a half before Mathews netted a jumper. Yet, Wiltjer responded at the other end with his fifth triple of the night, which was followed by a Parks dunk, 57-40. Then, Mitchell and Parks exchanged baskets before Spissu nailed one from downtown, but Simonovic completed a three-point play to bring the guests within 62-48. Delgado dunked with force to extend Besiktas’s run to 0-7, but Wiltjer drilled another triple to end the visitors' momentum, 65-52. A Needham three-pointer allowed Besiktas to cut the difference to single digits, with Reyer leading 67-59 at the end of the third quarter.

Casarin hit a corner three-pointer, but Allman made a couple of free throws and Arslan nailed one from deep to make it a two-possession affair, 70-65. Needham scored a couple of three-pointers and Besiktas tied it, 73-73, midway through the closing quarter. What followed was an exchange of leads before Mathews levelled 78-78 with a midrange jumper. Delgado hit back-to-back baskets from inside and Mathews nailed a big corner triple for an 80-86 Besiktas lead with 1:50 left on the clock. Wiltjer responded with a three-point play, but Needham netted his sixth triple of the night before Tucker nailed an off-balance three-pointer, 86-89. Then, Parks completed a three-point play of his own at the other end to tie the game, 89-89, and sent it to overtime.

A Needham triple was followed by a Kabengele jumper before Parks hit in transition to put Reyer ahead, 93-92. Then, Wiltjer completed a massive four-point play and Tucker hit 2 free throws for a 99-92 Reyer cushion with 2:08 to go. Needham drilled his eighth three-pointer of the night, but Wiltjer went 3-for-3 from the line to make it 102-95 and get the job done, as Reyer clinched a massive home win.

Jordan Parks of Umana Reyer Venice has possession against Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The Italian side came out on top in a shootout at Palasport Taliercio.

Reyer downs Besiktas in overtime, 106-96

Umana Reyer Venice v Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul (2024-01-10T19:00:00.000Z)

Paris Basketball beat BC Prometey 93-72 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Paris Basketball races past BC Prometey, 93-72, for sixth straight victory 

Paris Basketball kept rolling in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup season as the Group A leader stormed past Prometey Slobozhanske, 93-72, to record its sixth straight victory. Paris led by 10 points at halftime but blew the game wide open with an 18-3 start to the second half, as it improved its record to 13-1. Prometey had won three of its last four games but fell to 7-7, including 2-5 on the road.

TJ Shorts led the way with 18 points and 10 assists, while Tyson Ward scored 18 points and Collin Malcolm added 16 points. Tai Odiase was Prometey’s leading scorer with 14 points and Oleksandr Lypovyy had 11 points. DJ Kennedy collected 3 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in his first game of the season.

Prometey was playing the game without its head coach Ronen Ginzburg, who was sick and replaced by assistant coach Mantas Sernius. The guests started hot with 7 straight points to take a 6-14 lead after just 3 minutes. Promotey was up 12-19 before Paris started its first run, with Shorts scoring 6 points to get the hosts within 22-24 after 10 minutes.

Shorts added 4 more points to spark a 10-0 start to the second quarter for a 30-24 lead. Prometey answered with the next 5 points to cut the margin to 1 point. Yet, Bandja Sy, Malcolm and Nadir Hifi all hit three-pointers as Paris grew its advantage to 39-31. After 5 Prometey points, Paris hit 2 triples and the cushion grew to 47-36. The Group A leader was up 49-39 at the intermission.

Paris did not slow down in the second half, with Ward scoring 9 points in an 18-3 start to the third quarter for a 67-42 lead. Prometey did finish the third quarter with the final 4 points and trailed 73-52 after 30 minutes.

Three-pointers by Gian Clavell and Lypovyy trimmed the margin to 77-61 with 7 minutes to go. The advantage was down to 14 points, 79-65, after a Clavell score with 6 minutes to play. After scoring just one more basket in the next 3 minutes, Hifi and Mehdy Ngouama both drained three-pointers as Paris’s lead grew to 85-67 with 4 minutes to go. Prometey would not get closer the rest of the way.

