The last six games of the round will be played on Friday night, thus marking the first fixtures of 2026
Game Center: Zalgiris, Monaco with impressive road wins; ASVEL, Valencia triumph at home
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Tuesday, December 30, 2025
Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv 80-93 Zalgiris Kaunas
Zalgiris ruined Hapoel’s return party by beating the Israeli side 80-93 in their first ever EuroLeague game at Menora Mivtachim Arena on Tuesday night. Boosted by a hyped home crowd, Hapoel hit the ground running and secured a 25-18 lead after 10 minutes. Yet, Zalgiris held the hosts to 15 and 13 points in the second and third quarter respectively, taking a 53-63 cushion into the fourth thanks to a 2-13 run. Hapoel made a last push for a comeback, but Zalgiris outscored the league leader 27-30 to grab a stunning victory. The Lithuanian side got back to winning ways and improved their record to 11-8, while Hapoel dropped to 13-6.
Nigel Williams-Goss paced Zalgiris with 17 points and Moses Wright netted 15, with Sylvain Francisco bagging 13 points and 8 assists and Azuolas Tubelis pairing his 12 points with 8 rebounds. As for Hapoel, Chris Jones led all scorers with 18 points and Elijah Bryant ended the game on 14 points.
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 94-89 Paris Basketball
In a French derby that went down to the final seconds, ASVEL recorded its fifth home victory in the last six games by edging Paris 94-89 at LDLC Arena in Round 19 on Tuesday. ASVEL improved to 7-12 in the standings while Paris dropped to 6-13 and is on a six-game road losing streak.
Glynn Watson paced the winners with 28 points, a new career high. Nando De Colo added 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists while Shaquille Harrison had 10 points for ASVEL. Nadir Hifi led Paris with 26 points. Sebastian Herrera added 11 while Derek Willis had 10 for the guests, who led 72-74 with over 4 minutes left. With the game on the line, De Colo struck three times from beyond the arc and found Watson for another three-pointer that sealed the outcome, 88-81, in the final minute.
Valencia Basket 86-73 Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade
Valencia never looked back after Darius Thompson hit a deep three at the end of the third quarter to give the hosts a 65-63 lead and Nathan Reuvers scored 7 points in the home stretch amid a 17-5 run to force Partizan into submission. Valencia won the seventh of its last eight to go 13-6 while Partizan lost its fourth in a row after a physical battle, with the visiting team dropping to 6-13 after leading for much of the first half before running out of steam in the fourth quarter.
Crucially, Valencia dominated the offensive boards 14-7 as the hosts prevailed on second-chance points, with Thompson leading the charge on 17 points while Reuvers and Brancou Badio added 14 apiece. At the other end, Isaac Bonga racked up 17 points and 7 rebounds while Sterling Brown added 15. The visitors also committed a costly 14 turnovers as their backcourt struggled against Valencia’s aggressive defense.
FC Barcelona 74-90 AS Monaco
A battle of direct rivals saw Monaco overpower Barcelona with a great team effort, 74-90. The visiting team's defense dominated the first quarter for a 13-22 lead, which Nikola Mirotic extended to 17 points with three straight scores early in the second. A 2-13 run featuring five different scorers kept Monaco moving, and it was 30-47 at the half. The third quarter saw Barca coach Xavi Pascual ejected for two technical fouls as Barca tried to battle back, but Monaco kept its poise and never allowed the lead to sink back to single digits.
Monaco’s chief inspiration in an outstanding collective display was Kevarrius Hayes with 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots, while Mike James top scored with 19 points, Mirotic added 13 and Elie Okobo scored 12. Barca’s Dario Brizuela led all scorers with 25 points, with Miles Norris netting 4 triples in his 14 points. The teams are now tied with a 12-7 record, just one win behind first place.
Friday, January 2, 2026
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (18:00 CET)
Two teams targeting a return to winning ways meet in Istanbul as Efes (6-12) hosts Zvezda (10-8). The Serbian team has not won on the road since October, and must tighten up defensively after allowing 102 points in defeat at Paris last week. Efes also suffered defensively in a Round 18 defeat at ASVEL, but playmaker Nick Weiler-Babb gained confidence with his best game of the season (20 points and 8 assists). He faces a tough defensive task against Jared Butler, who poured in 31 points last time out, while another key piece for Zvezda, Chima Moneke, got back to his best by recording a double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds). To counter him, Efes needs a big night from Ercan Osmani, who has struggled to replicate his strong early-season form in recent weeks.
