Despite letting a 20-point lead wither to 2, Slask held on to snap a record losing streak.

Slask bent but did not break in character victory

Slask Wroclaw would not have been blamed if it had caved in to the pressure of the home side Turk Telekom Ankara making a big comeback. But the Polish club responded in a strong fashion unexpected from a team on the BKT EuroCup’s worst-ever losing streak and grabbed the win. 

Slask watched a 20-point lead with 11 minutes left in the game get trimmed to 2 points with 5 minutes to go. But Jacek Winnicki’s team did not break and [grabbed a 71-80 win against the 2023 EuroCup runner-up](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/turk-telekom-ankara-slask-wroclaw/U2023/90/).

“I am very very happy with this win. We showed character. We played from the beginning to the end of the game,” said the Slask coach, whose team moved to 1-8 in Group B. “The most important thing for me as a coach and for us as a team is when the situation got tough and they cut the lead to 2 points with 5 minutes left we responded in a good tough way. We did not break.”

Slask came into the game without a victory this season and having lost 17 straight EuroCup games dating back to Round 9 from last season on December 21, 2022. The victory also ended the EuroCup all-time record of 26 consecutive road losses. Slask's last win away from home in the competition came on December 11, 2007.

Either Turk Telekom or Slask are to finally celebrate the end of a long losing run in a game that may be already destinated as a bid to avoid the wooden spoon in Group B.

Turk Telekom Ankara-Slask Wroclaw | Round 9 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

“It was a long time coming for this first win. We are going to enjoy this one,” said Jakub Niziol, who set a career-high with 25 points and was also on the Slask team that last won a game in the EuroCup. 

Slask played strong offense and solid defense and built a 40-60 lead late in the third quarter. Turk Telekom raced back into the game and the deficit was just 64-66 with the home fans in the game. 

But Winnicki was satisfied with how his team remained composed amid the pressure.

“We responded with patient offense. We created good shots and made those shots and after that, we started to control the game again,” said the coach. 

Hassani Gravett was key to that answer as the Slask guard drained 3 three-pointers and scored 12 of his 15 points in the final 5 minutes to make sure that Slask would come back home as a winner - for the first time in some time.

Turk Telekom Ankara v Slask Wroclaw (2023-11-28T17:00:00.000Z)

Umana Reyer Venice showed just how strong it can be with an arousing second quarter in a convincing 94-77 victory over Veolia Towers Hamburg. 

Marco Spissu: 'We can be a problem for every team'

Umana Reyer Venice showed just how strong it can be with an arousing second quarter in a convincing 94-77 victory over Veolia Towers Hamburg.

Reyer blew the game wide open with a 31-17 second quarter as the Italian side won its third game in the last four to move to 4-5 on the fringes of the playoff ranks in Group A.

“We deserved to win this game... I think we were the better team. We had a lot of good minutes but we also had a lot of mistakes,” said Reyer head coach Neven Spahija.

Reyer came into the game allowing the second-fewest offensive rebounds to its opponents. But Hamburg grabbed 12 offensive rebounds - 3.1 more than Reyer’s average.

“They were very aggressive and had 12 offensive rebounds. That is the only thing we did not control today. The other parts of the game we did well, we controlled them. And the end of the second quarter was spectacular,” the coach said.

Marco Spissu led the way against Hamburg

The game had been tight for the first 15 minutes and the home side led 36-33. Spahija’s men then unleashed a 17-0 run over the next 4:34 minutes to take control of the game with a 53-33 lead. The surge included 3 Reyer three-pointers and 4 forced Hamburg turnovers.

All five Reyer starters scored in double figures - paced by [Marco Spissu](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/marco-spissu/004381/)’s 22 points - and the team dished out 24 assists in shooting 63.9% on two-pointers and 40.9% on three-pointers.

“This was a team win. They were playing really tough defense. We built the gap in the second quarter and in the end, we just managed the game but also did well playing the game,” said Spissu, who also dished a career-high 9 assists and posted a season-best PIR of 32 in the game.

The point guard said this is how the team wants to play - and how it can achieve its goals.

"We just need to play together. If we play together like this, we can be a problem for every team. We need to keep going,” Spissu said.

Game News

The Reyer playmaker dished a career-best 9 assists and posted a season-high PIR of 32 in the win. 

Marco Spissu, Reyer: 'We can be a problem for every team'

Umana Reyer Venice v Veolia Towers Hamburg (2023-11-28T19:00:00.000Z)

The London Lions had plenty of reasons to be happy after racing past Wolves Vilnius 87-101 on Tuesday night in the Lithuanian capital including Sam Dekker's return from injury.

