Thursday night in the German capital was a special occasion for Sergio Llull as the Real Madrid legend, three-time champion and former EuroLeague MVP made his 425th appearance in the competition, tying Kyle Hines for the most all-time.

Sergio Llull marked historic occasion with vintage performance

Thursday night in the German capital was a special occasion for [Sergio Llull](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/sergio-llull/tgb/). The [Real Madrid](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/real-madrid/mad/) legend, a three-time champion and former Turkish Airlines EuroLeague MVP, made his 425th appearance in the competition, tying [Kyle Hines](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kyle-hines/002812/) for the [most all-time](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/expanded/?size=200&viewType=traditional&statisticMode=accumulated&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&statistic=gamesPlayed).

But, in his team's [69-80 win over ALBA Berlin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/alba-berlin-real-madrid/E2024/155/#boxscore), the 37-year-old Llull was also Real's best player, leading the team to its third straight win. He finished with a game-high 20 points, shooting 5-of-9 from three-point land.

It was Llull's first game in which he scored at least 20 points in more than two years, and the first time he knocked down 5 triples since Round 4 of last season.

"Today I came in the game and I was successful," Llull said after the game. "I was able to help the team in that aspect, but I always try to play at 100% to help in whatever way."

Real Madrid forward Mario Hezonja spoke to EuroLeague TV after his team beat ALBA Berlin in Round 18 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Mario Hezonja: 'I am lucky to be in a locker room with Sergio Llull'

All the humbleness aside, there was running away from the fact Llull caught up with Hines for a major EuroLeague milestone, a record that will be his and only his next week when he enters the game at home [against FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/real-madrid-fc-bayern-munich/E2024/171/).

"It is a special record", Llull admitted. "Being up there in games played means that you have been at the highest level in the EuroLeague for many years."

Llull, again, tried to credit other factors that influenced his own personal success.

"The record is a consequence of being in the best club in the world for so many years. In the end, you play a lot of games. It's an honor to equal Kyle Hines, a player who is also a legend of the EuroLeague."

But the big night was definitely made even bigger by Llull's performance. He had a vintage performance, netting 4 three-pointers late in the first and early in the second quarter, including one four-point play and scoring 13 points in a span of less than 5 minutes, as he led Real in building a 17-point lead.

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">LULL hits a LOOK AWAY THREE! 🤯🤯🤯<a href="https://twitter.com/23Llull?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@23Llull</a> is feeling himself tonight with FOUR made threes so far! 🎯<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EveryGameMatters?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EveryGameMatters</a> <a href="https://t.co/9qii4j4RVQ">pic.twitter.com/9qii4j4RVQ</a></p>&mdash; Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroLeague/status/1872351838462529982?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 26, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> 

The rest of Llull's points came in the second half. With ALBA closing within 49-57, he drove for an important layup. In the fourth, when ALBA came within 6 points, Llull knocked down his fifth triple to make it 55-64 and then had another driving layup to open a 57-66 lead.

After that, [Mario Hezonja](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/mario-hezonja/003108/) took over, scoring 8 straight points as *Los Blancos* pulled away for good and registered their third straight win to get their record to 9-9.

"We are taking \[steps forward\]. I think we have to be a little patient also in the sense that we have given away many games in that last quarter. We have lost games by 1 point, several of them, quite cruel. Seeing the ones we have won, we would be talking about being in the playoffs, even among the top four teams in such an even EuroLeague. But, I think the team is doing well and it is important to continue along this path", Llull concluded after his historic night.

Game News

The veteran Spaniard had a big night in Berlin, both in terms of EuroLeague history and in helping Los Blancos beat ALBA

ALBA Berlin v Real Madrid (2024-12-26T18:00:00.000Z)

Maccabi leaned on Jaylen Hoard and Roman Sorkin to thump Zalgiris

[Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/roster/tel/?season=2024-25) celebrated its most emphatic win of the season in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after the Israeli champs vanquished [Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/teams/zalgiris-kaunas/roster/zal/?season=2024-25) [95-78 in Round 18](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/impressive-maccabi-brushes-aside-zalgiris-95-78/) with several players excelling in a majestic all-around performance.

