The 31-year-old marksman drained 3 three-pointers in scoring 21 points while also collecting 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals for a performance index rating of 24. Those numbers were right in line with Orelik’s season averages of 15.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and a PIR of 16.3.

Orelik comes back in style

Lietkabelis Panevezys v Dolomiti Energia Trento (2022-02-02T17:00:00.000Z)

Gediminas Orelik - Lietkabelis Panevezys (photo Karolio Kavolelio - Lietkabelis) EC21

Joventut tied a club record by making 16 three-point shots, and did so on 35 attempts, good for a 45.7% accuracy rate. It is only the second time, and the first since December 2009, that Joventut made 16 triples in a game. Four players accounted for most of the team's rain of threes-pointers.

Derek Willis nailed 4 of 5 from downtown and Brandon Paul hit 4-of-6. Guillem Vives went 3-for-8, including a pair of key back-to-back threes midway through the fourth quarter that beat the shot-clock buzzer, while his backcourt partner, Pau Ribas, made 3 of 7 in a big, playoff-clinching win.

Joventut Badalona beat Partizan NIS Belgrade 92-84 in their Group A clash on Wednesday with arguably its best-ever shooting night in the 7DAYS EuroCup.


Stat difference: Joventut rained threes on Partizan

Joventut Badalona v Partizan NIS Belgrade (2022-02-02T20:00:00.000Z)

Brandon Paul - Joventut Badalona (Photo Marvin Contessi) - EC21

After allowing 31 points in the first 12 minutes, Joventut turned the game around with its competition-best defense, which entered the game allowing just 69.7 points per game.

Over the final three quarters, that defense forced 15 turnovers, including 8 alone in the key second quarter. The hosts also picked up 11 steals after going down by 15 points and held Partizan to 4-for-15 three-point shooting. 

It was a slow start for Joventut, but aggressive defense got the team back in the game before a great shooting display – 16 three-pointers on 35 attempts – lifted the team to victory.

Joventut Badalona registered its sixth straight win, one that improved it to 10-2 record and qualified it for the playoffs, against the visiting Partizan NIS Belgrade. The game featured a 30-point swing, as Joventut was trailing 16-31 in the opening minutes of the second quarter, but then led by as many as 90-75 with 2:30 left in the game, before winning 92-84.


Joventut's defense stepped up once again

Guillem Vives celebrates - Joventut Badalona - (photo David Grau - Joventut) EC21

Joventut finished the game having tied the club’s 7DAYS EuroCup record with 16 three-pointers, as Derek Willis led the way with 19 points plus 7 rebounds. Pau Ribas scored 15, Brandon Paul and Guillem Vives netted 13 apiece, and Simon Birgander collected 12 plus 7 rebounds. Matthias Lessort had 20 points and 8 rebounds for Partizan. Kevin Punter scored 19 and Zach LeDay had 15 points in defeat.


Partizan took control early with Rodions Kurucs scoring from close range and long range. Ribas had a triple and a layup, but a runner from Kurucs made it 5-9. Ante Tomic set up a dunk and a pair of three-point plays from Derek Willis, but Lessort ignited a Partizan run with a pair of three-point plays. A step-back jumper from Punter and a dunk by Lessort made it 9-20. Paul knocked down a three-pointer but Punter scored 5 points to help the visitors hold a 16-27 advantage after 10 minutes

A fastbreak layup from LeDay and a layup in traffic from Lessort opened a 16-31 Partizan lead early in the second quarter. Joventut replied with back-to-back triples from Paul and Willis. More triples, one from Vives and another from Ribas, helped cut it the difference to 30-37. A layup and a tip-in from Simon Birgander lowered the margin some more before Willis beat the shot-clock with a jumper and then went coast-to-coast for a layup and a 41-38 Joventut lead. LeDay snapped the hosts' 15-3 run from close range, then Punter's fastbreak layup gave Partizan 41-42 halftime edge.