Sam Dekker's return was another bright spot for London

The London Lions had plenty of reasons to be happy after racing past Wolves Vilnius 87-101 on Tuesday night in the Lithuanian capital. Of course, chief among them was the win itself, which raised London’s record to 7-2 and guaranteed it at least a share of second place in Group A at the midway point of the regular season.

Then there was the way London played early in building a 35-55 halftime lead.

“We matched their physicality well tonight. We came out with a lot of energy,” said [Conor Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/conor-morgan/009680/), who shined with 22 points, 5 three-pointers made and a PIR of 36, which were all career bests.

With that energy, London turned defense into offense in the early going; the visitors collected 6 steals and forced 11 turnovers in the first 20 minutes and turned them into 20 points. In contrast, Wolves only netted 5 points from London's 6 first-half turnovers.

Sam Dekker made his return for London against Wolves

Wolves fought back in the second half, when they only committed 4 more turnovers. The hosts also outrebounded London 42-33, but that 20-points halftime difference was too much for Wolves to overcome.

The victory was a perfect time for London to welcome back its star forward [Sam Dekker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/sam-dekker/009672/), who had not played since Round 4, over a month ago. Dekker featured for only 15:31 minutes, in which he contributed 9 points and 3 rebounds. Nevertheless, having him back is huge for the club as it looks to the second half of the regular season.

“He is extremely important \[to our team\],” London head coach Petar Bozic said after the game. “He is one of the leaders on our team. We are fortunate that we have more. It was really a pleasure seeing him back on the court.”

And with Dekker back in tow, London has good reason to be excited about whatever is coming next.  

The star forward scored 9 in his first appearance in over a month.

Wolves Vilnius v London Lions (2023-11-28T17:00:00.000Z)

Umana Reyer Venice picked up an important victory in its fight to reach the playoffs by rolling past Hamburg Veolia Towers 94-77 at home. 

Reyer downs Hamburg, 94-77, for third win in four games 

Umana Reyer Venice picked up an important victory in its fight to reach the playoffs by rolling past Hamburg Veolia Towers 94-77 at home. Marco Spissu led the way with 22 points and 9 assists for Reyer, which won for the third time in the last four games for a 4-5 record in Group A. Amedeo Tessitori added 18 points and RayJon Tucker chipped in 12 points. Hamburg’s playoff hopes are fading fast after it dropped to 1-8 despite Aljami Durham scoring 17 points and Aleksander Dziewa 15.

### Hamburg starts strong

The game started with a good flow with both teams scoring. Mark Hughes’s fastbreak dunk made it 6-10 and youngster Leif Moeller hit a triple to put the guests up 8-13. Reyer reeled off 6 straight points with Spissu’s three-pointer giving the home side a 14-13 lead. Dziewa picked up 4 points at the other end and Hamburg led 18-20 but it was Reyer that was up 22-20 after 10 minutes.

### Reyer pulls away in second quarter

Moeller kept Hamburg close with 5 more points - including a second triple - for a 28-27 scoreline. Reyer scored 6 straight free throws in pushing the margin out to 36-30. Davide Casarin and Spissu added three-pointers and the hosts surged ahead 44-33. Jordan Parks added a triple and Reyer got out on the break and the lead swelled to 53-33 with a 17-0 run. The Italians went into the break ahead 53-37.

Game Videos

### Tessitori pushed lead to 20

Reyer was back up by 20 points, 59-39, after Tessitori drained back-to-back three-pointers. Hamburg tried to get back into the game but could not close within 17 points as the hosts had an answer for every score. Late in the quarter, Nico Brauner knocked down a three-pointer and Hamburg was down 74-60 with 10 minutes left in the game.

The visitors would not give up and 3 VJ King free throws and a Durham score got the score to 77-65. Tucker and Spissu responded with back-to-back three-pointers and the advantage was back to 20 points, 85-65, with less than 6 minutes to go. Durham hit a triple for the guests but Spissu answered with his 4th three-pointer of the game and ended any dreams of mounting a comeback.

The hosts blew the game open with 17-0 second-quarter run.

Jakub Niziol and Hassani Gravett produced star performances as Slask Wroclaw ended two long losing streaks in the BKT EuroCup with a 71-80 victory over Turk Telekom Ankara. 

Niziol, Gravett come up big as Slask ends two long streaks 

Jakub Niziol and Hassani Gravett produced star performances as Slask Wroclaw ended two long losing streaks in the BKT EuroCup with a 71-80 victory over Turk Telekom Ankara.