First and foremost [Jaylen Hoard](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jaylen-hoard/006835/), as the versatile forward sank a game-high 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor and a perfect 8 of 8 from the foul line. Hoard also racked up 5 boards and 4 assists to underline a flowing individual effort.  

“It was a really great game and I was happy about the way we played defense today,” Hoard said in a post-game interview. “I feel I’ve played well in most of the last few outings but I always try to play better, each and every game,” he added.

Game Videos

The outcome also provided some relief to head coach [Oded Kattash](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/tel/kattash-oded/?season=E2024) after five successive defeats in Europe’s premier club competition, compounded by the weekend’s 101-84 drubbing at the hands of [Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/hapoel-jerusalem/roster/jer/?season=2024-25) in the Israeli league.   

“I liked the reaction from my team because we had some tough losses last week, so I really liked the body language and the energy,” he said. “It’s really hard to get any momentum given our circumstances, but that’s our challenge.”

[Rokas Jokubaitis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/rokas-jokubaitis/007519/) and [Roman Sorkin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/roman-sorkin/011219/) posted 18 points each for Maccabi and the latter stressed just how important it was for the team to bounce back from a series of setbacks. 

“We wanted to respond after the loss we had in the domestic league and it was a good game for us,” said Sorkin. “We don’t want to celebrate too much, as we aim to improve defensively and get more wins. “

Zalgiris head coach [Andrea Trinchieri](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/zalgiris-kaunas/zal/trinchieri-andrea/?season=E2024) made no excuses for a poor performance from his team. “It was our worst performance of the season as we weren’t ready to compete,” the Italian tactician said. "Congratulations to Maccabi as we gave up very early in the game and we had a very bad night.”

In Round 19, Zalgiris is at [home to Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/zalgiris-kaunas-olympiacos-piraeus/E2024/163/) while Maccabi makes a very short trip across the Serbian capital to [visit Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/partizan-mozzart-bet-belgrade-maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/E2024/170/).    

The duo, coupled with a good performance from Rokas Jokubaitis, had too much firepower for the visitors 

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv v Zalgiris Kaunas (2024-12-26T19:05:00.000Z)

Alec Peters delivered big time in the fourth quarter, leading Olympiacos Piraeus to an 83-84 road win at Olimpia Milano.

Alec Peters stepped up to cover for Milutinov in Bartzokas’s small ball

Missing [Nikola Milutinov](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nikola-milutinov/003941/) through gastroenteritis, [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/roster/oly/?season=2024-25) took to Unipol Forum with just one available center in [Moustapha Fall](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/moustapha-fall/008811/). New signing [Nathan Mensah](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nathan-mensah/013514/) may have traveled with the team to Italy, but throwing the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague rookie in at the deep end at a strong side like [EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/teams/ea7-emporio-armani-milan/roster/mil/?season=2024-25) was not an option. Head coach [Georgios Bartzokas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/bartzokas-georgios/?season=E2024) had already tried playing small ball due to injuries of his bigs in previous games, but his experiment didn’t always work out well.

Yet, on Thursday night everything clicked and it was [Alec Peters](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/alec-peters/008829/) who delivered big time in the fourth quarter, leading Olympiacos to an [83-84 road win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/olympiacos-edges-milan-in-thriller-83-84/). The Olympiacos forward started the closing quarter at the ‘4’ before moving to the center position when Fall was replaced with 3 fouls with 8 minutes to go.

"We had to play with a short lineup because we had only Moustapha Fall \[at center\] and it wasn’t easy for him to play 40 minutes and he had 3 fouls," Bartzokas told EuroLeague TV after the game. “And then we had a lineup with forwards and guards. So, protecting the paint and grabbing defensive rebounds was the key."

Peters stepped up for the Reds in Milan

Peters scored 12 of Olympiacos’s 20 points in the fourth quarter, including a huge triple to open a 74-80 lead with 2:22 left on the clock. In fact, he netted his team’s last 7 points of the game, allowing the Reds to maintain an edge until the final whistle. Peters ended the game with a season-high 14 points, going 3-for-3 from inside, 1-for-3 from deep and 5-for-5 from the line in 15:43 minutes on the floor.