Nemanja Dangubic opened the second half with a three-pointer and a put-back from LeDay made it 42-47. But Joventut stepped up on defense once again, while Ribas and Willis hit from long range to restore the hosts' lead. Soon, a second-chance corner triple from Ferran Bassas made it 53-49. LeDay snapped the hosts' 9-0 run with a dunk as teams started going to the free throw line often. A dunk and a close-range basket from Birgander opened a 62-54 edge for Joventut. Joel Parra hustled for a put-back layup to make it a double-digit margin, which Joventut held at 69-59 after three quarters.

Lessort opened the fourth with a three-point play for the visitors but Willis hit back-to-back three-pointers to make it 75-64. Lessort scored inside and Punter finished a fastbreak layup. Paul knocked down back-to-back triples as Joventut still was up 81-68 with 6:32 to go. After a timeout, Alen Smailagic hit a corner three for the visitors and Yam Madar had a three-point play, but Vives drilled shot-clock-beating three-pointers on consecutive possessions. Another shot from deep by Albert Ventura made it 90-75 with 2:30 to go as Joventut secured the victory and the first playoff qualification.

Joventut Badalona rallied from a 15-point second-quarter deficit to sink Partizan NIS Belgrade 92-84 on Wednesday night and become the first team to qualify for the playoffs. Joventut also took control of Group A, improving to a 10-2 record, while Partizan remains in second place, dropping to 8-4. The visitors had a dream start to the game and led 16-31 in the second quarter, but Joventut put together a 15-3 run to erase that deficit before using a barrage of three-pointers in the second half to build a double-digit advantage and lead by as many as 15 points before closing out the game.

Joventut sinks Partizan to secure playoff spot

Derek Willis - Joventut Badalona - (photo David Grau - Joventut) EC21

Metropolitans improved to 7-5 to climb to fourth place in Group A. Lokomotiv snapped a two-game winning streak and fell to 8-4. Cummings flirted with a triple-double and finished with 20 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. Keith Hornsby also scored 20, Miralem Halilovic added 18 points, Tomer Ginat netted 13 and David Michineau 11. The visitors were led by Darius Thompson with 23 points on 8-of-8 in two-point shooting. Errick McCollum provided 17, Alan Williams 16, Andrei Martiuk 13 and Vladiskav Emchenko 10 in defeat.

Alan Williams got the visitors going with 7 points in a row, which Thompson followed with a three-pointer to build a 9-14 lead for Lokomotiv after 4 minutes. The hosts reacted quickly, as Cummings provided a triple and Halilovic scored inside to make it all square, 16-16. Both squads traded baskets for a while to keep it balanced until the visitors chained together a couple of threes that seemed to get them momentum. It was not the case, as Hornsby, Michineau and Halilovic exploited Lokomotiv turnovers to combine on a 7-0 run that closed the first quarter with the home team ahead 29-24.

Steeve Ho-You-Fat widened it to 31-24 right after the game resumed, but the visitors didn’t tremble. Thompson came to the rescue with 8 quick points in a 0-10 spark that brought his team back in charge. Metropolitans called for a timeout to stop the bleeding, but McCollum remained hot to extend the lead to 31-36. The hosts counterattacked from outside, as Hornsby, Cummings and Michineau took over to force another tie at 42-42. Lokomotiv replied through its youngsters to get a slim edge that Williams secured from the line, 46-49, at halftime.

Thompson led the way for the visitors after the intermission, first feeding Martiuk for a slam, then knocking down a couple of buckets to push his team to a 51-57 advantage. Lokomotiv did not retain the lead for long, though, as a 12-3 run capped by a basket-plus-foul by Ginat returned a 66-63 advantage to the home side. McCollum took over then, going for 6 points in a blink of an eye that helped Lokomotiv enter the last quarter again on top, 72-74.

