Another round of action in the most exciting basketball league in the world has come to an end.
Game Center: Real Madrid, PAO come out on top in thrillers; Barca, Milan also victorious
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Friday, January 5
ALBA Berlin 68-83 Virtus Segafredo Bologna
Virtus Segafredo Bologna used a monster first quarter to take an early lead and never look back on the way to a 68-83 victory over host ALBA Berlin, as the Italian side retained its hold on second place. Virtus improved to 14-5 while ALBA dropped to 3-16 and now shares last place. A 9-26 difference in the first 10 minutes eventually gave Virtus a high lead of 22-48 shortly before halftime. ALBA was able to rally within 49-58 with a 22-10 start to the third quarter, but Virtus restored its double-digit advantage and kept raising it the rest of the way.
Valencia Basket 81-82 Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens earned a dramatic 81-82 win at Valencia Basket and improved to 11-8 after snapping its 18-game losing streak against Spanish opposition on the road. The Greens also celebrated their fifth victory in the last six games, while Valencia dropped to 11-9 after throwing away a 7-point lead in the fourth quarter.
FC Barcelona 89-85 Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz
FC Barcelona rounded a perfect double-round week by edging Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 89-85 at Palau Blaugrana on Friday. Barcelona improved to 13-6 in the standings, while Baskonia dropped to 10-9. Jan Vesely led the winners with 23 points in less than 22 minutes. Jabari Parker added 17, Willy Hernangomez had 16, Joel Parra 13 and Tomas Satoransky 10 for Barca. Markus Howard led Baskonia with 21 points. Tadas Sedekerskis added 14, Matt Costello 11 and Codi Miller-McIntyre 10 for the guests.
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 76-62 FC Bayern Munich
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan finished the double-round week with a split as it raced away from FC Bayern Munich late for a 76-62 home victory. Despite missing a number of its top stars, Milan mounted a 20-2 fourth quarter run to improve to 8-11 with three wins in the last four home games. Bayern lost its second game this week in Italy and fell to 8-11, including a 2-9 road record.
Real Madrid 130-126 Anadolu Efes Istanbul (after 4OT)
In a game that was unlike anything seen before in the EuroLeague, Real Madrid beat Efes 130-126 after quadruple overtime. This game not only set a series of all-time EuroLeague records, but was a thriller that saw Real Madrid score baskets to extend the contest at the end of regulation, and the end of second and third overtimes, including a 9-0 run in double OT capped by a buzzer-beating hook shot from Mario Hezonja.
Thursday, January 4
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul 109-74 Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv
Fenerbahce bounced back in record fashion from its home loss 48 hours earlier by overwhelming Maccabi 109-74 in Panevezys, Lithuania. A powerful 35-9 second quarter pushed the hosts to a new club scoring record in points, topping the 107 points scored against Panathinaikos in November 2022. Fenerbahce is now 11-8 overall and 5-1 under new head coach Sarunas Jasikevicius. Tyler Dorsey's 21 points paced six Fenerbahce double-digit scorers while Johnathan Motley added 17, Scottie Wilbekin and Georgios Papagiannis 14 each. The team's 147 index rating was the second-highest in club history. Maccabi dropped to 11-8 after having won four of its last five games. Bonzie Colson and Wade Baldwin both scored 13 points.
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 93-79 Zalgiris Kaunas
ASVEL enjoyed its fist home win of the season after dominating Zalgiris at the Astroballe on Thursday night. The hosts never trailed, amassing a 23-17 lead after 10 minutes that kept growing to a game-high 18-point margin late in the third quarter. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot led all scorers with 27 points, on an almost perfect shooting night, going for 10-of-11 from the field. Youssoupha Fall followed with a double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds for a PIR of 36, while Paris Lee also netted 22 points plus assists for the victors. Keenan Evans had 21 points to pace Zalgiris. ASVEL improved to 2-17 as Zalgiris slipped to 6-13.
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade 88-72 Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade
Zvezda overwhelmed Partizan in a one sided city derby to complete a perfect double-round week after an impressive road win at Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, improving to 8-11 while Partizan dropped to 10-9 after losing three of its last four. A superbly balanced team effort saw Nemanja Nedovic lead Zvezda with 16 points, while Rokas Giedraitis and Freddie Gillespie posted 14 each. At the other end, captain Kevin Punter paced Partizan with 17 points.
Olympiacos Piraeus 75-73 AS Monaco
Olympiacos claimed its fourth straight victory and improved to 11-8 by grinding out a tough but thrilling 75-73 victory over AS Monaco, which has now lost four of its last six and drops to 10-9. Monaco led nearly all the way but the host had the better of the latter exchanges, and a three-point strike from Shaq McKissic – his third of the night – with 22 seconds left proved decisive. Thomas Walkup led Olympiacos with 9 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds and excellent defense on Mike James, while Isaiah Canaan top scored with 16 points. Monaco was paced by big man Mam Jaiteh with a season-high 14 points.