Before coming to the fore in the fourth quarter, Peters saw his teammate, [Evan Fournier](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/evan-fournier/013380/), set the tone with an extraordinary third-quarter display. The Olympiacos forward scored 14 of his team’s 23 points in the third, allowing the visitors to establish a narrow lead. His complete outing on both sides of the floor saw Fournier finish the game with 18 points, 7 assists and as many as 5 steals.

“We’ve been struggling with injuries,” the Olympiacos forward told EuroLeague TV. “Guys in and out the lineup. We didn’t have Milu\[tinov\]. We just have to find some consistency regardless of who is in and who is out and play Olympiacos basketball, which is \[being\] tough, together and hard.”

Having previously gotten back to winning ways with two victories in the double-round week, Olympiacos has now extended its streak to three wins. At Milan it was Peters who stepped up and, should the Reds manage to consistently demonstrate this next-man-up mentality, they will be sending a strong message to the rest of the top-four spot contenders.

The Olympiacos forward netted 12 of his team’s 20 points in the fourth quarter

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan v Olympiacos Piraeus (2024-12-26T19:30:00.000Z)

AS Monaco celebrated its final piece of action of an eventful 2024 by sweeping aside Anadolu Efes Istanbul 94-75

Monaco enjoyed perfect end to 2024

If you could design the perfect way to end the calendar year, snapping a direct rival’s three-game winning streak with a comprehensive [19-point home victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/monaco-takes-first-place-with-win-over-efes-94-75/) would be a pretty good way to go.

And that’s exactly what [AS Monaco](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/as-monaco/roster/mco/?season=2024-25) enjoyed on Thursday night, celebrating its final piece of action of an eventful 2024 by sweeping aside [Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/roster/ist/?season=2024-25) 94-75, performing with focus and execution at both ends of the floor to lead by double digits for more than 30 minutes.

Roca Team coach [Vassilis Spanoulis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/as-monaco/mco/spanoulis-vassilis/?season=E2024) certainly had no complaints with those efforts, immediately concluding that it was his team’s best performance since he joined the principality club a month ago.

“I’m very happy,” the Greek icon told [EuroLeague.TV](http://EuroLeague.TV). “Maybe we played the most solid game until now for 40 minutes, to keep this \[Efes\] team to 75 points. We shot with great percentages, two-point (65%), three-point (50%) and free throws (85%). And we say it one more time: 23 assists. This is great to play like this. It’s nice to watch this team playing like this.”

It must also be nice to play for a team like this, and [Jordan Loyd](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jordan-loyd/009754/) enjoyed his contribution against Efes by recording a game-high PIR of 18 on 14 points, 4 assists and 6 rebounds in nearly 30 minutes on the floor.

Loyd preferred to focus his attention on his team’s ability to limit Efes’s dangerous offense, saying: “When we play defense like that and we’re physical, we’re a great team.

AS Monaco guard Jordan Loyd spoke to EuroLeague TV after his team beat Anadolu Efes Istanbul in Round 18 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Jordan Loyd: 'When we play defense like that, we're a great team'

“Everybody did their job tonight and obviously I’m happy with the win. We’ve got to hit at the right time, the right moment, and at the end of the season I think we’ll be there.”

Another strong performance was delivered by big man [Mam Jaiteh](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/mam-jaiteh/002581/), who hit 12 points without a miss alongside 4 boards and 2 steals, and he underlined the confidence flowing through Monaco as he observed: “We need to enjoy this time.

“Everything is positive to make us even more ambitious. Overall we played the way we would like to play, but we’re conscious of the small mistakes that we need to improve. If we have the good mindset we will do better soon and we have everything to reach our goals.”

And considering the emphatic all-round nature of Monaco’s final performance of 2024, it’s easy to argue that a glorious 2025 lies ahead.

The future looks bright for the Roca Team after a thumping win over Efes

AS Monaco v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2024-12-26T18:00:00.000Z)

Olympiacos Piraeus extended its winning streak to three games by grabbing a hard-fought 83-84 victory at EA7 Emporio Armani Milan on Thursday 

Olympiacos edges Milan in thriller, 83-84

Olympiacos Piraeus extended its winning streak to three games by grabbing a hard-fought 83-84 victory at EA7 Emporio Armani Milan on Thursday night. In a tight affair at Unipol Forum, neither team managed to secure a lead that was larger than 7 points, with the two sides trading blows throughout the 40 minutes. With the win, Olympiacos improved its record to 12-6. Meanwhile, Milan registered its third straight loss to drop to 9-9.