Justin Simon of Paris Basketball in action against Prometey Slobozhanske in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The French side remains in control at the top of Group A.

Paris races past Prometey, 93-72, for sixth straight victory 

Slask Wroclaw defeated ratiopharm Ulm 100-88 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Slask shocks Ulm to grab first home win, 100-88

Slask Wroclaw grabbed its first home win of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup season when it defeated visiting ratiopharm Ulm 100-88 at Hala Orbita on Wednesday night. The hosts set the foundations for its victory with a great second quarter, in which they scored 31 points to lead 52-37 at halftime. Ulm attempted to come back several times in the second half, but Slask used a strong fourth quarter to prevent the visitors from getting closer than 5 points. Slask improved to 2-12, while Ulm slips to 8-6 after suffering its third loss in a row.

Dusan Miletic led the winners with 19 points, going perfect from behind the arc and adding 4 rebounds and 3 assists for a PIR of 26. Artsiom Parakhouski followed with 14 points, while Andrii Voinalovych and Mateusz Zebsky netted 13 points apiece. New Slask signing Marek Klassen had a 13-point, 10-assist double-double on his debut. Hassani Gravett completed a Slask six-player group scoring in double figures with 12 points. Karim Jallow paced Ulm with 22 points and 4 assists, Thomas Klepeisz finished with 15 points, LJ Figueroa chipped in 14, and Trevion Williams flirted with a triple-double by recording 12 points, 14 boards and 8 assists.

### Slask started slow, soared in the second period

Juan Nunez fed the visitors’ offense with a bucket and a timely assist for Jallow’s triple, which established an early 3-5 edge for Ulm. The guests displayed a balanced performance attacking the rim, with four different contributors when the score was 9-13 midway through the first period. The hosts were not fazed, though, and found Miletic and Zebski as its main weapons to earn a 18-16 lead after sparking a 9-3 run in less than 3 minutes. Klepeisz showed up from downtown to break the trend, but Aleksander Wisnieski replied from the same place to keep Slask in front, 21-19, after 10 minutes.

The home team continued punishing the visitors from deep, as back-to-back triples by Klassen and Gravett extended the gap to 31-24, forcing Ulm to call for a timeout. The answer came from the hands of Williams, who took over with 6 points in a row as he tried to bring Ulm back into the game. But the hosts were very sound offensively and made it a double-digit advantage, 42-32, when Voinalovych nailed his third trey. Things got even worse for the guests when Parakhouski showed up inside for Slask, providing 6 points in a 10-2 run that lifted the home team to a 15-point difference, 52-37, at halftime.

### Ulm reacted but fell short in the end

Ulm made the most of the break, coming out with a renewed spirit after the intermission. Figueroa and Klepeisz turned the lights on for the visitors, combining for 3 triples and 11 points to bring their team within 56-48 early in the third period. Williams got Ulm even closer, 58-52, with an inside bucket soon after to make it a ballgame once again. Zebski came to the rescue with 5 points in a row, followed by a lucky off-the-glass three-pointer by Miletic that returned a double-digit margin to Slask, 68-56, and aborted the visitors’ rally. A late push by Ulm behind a 1-7 run to end the third quarter allowed the visitors to stay alive, 70-62, entering the last stanza.

Klassen and Miletic opened fire from behind the arc early in the fourth, good for a 76-64 advantage for the home side. Ulm hit back with a strong 0-7 run capped by a three by Klepeisz to make it 76-71, but the rally didn’t go further because of Miletic’ timely contribution. The Serbian center hit twice from deep and added a two and a free throw to help Slask hold off Ulm, 87-78. That wouldn’t be the last time the visitors tried to come back, though, as Figueroa made it 89-83 from behind the arc a few minutes later. Slask remained cold-blooded, though, with Gravett and Klassen drilling back-to-back threes to put the game on ice, 96-86, entering the last minute.