Niziol set a career high for the second straight game as he poured in 25 points and Gravett tallied 12 of his 15 points in the final 5 minutes as Slask won its first game of the season.

It snapped Slask’s 17-game EuroCup losing streak, dating back nearly an entire calendar year to December 21, 2022 with a 80-57 win over Dolomiti Energia Trento. The win also ended the EuroCup’s longest road losing streak in history, Slask having lost the last 26 games away from home dating back to December 11, 2007.

“It was a long time coming for this first win,” said Niziol, who tallied 21 points in Slask’s Round 8 loss to 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys. “We are going to enjoy this one.”

Jakub Niziol led the way against Turk Telekom

Niziol is one of four Slask players who were on the team when it won the last game in the EuroCup. He scored 9 points in that game last December. Daniel Golebiowski, Aleksander Wisniewski and Mikolaj Adamczak were the other three Slask players.

Slask won the game over Turk Telekom by shooting 64.0% on two-pointers and holding the hosts to just 41.1% on two-pointers and 18.2% on three-pointers - two areas the Turkish side had been struggling all season, averaging 48.2% and 32.0% coming into the gamer.

Slask survived Turk Telekom grabbing 26 offensive rebounds - just 1 shy of the EuroCup’s all-time record of 27. And the Polish side has been weak in that field as well, ranking 17th in opposing team’s offensive rebounds with 12.4 per game.

“Hopefully we can keep up the winning mentality after this first win. I know it’s not a lot, but it means a lot for us,” added Niziol.

Duo combined for half of Slask's points in the Turkish capital. 

Slask Wroclaw kept alive its faint hopes of reaching the EuroCup Playoffs by surprising Turk Telekom Ankara 71-80 on the road for its first victory of the season. 

Slask ends 17-game losing skid, surprises Turk Telekom 71-80

Slask Wroclaw kept alive its faint hopes of reaching the EuroCup Playoffs by surprising Turk Telekom Ankara 71-80 on the road for its first victory of the season. Jakub Niziol poured in a career-high 25 points to lead the Polish side, which improved to 1-8 in Group B and snapped a 17-game EuroCup losing streak. Slask’s last EuroCup win came in Round 9 of last season on December 21, 2022 - 80-57 over Dolomiti Energia Trento. Hassani Gravett added 15 points - 12 of them in the final 5 minutes - and Daniel Golebiowski chipped in 14 points for the winners.

The 2023 runner-up Turk Telekom has now lost seven straight games for a 1-8 record despite Markis McDuffie scoring 18 points with 9 rebounds and Steven Enoch adding 13 points and 11 rebounds. Turk Telekom grabbed 26 offensive rebounds - just one shy of the all-time EuroCup record.

### Slask takes charge with 0-10 run

Turk Telekom turned the ball over three times in the first 2 minutes and did not score until Enoch’s free throw after more than 4 minutes but Slask only led 0-5. The home side was able to stay close at 7-9 before Slask went on a 0-10 run over the final 3:35 minutes of the first quarter and led 7-19.

### Margin reaches 19 before Turk Telekom rallies

Turk Telekom called a timeout after Slask scored the first basket of the second quarter for a 7-21 cushion. Okben Ulubay’s three-pointer ended the 0-12 run but Niziol drained two three-pointers and the Slask advantage grew. Another Niziol triple pushed the margin to 16-35. Turk Telekom showed some life with a 6-0 run over 3 minutes to close within 22-35. Sparked by some energetic defense by Mehmet Yagur, the hosts trimmed the deficit to 29-39 at the break.

### Slask pulls away again

Ulubay’s basket to start the second half got the hosts within single figures but Niziol countered with a three-point play and Turk Telekom was in the foul limit after less than 4 minutes. Niziol added 4 more points and Golebiowski hit 2 three-pointers as the cushion grew to 20 points - 40–60. Turk Telekom responded with some defensive pressure to produce the next 8 points and trailed 48-61 after 30 minutes.

### Gravett helps Slask hold on

Niziol continued his superb game with a layup and three-pointer to make it 52-66 early in the final frame. McDuffie sparked Turk Telekom with his offensive rebounding and 6 points as the hosts surged within 64-66 with 5 minutes to play. Gravett countered with 3 big three-pointers and added 2 free throws for Slask to stop the run at 65-77 with just over 2 minutes left.

Jakub Niziol stars as Slask claims first win since 2022. 

The London Lions ensured themselves at least a share of second place at the midway point in Group A after racing past Wolves Vilnius 87-101 at Avia Solutions Group Arena in the Lithuanian capital to improve to 7-2 on the season. 