Hornsby started hot after the break with a basket and a three to switch the lead to his team’s hands once again, 77-76. The visitors found an answer inside through Martiuk, but Hornsby remained in trance mode, as he showed up again and drilled a couple of long jumpers to make it 82-82 with 6 minutes remaining. With neither team able to take control, the game turned into a blow-by-blow battle that reached crunch-time all tied, 88-88. Sasha Shcherbenev banked a tough shot to get Lokomotiv ahead, but Cummings stepped up big and answered with a short jumper and then a long three-pointer for a 93-90 score with 17 seconds to go. Thompson tried to save the visitors from behind the arc on the next possession, but missed and Cummings sealed the outcome from the line.  

 

Boulogne Metropolitans 92 had to wait until crunch time to secure a 95-92 victory over Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar at Palais des Sports Marcel Cerdan on Wednesday night. Will Cummings had 7 points in a row when the game was 88-90 to boost the hosts to their third straight win

Cummings helps Metropolitans outlast Lokomotiv 95-92

Boulogne Metropolitans 92 v Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar (2022-02-02T19:30:00.000Z)

Will Cummings - Boulogne Metropolitans 92 (photo Olivier dAlmeida - Metropolitans) - EC21

Here are some opinions from the game protagonists themselves.

Post-game quotes: Joventut Badalona vs. Partizan NIS Belgrade

### Joventut Badalona head coach Carles Duran:

"It was incredible. Partizan is an incredible team. Strong, talented, is more things. But my team played with a passion, not only basketball. I don't have words now. It is a good victory, but it is only one game. But when you play against Partizan, with fans going crazy, and the team playing with passion, this is basketball. The atmosphere was like this because Partizan played here. The second thing, my team played very good basketball, played strong, because it is impossible to play Partizan in any other way. And after that, because the team plays with many players born here in Badalona, from this farm, from this club. It is an incredible victory for us, but we are now thinking about the next games."

### Joventut Badalona player Derek Willis:

"We haven't been starting games best. Not even just tonight, the past couple of weeks. Partizan came out, they were ready to play us, we were just slow to get after it. But we turned it up in the second quarter, though. The first place is great. We worked really hard all year and this is what we are fighting for. I am really proud of the team, really proud of all the coaches who prepared us for tonight, and a big shoutout to our fans who really helped us in this win."

### Zeljko Obradovic, head coach, Partizan NIS Belgrade:

"It was exactly the game that we tried to prepare ourselves for. They play aggressive basketball. Even though we dominated in the first half and started the game good, they slowly came back. first of all, because of their aggressiveness, and second, because of our unnecessary turnovers. They are a team that knows how to play, and the first time they started to lead by 8 or 10 points, they handled it and deserved to win the game. Congratulations to Joventut. This is a long journey and let's see how it will be in the end."

Martynas Echodas collected 19 points and 10 rebounds, Jordan Theodore added 13 points and 5 assists and Stefano Tonut scored 12 points for the winners. Ulm saw its two-game winning streak snapped despite Sindarius Thornwell scoring 21 points. Jaron Blossomgame netted 19 points and Semaj Christon tallied 16 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists as Ulm dropped to 6-6.

Echodas was the first scorer in the game and Tonut’s three-pointer had the hosts up 5-0 before Christon scored Ulm’s first points. Michele Vitali also hit a triple and Ulm had trouble handling Echodas, who scored three straight baskets inside and was followed by a Jeff Brooks three-pointer as the advantage grew to 21-10. Daye added two baskets and Julyan Stone drained a triple for a 28-14 cushion after 10 minutes.

 

Ulm had the much better start to the second quarter with Thornwell scoring 4 points in a 2-7 spurt to get within single digits, 30-21. Stone knocked down another triple, but Christon punched back from long range to start a 2-14 run that included 4 points from Blossomgame to knot the game at 35-35. Jordan Theodore stopped the visitors with a three-point play only to have Fedor Zugic answer from deep to pull it even again at 42-42. Free throws by Blossomgame and Thornwell had Ulm up 42-44 at the break.

