Tyler Cook, a player with 65 games of experience in the NBA, has joined Joventut Badalona on a deal until the end of the 2023-24 season.

Tyler Cook joins Joventut Badalona until the end of the season

Joventut Badalona has confirmed the signing of Tyler Cook on a deal until the end of the 2023-24 season. Cook (2.03 meters, 26 years old) will get his first taste of European basketball with Joventut, having previously spent his career in his native United States and also in Australia. The power forward arrives with the aim of improving Joventut’s play in the BKT EuroCup, with the team having gone 3-4 through the first seven games.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ca" dir="ltr">💥 Tyler Cook: potència física pel joc interior de la Penya<br><br>🤝 El pivot nord-americà signa fins al final de temporada<br><br>🔗 La notícia: <a href="https://t.co/cJGONrl9qt">https://t.co/cJGONrl9qt</a><br><br>😀 Welcome to Badalona, <a href="https://twitter.com/iamtc25?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@iamtc25</a>!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Badalona%C3%89sFutur?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BadalonaÉsFutur</a> <a href="https://t.co/p7AAmNg4Qo">pic.twitter.com/p7AAmNg4Qo</a></p>&mdash; Club Joventut Badalona (@Penya1930) <a href="https://twitter.com/Penya1930/status/1725121582480126108?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 16, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### High-level experience

Since leaving the University of Iowa in 2019, Cook played 13 games in the 2019-20 NBA season with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Denver Nuggets, 32 games with the Detroit Pistons and the Brooklyn Nets in the 2020-21 campaign, and 20 games with the Chicago Bulls in the 2021-22 season. As such, he played a total of 65 games in the NBA, averaging 3.8 points and 2.5 rebounds in 10.6 minutes on the floor. Cook scored a career-high 17 points against Denver while playing for Detroit on May 15, 2021.

He also spent time in the G League with the Canton Charge, the Oklahoma City Blue, the Iowa Wolves and the Windy City Bulls, before spending the 2022-23 campaign with the Salt Lake City Stars, the Utah Jazz’s G League affiliate. Cook also had a brief stint in Australia with the South East Melbourne Phoenix as an injury replacement.

More Joventut News

New Joventut Badalona signing Tyler Cook in action for the Chicago Bulls in the 2021-22 NBA season.

The 26-year-old big man arrives with 65 games of experience in the NBA.

Tyler Cook joins Joventut until the end of the season

Here are the leaders in the main statistical categories for Round 7 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season. 

Round 7, individual highs: Gediminas Orelik, Lietkabelis, 31 points

[Points](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=traditional&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=score)

Gediminas Orelik of 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys led all players in scoring with 31 points in Round 7. Rasheed Sulaimon of Wolves Vilnius is the competition's top scorer at 20.2 points per night.

[Rebounds](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=traditional&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=totalRebounds)

Angel Delgado of Besiktas had 14 rebounds, the most in this round. Trevion Williams of ratiopharm Ulm leads the overall standings with 11.2 boards per game.

[Assists](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=traditional&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=assistances)

Juan Nunez of Ulm and Donatas Sabeckis of Lietkabelis led all players in Round 7 with 10 assists apiece. Klemen Prepelic of Cedevita ranks first overall with 9.5 dimes per contest.

[Steals](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=traditional&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=steals)

Jeremy Morgan of Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse had a round-high 5 steals. Isiaha Mike, also of Bourg, is the competition leader in steals with 2.4 steals per game.

[Blocks](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=traditional&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=blocksFavour)

Ben Lammers of Dreamland Gran Canaria and Dusan Miletic of Slask Wroclaw both made 5 blocks in Round 7. Miletic is the competition's leading shot blocker at 2.3 per game.

[Double-doubles](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/stats/expanded/?size=1000&viewType=miscellaneous&seasonCode=U2023&statisticMode=accumulated&seasonMode=Single&sortDirection=descending&statistic=doubleDoubles)

Six players had a double-double in Round 7: Karel Guzman of Cluj (14 points, 12 rebounds), Delgado of Besiktas (18 points, 14 rebounds), Nunez of Ulm (12 points, 10 assists), Steven Enoch of Turk Telekom Ankara (12 points, 13 rebounds), Williams of Ulm (13 points, 10 rebounds), and Sabeckis of Lietkabelis (10 points, 10 assists).