Marek Klassen of Slask Wroclaw has possession against ratiopharm Ulm in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The Polish side gave its fans something to cheer in what has been a complicated season.

McKinley Wright scored 12 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter as Budućnost VOLI beat JL Bourg-en-Bresse 78-74 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup season.

McKinley Wright went to another gear as Budućnost VOLI downed Bourg

With 20 minutes played between Buducnost VOLI Podgorica and Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse, [McKinley Wright](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/mckinley-wright-iv/012606/) had just 4 points and 1 rebound to his name, with 0 assists. Buducnost trailed 30-39 at that point and it looked like Bourg was about to notch its eighth successive win in the BKT EuroCup.

Come the final buzzer, though, [Buducnost had won 78-74](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/buducnost-voli-stuns-group-b-leader-jl-bourg-en-bresse-78-74/) and Wright had improved those numbers to 16 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal. Wright had just 1 turnover after the break after also having 1 in the first half, too. Perhaps most impressively, 12 of those 16 points came in the final period as he kept his cool from the line and made some timely buckets.

McKinley Wright scored 12 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter as Buduunost VOLI Podgorica beat Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse 78-74 in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup season.

Wright's highlights vs. Bourg

### Wright is the engine for this Buducnost team

This season has not quite gone to plan for Buducnost, which came into this campaign hoping to be much further up the standings in Group A, but one of the few shining lights has been the play of Wright. The ex-Dallas Mavericks guard has shown in glimpses that he is more than capable of playing at this level, even if he has committed his fair share of turnovers.

Crucially, though, he knows how to put points on the board – and that’s exactly what he did in the second half against Bourg on Wednesday evening, as he had the most points in the game. Wright seems to be replicating his early-season form, too, as he has scored 10 points or more in four consecutive games after previously managing that same feat in the first four games of the campaign.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hard fought win 🔵⚪️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KKB?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KKB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HukMora%C4%8De?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HukMorače</a> <a href="https://t.co/Ojp5C1nAtc">pic.twitter.com/Ojp5C1nAtc</a></p>&mdash; KK Budućnost VOLI (@KKBuducnostVOLI) <a href="https://twitter.com/KKBuducnostVOLI/status/1745179281355845876?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

By beating Bourg, Buducnost can still dream of making the EuroCup Playoffs, as the seventh-placed team shares a 6-8 record with Aris Midea Thessaloniki in fifth and Dolomiti Energia Trento in sixth. With just four games remaining in the regular season, Wright will now be looking to keep up his impressive level and guide his team into the postseason.

More Buducnost News

McKinley Wright of Buducnost VOLI Podgorica looks to score against Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

He led his team in the second half en route to a very important win.

McKinley Wright went to another gear as Buducnost downed Bourg

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica v Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse (2024-01-10T18:00:00.000Z)

Budućnost VOLI secured a 78-74 win against JL Bourg-en-Bresse in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Budućnost VOLI stuns Group B leader Bourg, 78-74

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica has kept its BKT EuroCup playoff hopes alive by beating Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse, the leader in Group B coming into Round 14, 78-74 at Moraca on Wednesday evening. This triumph improved Buducnost to a 6-9 record, giving it hope entering the final regular-season games of the campaign, while Bourg’s seven-game winning run came to an end as it dropped to 11-3.

McKinley Wright paced Buducnost with 16 points, followed by Yoan Makoundou with 12, Vladimir Mihailovic with 11 and Brandon Paul with 10. For Bourg, Jeremy Morgan and Jequan Lewis had 13 points apiece in defeat.

Andrija Slavkovic got the game off to a perfect start for Buducnost with a floater from the right wing, but he landed badly on his ankle on that play and saw his night come to a premature end. Buducnost boosted its lead to 9-0 before Bourg finally got on the board thanks to Zaccharie Risacher, who drained a three, 9-3, with 7:00 minutes left in the first quarter. That bucket provided a boost for Bourg, which cut the gap to 9-8 on a Maksim Salash layup. But, Bourg led at the end of the opening period, 15-14.