Echodas threw down a dunk to start the second half and tie the game and Theodore put the hosts back ahead. Ulm needed more than 2 minutes to score until Herkenhoff’s triple and Ulm led 46-49. Tonut and Vitali punched back with back-to-back three-pointers and Echodas scored 5 points to put Reyer up 61-53. Ulm scored the next 5 points only to see Daye answer with back-to-back three-pointers to end the third quarter with Reyer up 67-58.

Daye continued his torrid run with a jumper to start the final frame. He answered Herkenhoff’s triple with a long ball of his own and Reyer led 72-61. Thornwell hit from deep to get Ulm within 8 points. Reyer continued to find answers with Theodore scoring and a Brooks three-pointer as the cushion reached 81-66 with 5 minutes left. Ulm was not ready to give up with Thornwell converting a four-point play and Herkenhoff hitting a triple to get within 81-75 with 3 minutes left. Daye came up with a big block of Blossomgame with 81 seconds to play and Stone ended all doubts with a reverse layup with 27 seconds remaining.

Umana Reyer Venice continued a strong run of results as it knocked off ratiopharm Ulm 89-79 at home on Wednesday. Reyer gained control with a 15-5 run spanning the final two quarters for its third win in the last four games to even its record at 5-5. Austin Daye scored 21 points to pace Reyer.

Daye, Echodas step as Reyer beats Ulm 89-79

Umana Reyer Venice v ratiopharm Ulm (2022-02-02T19:30:00.000Z)

Stefano Tonut - Umana Reyer Venice (photo Alessandro Scarpa - Reyer) - EC21

Post-game quotes: Cedevita Union Olimpija vs. Frutti Extra Bursaspor

### Coach Jurica Golemac, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana

“Every victory is important, especially in the EuroCup. We need to now that Bursaspor was missing a couple of players, so that made our job a little bit easier, but I congratulate the players for the second half, for the good hustle and sharing the ball the way we wanted.”

 

### Zoran Dragic, guard, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana

“That was a pretty important win for us because we are trying to get to the top eight in the group. We played very good, we started very good. Then we a little bit fell down. The came back, they made a lot of open shots. Then in the second half, we played very good defense, we outran them, we got a lead of 10-15 points and then it was easy.”

### Coach Dusan Alimpijevic, Frutti Extra Bursaspor

“You know our situation, so need to talk about this any more. You know how we came here with a short roster. So I have to say I am happy that nobody was injured in this new situation for us and also I have to say I am proud of how we fought in this game with this number of players. Olimpija is a really good team. I am not just saying this; it’s obvious when you see this domestic roster, it’s obvious when you see the foreign names on this team. For sure you have to say it’s a good team. So like I said, I have to be proud of these eight players, I have to be proud that we didn’t give up.”  

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana v Frutti Extra Bursaspor (2022-02-02T18:15:00.000Z)

Onuralp Bitim - Frutti Extra Bursaspor (photo Ales Ferves - Cedevita) - EC21

Post-game quotes: Umana Reyer Venice vs. ratiopharm Ulm

### Walter De Raffaele head coach Umana Reyer Venice:

“I think absolutely the key was how much these players wanted to win this game. They showed up and made a big sacrifice. Everyone played to their limits in the game because we have a lot of players out of shape. But everyone wanted to fight and get another rebound or a 50-50 ball. I think it was also important that we won by this difference. We lost by 7. So I am very happy for my players.”

### Austin Daye, forward, Umana Reyer Venice:

“It feels great, especially after losing at their home despite being up 20. So it feels great to get a win - and by 10 points. We were able to gain the advantage. Defense was the key. We did a good job of holding people down and doing a good job rotating. We did a good job of moving the ball tonight too. We haven’t been doing a great job of that. So I think we did a really good job.”

### Anton Gavel, ratiopharm Ulm assistant coach:

“Congratulations to Venice and their coaching staff. Defensively we didn’t get the stops we needed. We allowed some easy layups going to the basket. And also offensive rebounds didn’t help us. We didn’t get stops and offensively we missed some easy layups. And that’s the game.”