Partizan NIS Belgrade improved to 6-1 with a battling 75-73 home victory over Slask Wroclaw, which drops to 1-6 at the bottom of Group A. Slask set the early pace before Partizan used an 18-0 run to move into a double-digit lead, but the visitors kept fighting and pulled it back to 37-35 at the break. It remained close during the third quarter, and a late 0-10 run inspired by Kerem Kanter gave Slask a late lead. But Nemanja Dangubic scored 4 points in the final 20 seconds, including a go-ahead to keep the win in Belgrade. 

Partizan sneaks past Slask with late Dangubic heroics, 75-73

Gregor Glas led the way with 18 points, while Uros Trifunovic scored 12. Zach LeDay and Aleksa Avramovic both netted 10 points in victory. Slask’s Kanter led all scorers with 21 points, while Ivan Ramljak and Aleksander Dziewa had 12.

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Ramljak’s transition basket gave Slask an early lead, and Kodi Justice kept the visitors moving with a triple in a low-scoring start. Kanter scored inside to make it 5-9 before a layup-and-one by Aleksa Avramovic sparked Partizan. Kanter netted inside again and Dziewa dunked for an 8-15 lead. Glas and Yam Madar scored inside to bring Partizan closer, and triples from Trifonovic and Glas sent the hosts ahead, 22-15, at the end of the first. Balsa Koprivica struck first in the second quarter and Glas netted again to complete an 18-0 run, sending Partizan ahead by double digits. Cyril Langevine finally ended Slask’s barren run, but Koprivica responded with a huge slam before Trifunovic made it 30-17. Lukasz Kolenda scored 4 points to bring Slask closer, but LeDay hit a triple and Koprivica again scored inside for another double-digit lead, 35-25. Ramljak scored 4 points and Justice made a three to narrow the gap to 37-35 at half-time.

Trifunovic opened the second half scoring with a triple, but Ramljak answered with two scores inside. Glas hit a three-pointer and Trifunovic scored inside to give Partizan a bigger margin, 47-40, midway through the third. Glas scored 4 more points and LeDay splashed a three, but Kanter netted a three-point play and Kolenda struck from deep to make it 54-52 for Partizan after three quarters. LeDay and Dziewa both scored 4 points early in the fourth quarter, before a fastbreak slam from Trifunovic gave the hosts a 61-56 edge. Kanter responded with another layup before Dallas Moore and Jakub Karolak traded three-pointers, making it 66-63 with five minutes left. Kanter’s three-point play tied it up as Slask kept on fighting, and Kanter then hit a triple for a 68-71 lead inside the last 3 minutes. Kanter scored again for a 0-8 personal run, before Avramovic sparked Partizan with a fastbreak dunk to make it 70-73. Dangubic hit free throws with 20 seconds left and then, after a Slask turnover, converted an offensive rebound for a 74-73 lead. Slask had 5 seconds left but LeDay drew an offensive foul from Kolenda to secure the win.

Partizan NIS Belgrade v Slask Wroclaw (2021-12-15T19:30:00.000Z)

One player who definitely did not deserve to finish on the losing side was Kerem Kanter, who topped all scorers and set a new career-high with 21 points including a stunning passage of play that seemed set to give his team victory. 

Kanter strong in defeat for Slask

The Turkish forward scored 10 points in less than five minutes, including a personal 0-8 run that turned a 68-65 deficit into a 68-73 lead, but it was not enough in the end as Partizan scored the final 7 points of the game. He also grabbed 8 rebounds and spent nearly 36 minutes on the floor in a valiant effort.

Kerem Kanter - Slask Wroclaw (photo Dragana Stjepanovic - Partizan) - EC21

A prominent performer throughout the game was Partizan big man Balsa Koprivica, who looked every centimetre of his 2.15m as he blocked 4 shots – the competition’s joint highest so far this season – and constantly provided a menacing presence in front of the home team’s basket. 

Koprivica’s blocks equal season high

Koprivica also scored 8 points as well as missing a couple of big attempted dunks, grabbed 6 rebounds and made 3 steals. The 21 year-old is playing his first season in the competition, and showed that he can become a dominant inside presence with a little more maturity.

Balsa Koprivica - Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Dragana Stjepanovic - Partizan) - EC21

This is what the protagonists of the game had to say after such a close deal down the stretch.