7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys v Turk Telekom Ankara (2023-11-14T17:00:00.000Z)

Dreamland Gran Canaria v Slask Wroclaw (2023-11-15T20:00:00.000Z)

Dolomiti Energia Trento v U-BT Cluj-Napoca (2023-11-15T19:00:00.000Z)

ratiopharm Ulm v Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (2023-11-14T18:30:00.000Z)

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse v Aris Midea Thessaloniki (2023-11-14T18:30:00.000Z)

Wolves Vilnius v Umana Reyer Venice (2023-11-15T17:00:00.000Z)

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana v Veolia Towers Hamburg (2023-11-15T17:30:00.000Z)

Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul v London Lions (2023-11-15T17:00:00.000Z)

Joventut Badalona v Paris Basketball (2023-11-14T19:30:00.000Z)

Prometey Slobozhanske v Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv (2023-11-14T17:00:00.000Z)

The London Lions are roaring louder and louder in the EuroCup, with Petar Bozic's side securing an impressive 80-83 win at Beşiktaş J.K. in Round 7 to improve to 5-2.

London Lions continue to make noise in the EuroCup

It’s a good time to be a fan of the London Lions. Playing in their second season in the BKT EuroCup, the team from the English capital now find themselves with a 5-2 record in Group A, good enough for a share of second place. Interestingly, the side that London is now level with record-wise is Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul, the club it beat on Wednesday night.

In a game that went right down to the final seconds, [London did enough to hold on at BJK Emlakjet Sports & Event Hall as it won 80-83](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/london-lions-hold-off-besiktas-jk-comeback-80-83/). Petar Bozic’s squad was without Sam Dekker, an All-EuroCup Second Team selection in 2022-23, as well as Tarik Phillip, Kareem Queeley and Bradley Kaboza, while Ciaran Sandy and Rokas Gustys didn’t step onto the court. As such, London leaned on eight players to get the job done.

Besiktas strive for a fifth home triumph, again with focus on defense, as it ranks second in the tournament at just 72.3 ppg allowed. Meanwhile, the Lions have rediscovered their roar since beating Joventut and are equipped with Gabe Olaseni to help make the difference.

Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul-London Lions | Round 7 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

What helps, obviously, is when those players step up to the plate. Just two London players managed to reach double figures, with Gabe Olaseni posting a game-high 24 points and Matt Morgan adding 17, but there was a solid contribution right across the board: Mo Soluade and Luke Nelson both had 9 points, Conor Morgan 8, Donte Grantham 7, Jordan Taylor 5 and Josh Sharma 4.

### Matt Morgan did a bit of everything

In his rookie EuroCup season, the scoring of Matt Morgan has been one of the most enjoyable revelations. The 26-year-old is averaging 18.7 points through his seven-game EuroCup career to date, and even if his tally in Istanbul was a bit lower than that, he put his fingerprints on the game in a number of ways.

Surprisingly, the 1.88-meter Morgan grabbed a team-high 8 rebounds against Besiktas, while – not so surprisingly – he also led his side in assists with 7. It very much felt like a European triple-double (given NBA games last eight minutes longer). Time and time again, the American guard found ways to make an impact for his team, be that scoring or finding teammates for good looks at the basket.  

Matt Morgan had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists as the London Lions beat Besiktas Emlajket Istanbul 80-83 in Round 7 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Matt Morgan's highlights vs. Besiktas

With Dekker having made just two appearances so far this season, which came in Round 3 at Prometey Slobozhanske and Round 4 against Paris Basketball, it has been the job of Morgan to keep London competitive this season. It would not be a surprise if the former Le Mans standout is getting some key tips from Coach Bozic on how to run the team, too, given the Serbian’s 122-game Turkish Airlines EuroLeague career with Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade.

“Man, the crowd was amazing. That team was a really good team, but we stayed together, we played a really good game, so hopefully we can build on this and keep winning,” Morgan said in the post-game flash interview.

“I think it’s my teammates \[that helped me play at this level\], honestly. They got me open, I made some tough shots, but a lot of my stuff came from them. A lot of stuff came in the flow of the offense.”