Sasha Vezenkov led all scorers with 21 points and Evan Fournier netted 18, with Alec Peters and Moustapha Fall scoring 14 and 11, respectively. Nikola Mirotic paced Milan with 16 points, Shavon Shields netted 15 and Leandro Bolmaro scored 14.

Kostas Papanikolaou opened the scoring with a dunk following a backdoor cut, but Leandro Bolmaro netted a midrange jumper and Nico Mannion nailed a triple to put Milan ahead, 5-2. Moustapha Fall and Sasha Vezenkov scored inside, but Zach LeDay drilled one from deep and Bolmaro scored a layup to put Milan back in front, 10-6. Vezenkov and Shavon Shields traded triples before buckets from the Olympiacos forward and Fall tied it at 13-13. After Shaquielle McKissic and Vezenkov scored in the paint to give Olympiacos the lead, Neno Dimitrijevic made 2 from the free-throw line to make it 19-19 after 10 minutes.

Stefano Tonut opened his account from beyond the arc before back-to-back layups from Fabien Causeur opened a 28-21 lead early in the second quarter. Five points from Vezenkov were followed by a reverse layup from Papanikolaou to bring Olympiacos within 32-28. A Causeur three was followed by a basket from Fall, but Bolmano netted off the glass to extend Milan’s lead to 37-30. Fall and Papanikolaou scored inside, trimming the deficit to 38-34. Then, Olympiacos went on a 2-7 run fueled by its defense, with Vildoza scoring from behind the rainbow and Peters netting in transition for a 40-41 edge at the break.

Vezenkov opened the third quarter with a bucket inside before a jumper from Walkup gave Olympiacos a 42-45 lead. Milan responded with back-to-back triples from Bolmaro and Shields, who gave the hosts a 48-45 cushion. Fournier drilled a triple for his first field goal of the night before a Fall put-back bucket put Olympiacos ahead, 49-50. Vezenkov sank a three-pointer to reach the 2,500-point milestone before a Fournier three allowed the visitors to maintain a 54-56 lead. Ousmane Diop and Fournier exchanged buckets before Shields tied it, 58-58. Then, Fournier completed a three-point play before nailing one from downtown, but Neno Dimitrijevic hit a jumper that reduced the difference to 60-64 heading into the closing quarter.

Dimitrijevic opened the fourth with a triple before a three from Giampaolo Ricci put Milan in front, 66-65. Yet, Peters netted inside and Vildoza nailed from the corner to restore a 66-70 lead. The game turned into a free-throw affair, with Olympiacos maintaining a 68-74 cushion. Shields scored one from deep, but Fournier got a tough score inside to make it 71-77. Mirotic completed a three-point play on the other end, but Peters responded with a triple, 74-80. Peters and Shields traded scores inside, before a couple of free throws from the former restored a 78-84 cushion. Bolmaro nailed a corner three before a layup from Mirotic brought Milan within 83-84 with 0:38 remaining. With one possession left for each team, neither side managed to get a score and Olympiacos sealed the road victory.

The Reds outlasted the hosts in a tight affair at Unipol Forum

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv romped to a 95-78 victory over Zalgiris Kaunas in Round 18 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and improved to 5-13 after Jaylen Hoard led the way on a game-high 23 points

Impressive Maccabi brushes aside Zalgiris, 95-78

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv romped to a 95-78 victory over Zalgiris Kaunas in Round 18 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and improved to 5-13 after Jaylen Hoard led the way on a game-high 23 points, while Rokas Jokubaitis added 16 against his former club. Roman Sorkin also chipped in with 18 points for Maccabi and Levi Randolph netted 10 as Maccabi dished out 24 assists and won the battle of the boards 36-26 against a flat-looking Zalgiris which dropped to 10-8.