Salash drained a triple with the first basket of the second quarter to give Bourg its first lead of the night, 15-17. Buducnost kept fighting back, but Bourg continued to find ways to nudge itself in front. There was Kevin Kokila’s put-back layup to set a 20-23 score, then an Isiaha Mike triple in transition to set Bourg’s biggest lead, 22-28, before a new game-high advantage – and the joint highest overall – was established when Earl Rowland made a tough three-pointer, 28-37. At the halftime break, Bourg retained its 9-point lead, 30-39.

When Risacher knocked down a three to set a game-high 11-point lead, 35-46, it seemed hard to imagine Buducnost responding. Yet, that’s just what it did and Mihailovic’s triple cut the gap to just 1 point, 44-47. There was a showtime alley-oop between Mihailovic and Marvin Jones, too, as he made it 46-47 before Paul stepped up from beyond the arc, 49-47. That 12-0 run saw Buducnost get back into the game and, crucially, in front. However, a strong response from Bourg meant that the visitors led 51-54 after 30 minutes.

Fletcher McGee got the fans off their seats by resolving a broken play with a three at the start of the fourth, 54-54, and the hosts then took a 60-54 advantage before Mike got Bourg’s first points of the final frame with a dunk, 60-56. When Makoundou scored a put-back dunk following some questionable defense by Bourg, the scoreboard read 68-60, with Buducnost having outscored the visitors 17-6 to that point in the fourth. Bourg refused to give up, though, and responded through Lewis and Morgan, but it proved to be in vain as Buducnost grabbed a 78-74 win.

Petar Popovic of Buducnost VOLI Podgorica looks to score against Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The Montenegrin side’s playoff push was given a boost by securing its sixth win of the season.

Buducnost stuns Group B leader Bourg, 78-74

Looking for a recipe to stay in the Group B playoff race, last season's finalist found the ingredients in defense and rebounding its own misses.

 Turk Telekom knows it has to keep on winning 

Turk Telekom Ankara edged even closer to the playoffs ranks in Group B after beating Dolomiti Energia Trento 78-70. But the Turkish side knows it still has work to do.

Turk Telekom not only beat Trento for its fourth win in the last five games for a 5-9 record but it also now holds the tiebreaker over the Italian club, which dropped to 6-8. 

"It was a must win for us. You need to win all your home games to be able to qualify," Turk Telekom coach Selcuk Ernak, whose team moved to 3-4 at home this season, said. 

"Now we have won four of five and we are only thinking step by step, game by game. We have to keep on winning."

The 2023 EuroCup runner-up has home games left against 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys and Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse, but still must play at reigning champion Dreamland Gran Canaria and Slask Wroclaw in the last four rounds. 

### Turk Telekom's defense, offensive rebound were key

Turk Telekom did a good job defensively against Trento, holding the guests to just 70 points – 13.2 points below its average coming into the game. 

A major reason for that was limiting Andrejs Grazulis to just 3 points and keeping Kamar Baldwin under wraps at 8 points. Both of Trento’s stars came into the game averaging 14.1 points per game. 

“Except for the first quarter, I am pretty satisfied with the defense we played," the Turk Telekom coach said. "Trento is a very talented team and scores more than 80 points per game. We managed to keep them at 70 points. That was the key."

Turk Telekom also dominated the glass, winning the rebound battle 42-27 with 11 offensive rebounds to keep up its league-high average of 13.1. Trento managed just 3 boards off its own glass, 8.5 below its average. That helped Turk Telekom to a 13-6 advantage in second-chance points. 

Turk Telekom knows it has to keep on winning

Turk Telekom Ankara v Dolomiti Energia Trento (2024-01-10T17:00:00.000Z)