A handful of EuroLeague teams celebrated domestic cup wins on Sunday.
Domestic cups: Zalgiris, Real, Olympiacos, Bayern, Fenerbahce lift crowns
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Zalgiris makes it 5 straight Lithuanian Cups
Zalgiris Kaunas made it five straight Lithuanian King Mindaugas Cups with an 86-70 triumph over BKT EuroCup side 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys in the final at Zalgirio Arena. Zalgiris pulled away with a 29-19 second quarter to lead 52-38 at halftime and never looked back. Keenan Evans led the way for Zalgiris with 16 points and Toma Dimsa, Laurynas Birutis and Brady Manek added 12 points apiece. Deividas Sirvydis scored 15 for Lietkabelis, Gediminas Orelik contributed 13 points and 8 assists, Djordje Gagic netted 11 points and Vytenis Lipkevicius 10.
Gagic shined early and it was 15-15 lead in the opening quarter before Dimsa and Rolands Smits gave Zalgiris a 4-point lead after 10 minutes. A 7-0 run to open the second quarter, capped by a Dimsa three, gave Zalgiris the game’s first double-digit lead, 30-19. The margin grew to 17 before settling at 52-38 at the break. Lietkabelis never mounted a serious charge after that and the lead peaked at 76-56 early in the fourth quarter.
Spain: Real tops Barcelona in final
Real Madrid won the Spanish Copa del Rey for a record 29th time after holding off archrival FC Barcelona 96-85 in the final on Sunday in Malaga. Facu Campazzo starred with 18 points and 6 assists and Vincent Poirier posted 17 points and 8 rebounds to lead the winners. Dzanan Musa and Guerschon Yabusele added 15 points apiece, Gabriel Deck scored 13 and Mario Hezonja 12. Jabari Parker paced Barcelona with 19 points, Tomas Satoransky contributed 15 and Jan Vesely 14.
Real jumped out to a 9-2 start and Barcelona came back to tie things at 19-19 after 10 minutes. It was 43-45 at halftime and Vesely put Barca up by 4 early in the third quarter. Real Madrid turned the tables to take a 66-63 lead into the fourth quarter. Threes by Yabusele and Deck saw Real pad its lead, but Barca kept it close, 81-77, after a Satoransky basket with less than 4 minutes to play. A 12-2 run then put the game on ice and started the celebrations.
Olympiacos successfully defends the Greek Cup
The Greek Cup will remain in Piraeus for the third year running after Olympiacos topped Panathinaikos Athens 58-69 in the final. Moustapha Fall dominated with 13 points on 6-of-7 two-point shooting plus 7 rebounds and 2 blocks to lead the Reds. Moses Wright was good for 13 points and 6 rebounds in 13 minutes and Filip Petrusev added 10 points to complete a strong showing from the Olympiacos front court. Thomas Walkup played a key role on defense with 5 steals as the Reds forced 17 turnovers. Dinos Mitoglou led Panathinaikos with 16 points, Mathias Lessort scored 12, Jerian Grant had 11 points and 5 assists and Kendrick Nunn added 10 points.
Lessort scored twice as Panathinaikos jumped to a 10-4 lead. The Reds regrouped to edge ahead 12-14 after 10 minutes. A 0-7 Olympiacos run gave the Reds the lead in the second quarter and it was 25-30 at halftime. A three by Mitoglou capped a strong start by the Greens to the second half to lead 32-31 and it was 39-39 late in the quarter before Olympiacos, led by Alec Peters, reeled off 8 unanswered points to end the third quarter. Wrigth gave the Reds a double-digit lead, 46-56, and Panathinaikos never got closer than 9 in the closing minutes.
Bayern celebrates another German Cup win
FC Bayern Munich won the German BBL Pokal for the fifth time by beating ratiopharm Ulm 81-65 in the final at BMW Park in Munich. After falling behind early, Bayern used a monster second quarter to take control for good. Sylvain Francisco was named MVP of the final after shining with 17 points and 4 assists for Bayern. Andreas Obst contributed 13 points and Serge Ibaka posted 9 points and 7 boards. Juan Nunez and LJ Figueroa scored 17 points apiece for Ulm and Pacome Dadiet added 12 in defeat.
Figueroa drained a pair of three-pointers as Ulm raced out to a 3-11 lead. A triple by Robin Christen made it 9-18 after 10 minutes. Francisco scored half the points in a 14-0 run to open the second quarter. Nunez briefly tied the game at 23-23, but Bayern continued to roll and led 35-28 at the break. Leandro Bolmaro stretched the margin to double figures early in the third quarter, but a final Ulm push made it 46-42. A pair of threes by Obst helped Bayern pull away to lead 59-47 through three quarter and Ulm never threatened again.
Fenerbahce regains the Turkish Cup
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul captured the Turkish Cup for the first time since 2020 by taking out the reining cup holder Anadolu Efes Istanbul 67-80 on Sunday afternoon at Karatay Spor Kongre Merkezi Salonu in Konya. Scottie Wilbekin scored 18 points and Johnathan Motley added 15 to pace the winners. Nigel Hayes-Davis netted 12 points and Nick Calathes tallied 10 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists for Fenerbahce. Shane Larkin paced Efes with 17 points and 6 assists, Will Clyburn contributed 16 and 7 rebounds and Elijah Bryant scored 15 in defeat.
Marko Guduric heated up late in the first quarter to give Fener a 20-26 lead after 10 minutes. Motley scored the first two baskets of the second quarter as the lead reached double figures and grew to 12 before Larkin and Clyburn willed Efes to within 35-42 at the break. Fenerbahce scored the first 8 points of the second half and led by as many as 18 in the third quarter. Clyburn and Larkin rallied Efes to within 55-63 early in the fourth quarter, but then Wilbekin sandwiched a pair of three around another by Hayes-Davis and Efes never threatened again.