Deividas Syrvidis and Sylvain Francisco amassed 15 points each for the Lithuanian team and Lonnie Walker scored 14 after enduring a torrid shooting night, sinking just 1 of 10 from deep after missing his opening nine shots beyond the three-point arc.

Following an even start, as the teams were tied 13-13 midway through the first quarter, Maccabi went on a crucial 9-0 run and never looked back. Jokubaitis and Hoard drained 11 points each in the opening period as Maccabi surged ahead 26-16 and then continued to torment the visitors in the second quarter.

Hoard and Jokubaitis combined for 29 points by halftime, with Maccabi dominating in all departments. The hosts sank 5 of 7 three-pointers in the first half and contained Zalgiris to 6 of 20, dishing out 24 assists while forcing 11 turnovers from the visitors.

Maccabi also nailed 15 of 24 shots from inside and its aggressive defense limited Zalgiris to 6 of 9, as the Lithuanian team was forced out of the paint by aggressive defense from Maccabi.

There seemed to be a glimmer of hope for Zalgiris after a ferocious Alen Smailagic dunk ignited a streak that slashed Maccabi’s lead to 67-55 late in the third quarter.

However, a 13-5 run from Maccabi vanquished any thoughts of a comeback as the Israel champs kept their feet on the gas in the fourth.

Maccabi led by as many as 23 points in the closing stages, 87-64, before a late rally by Zalgiris kept the final score remotely respectable for the visiting team.   

The Israeli champs fired on all cylinders from start to finish

AS Monaco stayed strong at home to comfortably down Anadolu Efes Istanbul, 94-75, on Thursday night. 

Monaco takes first place with win over Efes, 94-75

AS Monaco stayed strong at home to comfortably down Anadolu Efes Istanbul, 94-75, on Thursday night. The Roca Team improved to 12-6 to establish a two-game margin over Efes at 10-8.

Monaco raced into an early double-digit lead, which was extended to 49-34 at halftime. The advantage reached 19 points early in the second half, and that was too big a gap for Efes to ever threaten. Monaco’s team effort was paced by 14 points apiece for Mike James and Jordan Loyd. Mam Jaiteh added 12 points, and Jaron Blossomgame scored 11. Dan Oturu paced Efes with 14 points, with double-digit scoring from Darius Thompson (12), Elijah Bryant (12), Rolands Smits (10) and Vincent Poirier (10).

Loyd’s three-pointer gave Monaco the first lead, and Thompson’s driving layup responded for Efes. Vitto Brown’s triple, James’s layup and Loyd’s free throws made it 10-2, before Poirier and Donatas Motiejunas traded close-range scores. Brown’s three-point play pushed Monaco into a double-digit lead, 15-4. Ercan Osmani’s inside score and a pair of Poirier dunks pulled Efes closer, but Georgios Papagiannis scored 4 fast points before Bryant and Elie Okobo traded triples to make it 22-13 after ten minutes.

Papagiannis opened the second quarter with a floater, and three-pointers were exchanged between Rodrigue Beaubois and Matthew Strazel. Jaiteh’s fastbreak finish stretched Monaco’s lead to 29-16, but Oturu’s tip-in and Shane Larkin’s floater reduced the margin to single digits. Two more Jaiteh buckets kept Monaco comfortable, 35-20, and 4 straight points for Oturu didn’t help Efes much as Motiejunas and James netted at the other end. Free throws and a James triple maintained the margin, and it was 49-34 at the interval.

Jaiteh’s steal and score was bettered by Bryant’s triple to start the second half, but Terry Tarpey struck from deep and Jaiteh netted again to make it 56-37. Bryant and Loyd traded close-range buckets, before Jordan Nwora’s triple and a pair of Smits scores made it closer, 58-48. Blossomgame snapped a 0-9 run to settle Monaco, and Okobo added a smooth layup. Papagiannis and Poirier were on target at the rim, and a triple from Strazel made it 69-54 with ten minutes left.

Blossomgame’s threeball made Monaco even more comfortable, before Oturu scored twice and Thompson added a jumper to keep Efes hoping, 75-60. Strazel hit his third triple and Motiejunas was on target to protect a safe margin, and James also struck from deep for an 83-66 margin. Blossomgame’s layup and highlight reel reverse slam removed any lingering doubt despite a flurry of points from Thompson, and Monaco eased to a clear win.