### London’s offense was ticking along perfectly

Speaking of offense, London moved the ball excellently against Besiktas. Wednesday night’s visiting team finished with 23 assists, its fourth-best mark this season, with Morgan (7), Taylor (6) and Conor Morgan (5) contributing a combined 18 dimes between them. Even on social media after the game, Dekker was particularly impressed with the way Coach Bozic’s squad moved the ball.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Basketball is beautiful. <a href="https://twitter.com/LondonLions?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LondonLions</a><br><br> <a href="https://t.co/wLg3KaOFwq">pic.twitter.com/wLg3KaOFwq</a></p>&mdash; Sam Dekker (@dekker) <a href="https://twitter.com/dekker/status/1724869264618709389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

So, too, was Bozic. Speaking immediately after the final buzzer and then again in the post-game press conference, the 44-year-old stressed his delight at London 23 assists, which comes one week after recording 25 in another road win at Joventut Badalona.

“Amazing game. We played in front of a full gym against one of the top teams in the EuroCup,” commented Coach Bozic in the post-game press conference. “I am so proud with my team, how they handled the whole atmosphere. We shared the ball well – I’m very happy with the 23 assists.”

### An important victory

By coming away from Istanbul with the win, London improved its record to 5-2, but perhaps more importantly it prevented Besiktas from going 6-1. Instead, Dusan Alimpijevic’s side dropped to 5-2, level with London. While Paris Basketball – one of just two teams to beat London this season – is a perfect 7-0, Wednesday night’s triumph in Turkiye keeps the English club in contention to secure the second seed in the playoffs, although there’s still a long way to go yet.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">CLUTCH D to secure a historic W against a strong <a href="https://twitter.com/BJK_Basketbol?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BJK_Basketbol</a> team 😤🦁<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/rN3OxU431e">pic.twitter.com/rN3OxU431e</a></p>&mdash; London Lions (@LondonLions) <a href="https://twitter.com/LondonLions/status/1724891853827486052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Nevertheless, London going 4-0 on its travels – the second-best mark in the entire EuroCup – is nothing to be sniffed at. Coach Bozic has this team playing at a very high level and the best part is that it can add a player of Dekker’s quality into the mix once he is back healthy. London may not have the European history of some other clubs in the EuroCup, but it is already a major force in the competition. As I said at the top, it’s a good time to be a London fan.

More London Lions News

The London Lions players celebrate after beating Besiktas Emlajket Istanbul in Round 7 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Petar Bozic’s players have shown no sign of slowing down, as they are now 4-0 on the road.

EuroCup Fantasy Challenge offers weekly prizes to the top team manager, so get in the game and go for the gold!

EuroCup Fantasy Challenge: Round 7 winner

[EuroCup Fantasy Challenge](https://eurocupfantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/home) offers weekly prizes to the top team manager, so get in the game and go for the gold!

Congratulations to Tyler Fairbairn, the Round 7 winner in EuroCup Fantasy Challenge! Tyler's team Tyrese posted a score of 207.35.

The team featured the following lineup: team captain Matt Morgan of London Lions, his teammate Gabe Olaseni, Rayjon Tucker of Umana Reyer Venice and two Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv players: Jaylen Hoard and Braian Angola; Ben Lammers of Dreamland Gran Canaria as sixth man; Mo Soluade of London; Atakan Bicer of Turk Telekom; Pep Busquets of Joventut Badalona, Oleksandr Lypovyy of Prometey Slobozhanske and his teammate Vyacheslav Bobrov as bench players; and Mihai Silvasan of U-BT Cluj-Napoca as head coach.

His prize for finishing first in Round 7 is a free subscription to Euroleague TV for the 2023-24 season!

The overall leader after seven rounds is Gilad OlshAnetsky, whose GALAVNIA team is ahead of everyone with 1,284.8 fantasy points.

Trades are now open for Round 8. Remember, three trades are allowed before each round until the end of the regular season, and you can also trade your head coach.

Make new teams now or improve your existing ones and try to become EuroCup Fantasy Challenge's next winner!

Karel Guzman had 14 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 0 turnovers as U-BT Cluj-Napoca beat Aquila Basket Trento 60-98 in Round 7 of the 2023-24 EuroCup Regular Season.

Karel Guzman pulled off complete performance to inspire U-BT Cluj-Napoca’s record win at Trento

D.J. Seeley may have stolen the limelight with his game-high 21 points on the road at Dolomiti Energia Trento, but it was the energy transmitted by an extraordinary Karel Guzman that inspired U-BT Cluj-Napoca to a huge 60-98 win in Italy on Wednesday night.

