This season's third double-round week is now officially in the books
Game Center: Clyburn tricks Partizan; treats for Baskonia, Oly, Monaco on Halloween night
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Friday, October 31
AS Monaco 92-84 Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens
Monaco powered past Panathinaikos with a 92-84 home victory on Friday night. A fast-paced first quarter ended with Monaco ahead 27-20, and that lead was 50-41 at halftime after Mike James scored 8 points in less than two minutes. Kendrick Nunn helped keep Panathinaikos in contention after the break, but Monaco always had enough offense to stay ahead and a 15-2 fourth quarter run ensured the hosts comfortably completed a perfect double-round week.
James orchestrated Monaco with 13 points and 8 assists, while Elie Okobo top scored with 15. Matthew Strazel netted 12 points, with Jaron Blossomgame and Nemanja Nedovic both adding 11 for the winning team. Nunn topped all scorers with 23 points, while Kostas Sloukas scored 14 and Juancho Hernangomez poured in 13. The teams are now tied at 5-3 for a share of third place.
Olympiacos Piraeus 62-58 Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv
Olympiacos got back to winning ways by edging past Hapoel 62-58 on Friday night at the Peace and Friendship Stadium. The visitors started strong, but an 11-0 run fueled by Tyler Dorsey gave the Reds an early 16-10 lead. The two defenses neutralized the oppositions' weapons, with the hosts holding Hapoel to just 4 points in the third quarter. Then, Thomas Walkup made some crucial defensive plays in crunch time to clinch the victory. Olympiacos improved its record to 5-3, with Hapoel dropping to 6-2 after suffering its first road loss.
Sasha Vezenkov netted 14 points, abd Nikola Milutinov completed a double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds. Antonio Blakeney bagged 13 points, all of which were scored in the first half.
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade 76-78 FC Barcelona
Barcelona eked out a thrilling 76-78 win at Partizan and stretched its streak to 12 successive wins over the Serbian side as Tornike Shengelia racked up 24 points, 5 boards and 5 assists. Will Clyburn sank 14 points including a heart-stopping 3-pointer in the home straight, Tomas Satoransky scored 11 while Kevin Punter and Jan Vesely chipped in with 10 apiece. At the other end, Tyrique Jones amassed 15 points, 13 boards and 7 assists while Duane Washington netted a team-high 21 points for Partizan, which slipped to its third successive defeat.
It was a balanced start to the game but Barcelona was able to pull away to 10-18 on the back of a 4-15 run, generated by 4 three-pointers from 6 attempts as the visitors caught fire. The hosts then tightened up their defense and hit back with a 7-0 run, giving Barca a slender 17-18 lead at the end the first quarter. Partizan’s whirlwind streak continued in the second quarter and galvanized by big man Bruno Fernando, the home team completed a 17-0 run to forge a 27-18 advantage amid wild cheers from its fans before Barcelona regained some composure. The game of runs continued as Barcelona went 2-11 to tie the score, 29-29. An explosive first half ended with Partizan gaining the upper had again as the hosts hit some tough shots from downtown to lead 41-33 at the interval. Again, Barcelona struck with a 0-9 streak to draw level, 45-45, but Partizan refused to roll over and the hosts managed to stay in the driving seat (52-49) with 3 minutes left in the third quarter, as the matchup developed into a bruising and physical battle. However, Barcelona showed its resilience and made some tough long-range shots to nose in front 56-58 ahead of the final 10 minutes. Powered by the hardworking Tyrique Jones, Partizan engineered a 67-62 advantage midway through the fourth but Shengelia continued to torment the hosts from all over and Barcelona soon closed in to set up a dramatic finish. Ultimately, Will Clyburn beat the shot clock with audacious effort from way downtown to give Barcelona the lead and seal a memorable win.
Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 86-75 Anadolu Efes Istanbul
Baskonia grabbed its second consecutive victory by downing Efes 86-75 at home in Round 8 on Friday. Baskonia improved to 2-6 in the standings while Efes dropped to 3-5. Efes's last lead came at 4-6, as Baskonia built a double-digit lead, 22-11, at the end of the first quarter and went on to control the game until the final buzzer.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot led the winners with 19 points and 6 assists. Matteo Spagnolo added 19 and 6 assists, Rodions Kurucs had 11 while Mamadi Diakite got 5 blocks, a new EuroLeague season high, for Baskonia. Shane Larkin led Efes with 23 points against his former team. Nick Weiler-Babb added 16 while Rolands Smits had 10 for the guests.
Thursday, October 30
Zalgiris Kaunas 96-59 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne
Zalgiris Kaunas tied a club record for its largest margin of victory in a 37-point blowout of LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne on Thursday night at Zalgirio Arena. The Lithuanian giants were never in trouble, building a double-digit lead after one quarter and growing it night long.
All 11 players in uniform scored for Zalgiris, which was led by Sylvain Francisco with 15 points and 7 assists and Moses Wright with 14 points on perfect shooting and 7 rebounds. Teenager Kajus Mikalauskas added 5 points in his EuroLeague debut as Zalgiris improved to 6-2 on the season. Glynn Watson scored 14 to lead ASVEL, which lost star guard Nando De Colo to a leg injury in the second quarter. ASVEL’s record slipped to 2-6.
Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv 92-99 Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade
Crvena Zvezda notched its sixth successive win and improved to 6-2 after a high-octane 92-99 road defeat of Maccabi in a see-saw encounter that kept fans on the edge of their seats throughout. Codi Miller-McIntyre paced Zvezda on 23 points and 11 assists, Chima Moneke racked up 16 points and 8 boards while Ebuka Izundu added 15 points to go with 7 rebounds. At the other end. Jaylen Hoard scored 20 points while Lonnie Walker added 18 for Maccabi, which dropped to 2-6.
A frantic and fast-paced start to the game saw Zvezda hit its first 4 three-pointers from as many attempts to take a 15-27 lead as Miller-McIntyre was red-hot from the floor, netting 11 points in the first quarter. The Serbian team, roared on by a loud contingent of fans at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall, held on for a 26-33 advantage after the opening 10 minutes. The pace was just as unrelenting in the second quarter, with Hoard and Brisset keeping Maccabi afloat while Zvezda relied on smooth teamwork to carve out a 48-58 halftime lead.
Maccabi beefed up its defense in the third quarter and closed in to 61-65 midway through before Zvezda regained its composure. The visitors entered the final 10 minutes ahead 71-77. Maccabi nosed ahead with a 10-1 run early in the fourth quarter as Zvezda’s offense was ground to a screeching halt, but the Serbian outfit then thrived on some big buckets from Izundu ahead of the home straight. Zvezda had more in the tank in a tight finish, with Izundu coming up big as he netted 11 fourth-quarter points to make the difference.
FC Bayern Munich 86-70 Virtus Bologna
FC Bayern Munich earned a convincing 86-70 win on Thursday at SAP Garden, despite a gutsy fight from Virtus Bologna. It was clear that part of Bayern’s defensive game plan was to keep the ball out of its former point guard Carsen Edwards's hands, which they did for most of the first half. However, the point guard pulled his team back into the game in the second, with a couple of impressive jumpers. The momentum shift didn’t last long however and Munich took hold of the contest soon after.
Debutant Spencer Dinwiddie began to take command on offense near the end of the third, putting himself into isolation plays. Despite some pushback from Virtus, the host eventually took complete control of the contest down the stretch.
Sharpshooting Andreas Obst led the Bavarians in scoring with 21, helped by his 11-point run in the final 5 minutes. A scoring burst from Justinian Jessup and consistent offensive output from Johannes Voigtmann also bolstered Bayern’s chances, while Isiaha Mike topped off a great week with another impressive performance, adding 4 rebounds and 2 assists to a 17-point scoring performance. Alen Smailagic led Virtus with 17 points and Edwards finished with 16, though he shot just 7-for-19 from the field. The win moved Gordon Herbert’s team to 3-3 for their EuroLeague campaign, while Virtus fell to 4-4.
Valencia Basket 80-78 Dubai Basketball
In a thriller that came down to the last shot, Valencia Basket registered its third consecutive victory by edging Dubai Basketball 80-78 at Roig Arena in Round 8 on Thursday. Valencia improved to 5-3 in the regular season standings while Dubai dropped to 3-5. All five Dubai losses have come on the road.
Kameron Taylor led the winners with 19 points and 6 rebounds. Omari Moore added 15, including the go-ahead basket with 21.6 seconds remaining, while Brancou Badio had 12 points for Valencia. Boogie Ellis paced Dubai with 18 points in his EuroLeague debut. Filip Petrusev added 17 while Dwayne Bacon had 10 for the visitors, who were outrebounded 40-34. Once Moore gave Valencia an 80-78 lead, Bacon and David Bertans each missed a shot from beyond the arc in the final seconds off the game, allowing Valencia fans to celebrate a hard-fought victory.
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 86-77 Paris Basketball
In a game that seemed set for a blowout after the first 25 minutes, Milan ended up coming away with an 86-77 win over Paris on Thursday night. The swarming Milan defense held Paris star Nadir Hifi to just 2 points on 1-for-10 shooting in the first half, which allowed the Little Red Shoes to boast a 20-point lead at the interval (47-27).
Although Hifi started to heat up in the third quarter, Milan maintained a healthy advantage as Armoni Brooks started to come to the fore. After 30 minutes, Milan was up by 14. Hifi kept charging in the fourth and helped Paris make it a 10-point game with just over 3 minutes remaining, but a combination of Brooks, Quinn Ellis and Devin Booker managed to get Coach Ettore Messina’s side over the line.
Booker scored a team-high 13 points for Milan, followed by Brooks with 12, and Shavon Shields and Nico Mannion with 10 apiece. Pippo Ricci finished the night with 9 points and 10 rebounds, while Ellis had 7 points and 8 rebounds. For Paris, Hifi netted a game-high 24 points, with Justin Robinson and Sebastian Herrera pouring in 11 points each.
Real Madrid 84-58 Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul
Real Madrid got back to winning ways by thrashing Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul 84-58 on Thursday night at Movistar Arena. After losing three road games in a row, Los Blancos hit the ground running with a 17-2 surge and took a 49-22 lead into the second half. Having held Fenerbahce to just 35 points after three quarters, Real Madrid opened a 30-point lead to finish the game off. The hosts improved their record to 4-4, with the Turkish side dropping to 3-5.
Theo Maledon paced Real Madrid with 15 points followed by Trey Lyles, who netted 14, and Walter Tavares with 13 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks. Fenerbahce guard Wade Baldwin scored a team-high 14 points and Talen Horton-Tucker added 10 in defeat.