The Roca Team strengthened its challenge at the top of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague standings

Real Madrid started the second part of the regular season in style, going to the German capital to down ALBA Berlin 69-80. Los Blancos registered their third straight win, and 18th in as many head-to-head games against ALBA, to improve to 9-9 on the season, while ALBA dropped to a league-worst 3-15 record.

Real Madrid keeps winning run going, downs ALBA 69-80

Real Madrid started the second part of the regular season in style, going to the German capital to down ALBA Berlin 69-80. *Los Blancos* registered their third straight win, and 18th in as many games against ALBA, to improve to 9-9 on the season, while ALBA dropped to a league-worst 3-15.

Sergio Llull, who made his 425th EuroLeague appearance to tie Kyle Hines for the most all-time, scored 13 of his game-high 20 points in the first half to help Real pull away to a 17-point lead, and the hosts never came closer than 6 points the rest of the way as Real mostly controlled things on both ends of the floor. Llull was 5-of-9 from long range, while Mario Hezonja scored 18 points and had 6 rebounds. Dzanan Musa scored all 10 of his points in the first quarter, Facundo Campazzo had 9 points and 9 assists, while Walter Tavares collected 9 points and 10 rebounds. David McCormack had 15 points and 8 rebounds for ALBA, Malte Delow scored 13, and Matteo Spagnolo 10 points in the loss.

After Campazzo and Delow traded triples, Musa strung together 8 points, including a pair of threes to make it 11-13, and spark a 2-14 run by Real. Hezonja and Llull each added a three-pointer and Gabriel Deck joined in to complete a run of 9 consecutive points by the visitors and make it 13-24. Spagnolo snapped a run with a jumper, but another three from Llull made it 15-28 after 10 minutes.

Llull had a four-point play and a corner three to extend the margin early in the second. A three from Hugo Gonzalez opened a 21-38 lead. Spagnolo scored on a fast break and Matt Thomas hit a three-pointer, only for Tavares to answer with a big dunk to help restore a 17-point margin. However, ALBA responded with an 8-0 run that included big dunks from Delow and McCormack, and Real went into halftime up 34-45.

Tim Schneider made a triple and a tough baseline jumper, but Gabriel Deck had a three-pointer for the visitors and Tavares scored inside, keeping the margin in double figures at halfway point of the second, 39-52. Hermannsson scored 4 points to get the margin into single digits, before Hezonja hit a triple, but a jumper from Spagnolo and a put-back dunk by McCormack cut it to 48-55. After a timeout, however, Andres Feliz and Llull each scored a runner and Real took a 51-61 lead into the fourth quarter.

McCormack and Yanni Wetzell cut the margin to 55-61, but Lull hit his fifth triple and took it to the rim to keep ALBA at bay. Then Hezonja took over, scoring 8 points, including a three-point play, a tough turnaround jumper and a three-pointer to make it 59-74 and ice the game. ALBA kept fighting, and McCormack scored twice for the hosts after offensive rebounds, but the margin never went under 10 points the rest of the way.

Real has never lost against ALBA in 18 games this century

Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 18 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Pregame quotes hub

## Friday, December 27

### Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (20:30 CET)

**Dusko Ivanovic, Virtus Segafredo Bologna head coach**

"In my opinion, ASVEL is probably one of the best teams. They play very well, with great confidence, great athleticism and can rely on very good defense. Maledon and De Colo are very important players and leaders who can create and drag their teammates. We will have to play a very good defensive game to try to contain them.”   

**Achille Polonara, Virtus Segafredo Bologna forward** 

"We are expecting a complicated game, ASVEL played a very good first leg in the EuroLeague. They are a tough, young, very explosive and athletic team. We will have to be very careful with their one-on-one and their counterattacks while on offense simply playing our basketball, as we know how to do."