The Cluj forward dominated on both ends, contributing to both defense and offense in the almost 27 minutes that he stayed on the floor. Guzman proved to be Cluj’s Swiss knife, having finished the game with a double-double of 14 points and a season-high 12 rebounds. Moreover, he registered 5 assists, 3 steals and 0 turnovers for a game-high PIR of 34.

“We are so happy, because we did what we had to do in the game,” a joyful Guzman said in the post-game flash interview. “We played tough on defense and offense. We controlled the transition offense. Now, we need to keep it like this and continue every day.”

Karel Guzman had 14 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 0 turnovers as U-BT Cluj-Napoca beat Dolomiti Energia Trento 60-98 in Round 7 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Karel Guzman's highlights vs. Trento

### A strong start by Cluj

Cluj got off to a brilliant start and outscored Trento 14-34 in the first quarter. The hosts managed to bounce back and brought the game within 33-45 heading into halftime after holding the guests to 11 points in the second quarter. Yet, Cluj returned to the court in style in the second half and went on a 0-16 run in the third quarter to practically put the game to bed at Il T Quotidiano Arena.

“I’m extremely proud of the way we approached the game,” Cluj head coach Mihai Silvasan stated after the contest. “And I’m extremely proud of the way we came out after halftime when mentally we were not in the best shape after their comeback in the second quarter.”

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">6-1….. HAIDEU <a href="https://twitter.com/UBTCluj?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UBTCluj</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/eurocup?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#eurocup</a> <a href="https://t.co/dSRitBflbz">https://t.co/dSRitBflbz</a></p>&mdash; Patrick Richard (@prichard_3) <a href="https://twitter.com/prichard_3/status/1724903027294032188?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### A memorable night for Cluj

This was a record-breaking night for Cluj, as it registered its biggest victory in the BKT EuroCup by beating Trento by as many as 38 points. In fact, prior to Wednesday’s game, Cluj’s most comfortable win in the competition came last season in its first year in the EuroCup, when it beat Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana 94-76 at home. It also has to be noted that Silvasan’s side recorded an eye-popping 49 rebounds, which is the highest mark Cluj has ever registered in the EuroCup.

“I’m really happy about the hustle that we showed,” Silvasan noted during the post-game press conference. “We almost got 50 rebounds. That’s a huge number for a EuroCup game.”

Cluj sits second in the Group B standings behind leader Dreamland Gran Canaria after improving its record to an impressive 6-1. Even more impressive is the fact that Cluj won just five games last season, so it has already bettered that mark.

Cluj and Gran Canaria will face each other next week in a huge matchup that will take place on Tuesday at BTarena. If Cluj manages to replicate Wednesday night’s performance, and Guzman plays as he did at Trento, Coach Silvasan’s side could have what it takes to potentially become the first team to beat the Spanish side this season.

More Cluj News

Karel Guzman of U-BT Cluj-Napoca shoots over Prentiss Hubb of Dolomiti Energia Trento during the two teams' Round 7 clash in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The 28-year-old fired on all cylinders as he led his side to a decisive victory.

Guzman pulled off complete performance to inspire Cluj’s record win at Trento

Dreamland Gran Canaria was cruising through three quarters and then took its foot off the gas, giving last placed Slask Wroclaw a chance to get back into the game. The reigning champion eventually caught itself just in time. 

Gran Canaria caught itself just in time to avoid collapse

Dreamland Gran Canaria was cruising through three quarters and then took its foot off the gas, giving last placed Slask Wroclaw a chance to get back into the game. The reigning champion eventually caught itself just in time.

Gran Canaria led by 22 points late in the third quarter and was still up 77-56 with 6 minutes to go. But Slask fought back to make it a 4-point game before Gran Canaria won 81-77 to remain undefeated at 7-0 in Group B.

“We played a pretty solid game for three quarters. In the last quarter we stopped playing and gave Wroclaw a chance to get back into the game. In the end, it’s a win. We will take it. But we have to play for 40 minutes,” Gran Canaria head coach Jaka Lakovic said afterwards.

It's top against bottom as undefeated reigning-champs Gran Canaria, receives a visit from Slask, the only team in Group B yet to capture a win this term. Can the Polish team spring a major surprise or will it be business as usual for Spaniards with a seventh straight sweep?