Kosner Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (20:00 CET)
Something has to give as Baskonia (6-12) seeks a seventh straight home win against Fenerbahce (11-6), which has won three straight on the road. The Spanish team has a new weapon in the paint after Eugene Omuruyi announced his EuroLeague arrival with 17 points in last week’s loss at Valencia, which saw sharpshooters Marcus Howard and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot fall below their usual standards by combining to shoot for 3-of-14 from long range. Keeping them quiet will be a priority for Fener’s league-best defense, while the scoring responsibility at the other end will again lie with Wade Baldwin, who has recorded six consecutive double-digit scoring nights. These two teams boast the league’s best interior defenses (50.3% vs 48.8% of two-pointers allowed), and Fenerbahce will rely on the hustle of Khem Birch to make life difficult for the hosts.
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. Olympiacos Piraeus (20:15 CET)
All the drama and intensity of the Greek derby will be on display as Panathinaikos (12-6) welcomes Olympiacos (10-7). The Greens will hope to recover from a recent flu outbreak as it attempts to end a nine-game EuroLeague losing sequence against its eternal rival, which warmed up for the short trip to Athens by overcoming Virtus behind another powerhouse performance from Nikola Milutinov (13 points, 9 rebounds). He faces a must-watch battle in the paint with Kenneth Faried and Richaun Holmes. Another key matchup will see visiting defensive ace Thomas Walkup attempt to contain reigning MVP Kendrick Nunn (21.9 points over the last seven games), while the Greens will also look for a lift from fit-again Cedi Osman, who drained 5-of-6 triples to inspire a tough victory at Zalgiris last week.
Virtus Bologna vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (20:30 CET)
The round’s third domestic derby will see Italian bragging rights on the line as Virtus (8-10) welcomes Milan (9-9). The hosts will look to recover their usual home form after losing two straight in Bologna, and need leading scorer Carsen Edwards to recover from an injury sustained in last week’s loss to Olympiacos. Milan is looking to bounce back from a flat Round 18 performance in Dubai, and should have former Virtus playmaker Nico Mannion back in action after a nose problem. The visitors are the league’s most accurate team from long range (39.3%), so hopes that the likes of Zach LeDay (12.1 points per game on 42.2% from deep) can shine against a Virtus that ranks fourth in two-point conversion (57.1%) and will look for physical dominance through the energy of do-it-all Saliou Niang.
Real Madrid vs. Dubai Basketball (20:45 CET)
In-form Dubai (9-9) will look to keep on climbing towards the top 10 as it visits a Real team (10-8) clinging onto those places. A remarkable performance from Facu Campazzo (28 points, 10 assists) wasn’t enough to prevent defeat for Los Blancos at Monaco last week, and the hosts needs to regain control of the paint after allowing 17 offensive rebounds in that game – a key matchup will see Mfiondu Kabengele go toe to toe with Walter Tavares. Dubai has won four of the last six, and will confront Campazzo with the red-hot McKinley Wright, who's averaged 19 points and 9.8 assists in the last five games. The visitors will hope to call upon Aleksa Avramovic and Boogie Ellis after injury, while Real will wait to see if Trey Lyles can overcome a neck problem.
FC Bayern Munich vs. Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv (21:00 CET)
New Bayern (5-13) coach Svetislav Pesic is hoping to gain his first win by ending reborn Maccabi’s (8-10) five-game winning streak. The home team could be without backcourt star Spencer Dinwiddie for personal reasons, which could give Lonnie Walker more opportunity to extend his stellar form after averaging 20 points during the winning run. Bayern’s nine-game losing sequence is largely explained by an impotent offense, which trails the league in scoring (77.5 points per game), while Maccabi is firing on all cylinders after blazing 112 points past Partizan last week. That included 17 points from in-form forward Roman Sorkin, who will attempt to set the tempo for his team by outperforming Bayern leader Vladimir Lucic.