London races past Lions, 87-101, for 4th straight win

The London Lions ensured themselves at least a share of second place at the midway point in Group A after racing past Wolves Vilnius 87-101 at Avia Solutions Group Arena in the Lithuanian capital to improve to 7-2 on the season. Conor Morgan starred with 22 points on 5-of-8 three-point shooting for a PIR of 36 to pace the winners. Gabe Olaseni added 21 points, Donte Grantham scored 15, Matt Morgan 11 and Sam Dekker returned from injury to contribute 9 points in 15 minutes.

Wolves dropped their second straight at home in slipping to 4-4 this season. Tre'Shawn Thurman posted 22 points and 8 rebounds in defeat. Adas Juskevicius and Christian Mekowulu netted 17 points apiece, Vitalijus Kozys scored 10 and Kristupas Zamaitis dished a career-high and club record 9 assists.

### Wolves' second unit makes a difference

Conor Morgan had the hot hand as London raced to a 2-8 start. A three-point play by Djordje Gagic halved the deficit, but Conor Morgan scored twice more – taking his individual total to 10 points – in stretching the margin. Olaseni free throws made it 9-18. Mekowulu made an impact off the bench for Wolves as did Dekker for London. A pair of Juskevicius threes trimmed the gap to 22-24 at the end of the quarter.

### London launches three-point barrage

Olaseni put his stamp on the game with 6 points in a 0-7 spurt to give Lions a 24-33 advantage. Wolves called timeout after which Mekowulu scored on a put-back. Back-to-back threes by Grantham gave the visitors their first double-digit lead, 28-41. The difference continued to swell as Dekker connected form deep, 33-49. Luke Nelson then took over before Dekker's free throws gave London a 35-55 halftime cushion.

### Wolves chip away at the deficit

London went up by 22 as the third quarter started before Kozys triggered a 7-0 Wolves response. The Lions regrouped and before long Matt Morgan knocked down a three to make it 45-69. Wolves continued to push as Juskevicius made his fourth three of the game and Thurman heated up to get within 58-73. Mekowulu free throws closed the gap to 62-76 at the end of the third quarter.

### Morgan helps London seal the win

A four-point play by Conor Morgan eased any pressure London was feeling and Josh Shurna made an impact on both ends. Juskevicius came alive with a pair of assists and a three-pointer in an 8-0 run that gave Wolves hope at 76-85 with 5 minutes left. London escaped with the next 6 points. Wolves kept the pressure on, but could only get as close as 9 as time became the enemy. Conor Morgan took London to 100 points as the Lions marched to victory.

Conor Morgan roared as the Lions led from tip to buzzer. 

London races past Wolves, 87-101, for 4th straight win

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana hopes to turn season around with signing of Rasid Mahalbasic.

Cedevita signed veteran center Rasid Mahalbasic

On Tuesday afternoon, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana made official the addition of experienced center [Rasid Mahalbasic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/rasid-mahalbasic/003042/) on a deal for the remainder of the season. The player retains an escape clause in the contract. Mahalbasic (2.11 meters, 33 years old) last played for San Pablo Burgos of Spain. This will be his fourth BKT EuroCup season with a fourth different team - he played for CEZ Nymburk in 2013-14, Nizhny Novgorod in 2015-16 and Oldenburg in 2019-20 - having played a total of 53 games in the competition. He has also scored a total of 671 points and collected 315 rebounds.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="sl" dir="ltr">Pod obema obročema nas je okrepil Rašid Mahalbašić!<a href="https://twitter.com/RasidMahalbasic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RasidMahalbasic</a>, dobrodošel v Zmajevi družini! 💚🧡<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ZmajevaDruzina?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ZmajevaDruzina</a> <a href="https://t.co/QH5zQDxFAv">pic.twitter.com/QH5zQDxFAv</a></p>&mdash; Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (@KKCedOL) <a href="https://twitter.com/KKCedOL/status/1729491016133063044?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Mahalbasic also has Turkish Airlines EuroLeague experience; he played for Prokom of Poland in 2012-13. He is a basketball nomad, having played for 15 different teams since his pro debut in 2006 in countries such as Turkey, Spain, Croatia, Germany, Russia and Austria, where he started his career with the Kelag Worthersee Piraten for four seasons.

BC Wolves look to fight off the flying London Lions

The matchup between Wolves Vilnius (4-3) and the London Lions (6-2) in Group A of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup should be a great barometer of where these two ambitious teams stand. This Tuesday evening (18:00 CET) at Avia Solutions Group Arena, a fascinating clash looms.