Dreamland Gran Canaria-Slask Wroclaw | Round 7 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

Free throws from veterans Ferran Bassas and AJ Slaughter in the final 32 seconds was all the offense Gran Canaria could muster in the final 6 minutes.

“Obviously we won so we feel good. We did let them make it a little closer in the end but we were able to pull it out. So all in all we are happy with it,” said Ben Lammers, who tallied 12 points, 4 rebounds and 3 blocks for the winners.

Gran Canaria seemed to be rolling still in the fourth quarter despite Lakovic playing some of his team’s youngsters.

“We did give a chance to players who don’t usually get a lot of minutes. But we gave away the momentum to Slask totally and they came back,” said Lakovic, who gave big minutes in the final frame to Ruben Lopez, Roko Prkacin and Jovan Kljajic.

The 21-year-old Ruben Lopez set a new career high with 18 minutes played and picked up 2 points, 4 rebounds and 1 block. The 20-year-old Roko Prkacin scored a career high 9 points in a career high 16 minutes. And 22-year-old Kljajic had 4 points in 17 minutes - the second time he’s played more than 16 minutes this season.

The lessons learned nearly cost Gran Canaria the game though until Lakovic eventually subbed all three out for his regulars to try to regain control of the game. And it barely worked in time.

More Gran Canaria News

The champs may have learned a valuable lesson about finishing games off.

Reyer Venezia improved to 3-4 in Group A of the 2023-24 EuroCup season after pulling away from BC Wolves to win 77-93 in Round 7.

Reyer Venezia's second-half defense made the difference in Vilnius

Umana Reyer Venice stepped up defensively in the second half and ran away with [a 77-93 win over Wolves Vilnius](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/reyer-venezia-runs-past-bc-wolves-77-93/) during the two teams' Round 8 matchup in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

"We went into the half talking about our defense and how we needed to take a step forward," explained Reyer's Barry Brown, who led all scorers with 24 points.

"We were able to come out in the third quarter and do that, and carry it over to the fourth."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Stronger together 🫶<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/duriibanchi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#duriibanchi</a> <a href="https://t.co/05Qhyymfi9">pic.twitter.com/05Qhyymfi9</a></p>&mdash; Reyer Venezia (@REYER1872) <a href="https://twitter.com/REYER1872/status/1724867060881121637?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### A run that put the game to bed

Reyer led the entire second half, but it did allow 18 points in the first 7 minutes of the second half. Wolves cut the margin to 57-59, but that's when the visitors put together a 2-9 run to make it 62-69 after 30 minutes, then scored the first 8 points of the fourth to make it 62-77 before cruising the rest of the way.

"I am going to give credit to the whole team, especially the last quarter", a satisfied coach Neven Spahija said after the win.

After a thrilling high-scoring victory over Cedevita, Reyer target further momentum via the thriving talents of Barry Brown, whereas Wolves are raucous themselves having won three in a row and boasting the Round 6 MVP after Rasheed Sulaimon powered them to success over Prometey.

Wolves Vilnius-Umana Reyer Venice | Round 7 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

His team did not allow a single point in the opening 4 minutes of the fourth and did not allow a field goal for nearly 6 minutes.

Reyer also clicked offensively in this game, scoring between 21 and 25 points in each of the fourth quarters. Such balance and consistency left the hosts with very little chance, as Reyer celebrated a win that improved it to 3-4 in Group A.

More Reyer News

Barry Brown Jr. shoots a shot for Umana Reyer Venice in its Round 8 clash against Wolves Vilnius in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Consistent scoring from the visitors also helped their cause against Wolves Vilnius.

Reyer's second-half defense made the difference in Vilnius

Veolia Towers Hamburg watched host Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana cut a 28-point deficit to 1 point in the closing seconds, but Hamburg left Slovenia with an 83-86 win in Group A.

Hamburg's defense showed up to survive ugly fourth quarter

Veolia Towers Hamburg nearly suffered a colossal collapse - but only nearly - and the German side is thrilled to have gotten its first victory of the season thanks to a strong defensive performance.

Hamburg watched host Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana cut a 28-point deficit to 1 point in the closing seconds, but Hamburg left Slovenia with an 83-86 win in Group A.

“We executed the game plan for the most part of the game. I am very happy with our defensive performance. Obviously, we got ourselves a big lead after three quarters and we kind of let the game get away - almost. But it’s an almost. We found a way in the end to get the necessary stops and scores to win the game,” Hamburg coach Benka Barloschky said.