Post-Game Quotes: Virtus 91-72 Patras


### Sergio Scariolo, Virtus Segafredo Bologna
"It was a tough one despite of the final score. As you know after watching the game, that was a pretty difficult one, especially the first half. We had a great start and then we didn't manage to keep the gap we built up. Unfortunately, our bench was not great in the first half as it was in the second half. I think the third quarter was really good. Defensively, we did a really good job. We tried to keep them away from our rim and force them to take contested shots at the end of their possessions. And then we opened this 15 point-gap, which was enough because the guys who were coming off the bench this time were very active, very energetic. They made some good plays offensively, too, and they really contributed with a really solid performance in the second half. I think that in such a balanced group like this one, every game is really important, and this one doesn't make any exception to this principle."



### Ilias Zouros, Promitheas Patras
"First of all, congratulations to Virtus. They deserved to win the game. They played much better than us today. I am satisfied with the effort of my team, but for approximately 30 minutes, we were competitive. We lost our minds close to the end of the third quarter when Virtus created the difference. They have quality. They have a lot of good players and unfortunately, also during the game, we lost Agravanis. He couldn't play a lot in the second half. Now we have to be focused on the game we have against Panathinaikos [in the Greek League] and continue to do our job. Congratulations to the fans, the atmosphere was great. I wish Virtus all the best for the rest of this competition."


Virtus Segafredo Bologna v Promitheas Patras (2021-12-15T19:30:00.000Z)

Milos Teodosic - Virtus Segafredo Bologna (photo Virtus) - EC21

Virtus Segafredo Bologna used its trademark fluid ball circulation to defeat Promitheas Patras 91-72 at home in Round 7 of the 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season. Virtus finished the game with 27 assists, its second-best mark so far this season; it previously dished 29 against ratiopharm Ulm in Round 2. 

Virtus shoots well, shares the ball

Marco Belinelli dished a EuroCup career-high 8 assists and Milos Teodosic added 6. That allowed Virtus to shoot the ball with high percentages, 64.7% inside the arc and 52.0% from three-point range. Promitheas could not keep up and shot the ball poorly (49.0% 2FG, 21.7% 3FG). 

Marco Belinelli - Virtus Segafredo Bologna (photo Virtus) - EC21

With leading scorer Kevin Punter missing, this was a victory built on Partizan’s defense. The home side was trailing 8-15 midway through the first quarter but bounced back with a 14-0 run to take the lead with a passage of play marked by outstanding defense. 

Without Punter, Partizan leaned on defense

Slask did not score for the last 4:45 of the first quarter or the opening 2:10 of the second, a run totalling nearly seven minutes which saw Partizan race into a lead which it held through much of the game. And even when Slask fought back to take a late lead, Partizan’s defense came up strong in crunch time by not allowing any points in the last 2 minutes to steal the win.

Alen Smailagic - Partizan NIS Belgrade (photo Dragana Stjepanovic - Partizan) - EC21

Promitheas Patras suffered a 91-72 road loss against 7DAYS EuroCup powerhouse Virtus Segafredo Bologna in Round 7. The Greek powerhouse, however, dominated in the paint through its centers, Jerai Grant and Dario Hunt, who were very effective at Virtus Segafredo Arena. 

Promitheas big men step up

Grant finished the game with 15 points on 5-of-7 two-point shooting and 5-of-5 on free throws, plus 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal for a PIR of 24. Hunt was limited by foul trouble but still managed to get 14 points on 7-of-11 two-point shooting plus 4 rebounds in less than 21 minutes. 

Dario Hunt - Promitheas Patras (photo Virtus) - EC21

Reyer's top scorer coming into the game, center Mitchell Watt, had little to do with the team's big early leads, scoring just 4 points as the hosts went up by as many as 19 in the first half against Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana on Wednesday in Group B. 

Birthday boy Watt finished strong for Reyer

Watt, who was celebrating his 32nd birthday, came up big when his team needed him most, however. With the game tied 55-55, Watt's 4 points kept Cedevita from shooting for the lead. He would soon feed Michele Vitali for a triple that restored a double-digit lead and add 3 more points down the stretch to assure the victory. Watt led Reyer with 17 points and 7 rebounds in a performance that was worth celebrating, too, for the timeliness of his contribution. 

Umana Reyer Venice v Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (2021-12-15T19:00:00.000Z)

Mitchell Watt - Umana Reyer Venice - EC21

Umana Reyer Venice was down 5-14 on its home floor to Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana and couldn't buy a basket early on Wednesday when Michele Vitali entered the fray at Palasport Taliercio. 

Reyer's sharpshooters changed the first half

His first triple fell before the quarter ended to give his team a 19-17 lead. Vitale made a couple more without missing before halftime, by which time five Reyer players had hit bottom on 7 of 15 triple attempts for a 45-28 lead. Vitali would land his fourth one late in the game to finish with 16 points to go with 3 rebounds and 2 assists.

Michele Vitali - Umana Reyer Venice - EC21