First of all, let’s talk about London. Playing in its second season in the EuroCup, the team led by first-year head coach Petar Bozic is flying. If last year was London testing the water in the competition under then-head coach Ryan Schmidt, Coach Bozic – together with some terrific off-season moves by GM Brett Burman – has taken the Lions into Phase 2.

### London Lions are on a roll

London comes into Tuesday evening’s game on a three-game winning run, while it is a perfect 4-0 on its travels this season. In fact, in regulation, London would be 6-1-1 but it ended up falling at home to Paris Basketball in overtime in Round 4, before then losing at home to Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv in front of a limited crowd one week later.

Since that Hapoel defeat, however, London has responded in style by downing Joventut Badalona, 76-87, and Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul, 80-83, on the road, then Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, 101-95, at home. Importantly, with star player Sam Dekker having not played since that Round 4 defeat to Paris, the likes of Matt Morgan, Gabe Olaseni and Conor Morgan have really taken their games up a notch to get London back on track.

The good news for London fans is that Dekker is set to make his return to action on Thursday evening, with both the 29-year-old and the Lions’ social media accounts hinting that he will play some part against the Wolves. Given that Coach Bozic’s side has shown that it can record important wins in Dekker’s absence, the return of the 2022-23 All-EuroCup Second Team selection only adds to London’s array of weapons.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">“We’re undefeated on the road right now, so looking to keep it going.” 🗣️ <a href="https://twitter.com/TheRealMM10?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheRealMM10</a><br><br>BIG <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EuroCup</a> road game tomorrow vs <a href="https://twitter.com/wolves_bc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wolves_bc</a> 🇱🇹👀<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreLondon?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreLondon</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoadToGreatness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoadToGreatness</a> <a href="https://t.co/kNzS4uZLRr">pic.twitter.com/kNzS4uZLRr</a></p>&mdash; London Lions (@LondonLions) <a href="https://twitter.com/LondonLions/status/1729197623993852310?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### Wolves have looked comfortable at this level

In some ways, the Wolves are coming up against an organization they can take some lessons from. Yet, in their debut season in the EuroCup, they are showing that they are growing game by game. Notably, the side led by experienced head coach Kestutis Kemzura is also demonstrating that it can overcome setbacks and remain competitive.

Despite a tricky start to the campaign that saw the Wolves lose back-to-back games on the road at Paris Basketball, 105-78, and Joventut Badalona, 107-98, they have tightened up their defense and managed to put together a 4-1 record since then, which includes wins against two teams currently in the playoff spots: Besiktas, 90-88, in Round 4 and Prometey Slobozhanske, 85-71, in Round 6. Last week, the Lithuanian team got back to winning ways after downing Veolia Towers Hamburg, 71-84, having lost in Round 7 to Umana Reyer Venice, 77-93.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We got London Lions in the building 🏀 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreWolves?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreWolves</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoadToGreatness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoadToGreatness</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BKTEuroCup?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BKTEuroCup</a> <a href="https://t.co/SP1cscLOhu">pic.twitter.com/SP1cscLOhu</a></p>&mdash; BC WOLVES (@wolves_bc) <a href="https://twitter.com/wolves_bc/status/1729437064725201223?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Impressively, they have done this with veteran forward Jeffrey Taylor yet to play this season, star addition Arturs Zagars having suffered a season-ending injury before their third EuroCup game and Rasheed Sulaimon, the Round 6 MVP, having not played in the team’s last two fixtures.

So far, so good, you could say. The Wolves announced that Sulaimon is out for four weeks on November 16, meaning that they will be without their leading scorer and the player with the highest average PIR until mid-December, but the likes of Tre’Shawn Thurman, Djordje Gagic and Adas Juskevicius have picked up the load since then.

The top plays of Wolves Vilnius and the London Lions so far this season in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The best plays of Wolves, London this season

### Both in the playoff places

London enters this game sat third in the Group A standings, tied on a 6-2 record with second-placed Besiktas, while the Wolves are in fifth after going 4-3. Coach Kemzura’s group has a 2-1 mark in Vilnius so far this season, but it did lose on its last game on its home floor, falling to Reyer.

The Wolves are averaging an impressive 5,836 fans at Avia Solutions Group Arena through their first three home games to this point, so a good crowd is expected for this clash. Two clubs with sky-high dreams are ready to go to battle, but who will come out on top? Will London improve to 7-2 and 5-0 on the road, or will the Wolves make it five wins from six? Make sure to tune in from 18:00 CET to find out!

The Wolves Vilnius players celebrate after downing Veolia Towers Hamburg in Round 8 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Petar Bozic’s squad is unbeaten on the road so far this season, but a big test awaits in Vilnius, Lithuania.