The Hamburg play-caller said his young team got nervous in the final quarter against an experienced team away from home.

“You have a chance to get the first win on the road. Everybody gets a little nervous. But we found a way. I am super proud of the team and we will celebrate this win for sure.”

Two clubs still in pursuit of a maiden EuroCup W for 2023-24 go head-to-head. Cedevita playmaker Klemen Prepelic may be one to watch for for the Slovenians, while Hamburg are known for crashing the boards and have the prowess of Seth Hinrichs in their artillery.

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana-Veolia Towers Hamburg | Round 7 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

Barloschky has reason to be happy about his defense. Hamburg came into the game with the worst defense in the competition, ranking 20th in opponents index rating (127.7), points allowed (101.8), two-point shooting (63.6%) and three-point shooting (46.8%).

Cedevita did not come close to any of those statistics, scoring 83 points while shooting 47.7% on two-pointers and 23.5% from long range and registering a PIR of 91.

“We are unbelievably relieved that we finally got our first win in the EuroCup. Of course, the fourth quarter was really ugly. Things just clicked all of a sudden for Ljubljana - they hit almost everything. But we stuck together and we won here,” said Mark Hughes, who scored 16 points, including 4 free throws in the final 9.2 seconds to secure the win.

The victory was just the latest positive for Hamburg, which was leading Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul late in the third quarter before losing 90-78 last week on the road. Barloschky’s team also has won three straight games in the German League.

Aljami Durham, who scored a team-high 21 points against Cedevita, said Hamburg has to keep going now: “We have a little run now that we want to continue. We cannot stop working hard and wanting to take a small step forward.”

It will be all about forgetting the near collapse and remembering the victory.

More Hamburg News

The win continues a positive trend for Coach Barloschky's men. 

Reyer Venezia improved to 3-4 in the 2023-24 EuroCup season after beating BC Wolves 77-93 in Round 7.

Reyer Venezia runs past BC Wolves, 77-93

Umana Reyer Venice picked up its first road win of the season, as it took control early and ran past Wolves Vilnius 77-93 on Wednesday night in the Lithuanian capital. This win improved Reyer to a 3-4 record in Group A, and a share of sixth place, while Wolves dropped to 3-3 in its debut BKT EuroCup campaign.

Reyer spent all but a couple of possessions in front and broke the game open with a 5-18 run bridging the third and fourth quarters behind 24 points from Barry Brown. Adas Juskevicius was the top scorer for the hosts with 15 points.

Game News

Tessitori scored 6 points early to help Reyer open a 9-13 lead. Adas Juskevicius answered with a three-pointer and Thurman's jumper put Wolves in front, before Aamir Simms banked a three to make it 14-18. The teams traded baskets, with Brown scoring from close range and long range for the visitors to help them set a 20-23 lead after 10 minutes.

Both sides kept trading blows in the second, with Kyle Wiltjer and Tessitori scoring for Reyer and Zemaitis and Miniotas for the hosts. Gagic also had a pair of baskets for Wolves, but another three from Brown kept Reyer ahead, 26-30. A big dunk from Christian Mekowulu helped the hosts go in front, 34-32, but Marco Spissu nailed a three-pointer right away at the other end. Jeff Brooks ended up knocking one down from the left corner in the final seconds of the quarter, making it 39-44 at halftime.

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Reyer, little by little, started to pull away in the second half. After Zukauskas hit a three for Wolves, Brown made consecutive baskets to make it 45-52. Mekowulu had an alley-oop dunk, but Brown knocked down a triple to open a 49-57 margin. Juskevicius hit back-to-back threes and Mekowulu had another dunk that got the hosts to 57-59, but Tucker hit a three and Brown a tough jumper to help Reyer lead 62-69 after 30 minutes.

Two more baskets from Brown in a 0-8 fourth-quarter run helped open a 62-77 score as the hosts were without a single basket for more than 4 and a half minutes to start the final period. There was 4:12 left in the game and Reyer up 63-80 when Thurman ended Wolves' field-goal drought. However, Reyer kept finding ways to score and the margin reached 20 points in the penultimate minute as the visitors closed it out.

Marco Spissu of Umana Reyer Venice has possession against Wolves Vilnius in Round 7 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The Italian side won back-to-back games for the first time this season.