### FC Bayern Munich vs. Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (20:30 CET)

**Gordon Herbert, FC Bayern Munich head coach**

"Panathinaikos has assembled a very intriguing team. Coach Ataman is an excellent trainer and a prominent personality. With a healthy Lessort and Nunn, they had the best combination in the EuroLeague up to now. They’ll make adjustments but still have an incredible amount of talent. We need to show that our defense continues to improve, as it has looked lately. I’m excited that we’ll play again in the SAP Garden in front of our amazing fans."

**Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach**

"Especially at their home court, FC Bayern Munich runs the floor very effectively. Offensively, they attempt many three-pointers in fast breaks and coast-to-coast plays. Therefore, we must be cautious on transition defense and offensively control the game by focusing more on five-on-five play. This will be the key."

**Wenyen Gabriel, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens center**

"I’m very excited about this opportunity. Sometimes you’re blessed to get chances like this, and I’m thrilled to be here wearing the colors of Panathinaikos AKTOR. I’m adjusting well. We had a practice yesterday where we mostly played five-on-five, so I got the chance to work with many of my teammates and get a feel for the system. I’ve started learning some plays and the defensive philosophy. The coach has been clear about what he expects from me. I’m looking forward to getting started."

### Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Paris Basketball (20:30 CET)

### Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (20:30 CET)

**Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade head coach**

"We’re facing a team we’ve already played against. I told the players that was the only game where we had no chance of winning – all the others were decided by a single possession. Some games we won easily, that one we lost easily, but in every other match, we were competitive. Now, we need to find a way and the motivation to compete with them. Our current record is far from satisfactory, but we must draw strength and believe in our abilities to perform much better in the second half of the EuroLeague."

**Balsa Koprivica,  Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade center**

"We are halfway through the season. I think the most important thing for us is how we start the year. Two seasons ago, in this period, we had more wins and a very good finish. We still have a long way to go and there is little difference in the standings between the teams. I think we can achieve a lot depending on how we start the second part of the EuroLeague."

**Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul head coach**

"We are facing an opponent that is playing really well. The atmosphere there is possibly one of the best in the world. We need to have really good guard play to control the team. We need to have concentration for 40 minutes and especially control their guards."

**Bonzie Colson, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul forward**

"Partizan is a very talented team. They are playing really well right now. But it's more about us. We are focusing on our principles, our offense and defense, and just getting better. We had a couple days to prepare for them. Things are moving well, so we just got to prove it on the court."

### FC Barcelona vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (20:30 CET)

**Joan Penarroya, FC Barcelona head coach**

"A difficult match, as they have already shown us \[in Belgrade\]. It's a team that plays well, that is getting victories, with a long roster full of experienced and quality players. We expect difficult match like all those in this EuroLeague, a game in which we will have to do things well. What we would like is to always be at home and give joy to our fans. And it is also evident that it seems that it is easier to win at home than away. There are many \[unexpected\] results in this first round of the EuroLeague, but it is clear that we have to turn games at Palau into those in which the rivals do not come out happy."

**Juan Nunez, FC Barcelona guard**

"The game \[in Belgrade\] was already very complicated, we won in the last few plays and I think it is important to start this second round \[of the regular season\] well, a game at home with our fans, and to win the game. In this second round it is key to win all the games possible at home and to scratch something away. Yes, of course, I think we are Barça, we have to go with the conviction of going to win all the games, whether at home or away, so it is important to protect the home court advantage, but well, we will try to win as many games as possible. Zvezda is a physical team like many in the EuroLeague, with talent too. A team that mixes talent with physicality, with experienced players and a team that is doing well this year. It is playing good basketball and it will surely be a difficult game tomorrow."

## Thursday, December 26

### ALBA Berlin vs. Real Madrid (19:00 CET)

**Israel Gonzalez, ALBA Berlin head coach**

"Real Madrid also had to deal with injury problems and starting difficulties at the beginning of the season. But for the second half of the season match against us, it looks as if they will be able to draw on the full depth of their squad again. In the past matches, you could already see that they are gradually finding their rhythm again. Campazzo, Hezonja, Musa, Tavares and Deck are all in good shape and want to show that they have champion potential. That's why it won't be an easy task for us on Thursday."

**Chus Mateo, Real Madrid head coach**

"We know that ALBA is a team that plays without fear, it is a team that makes many quick shots, at the beginning of the possession, and against which we will have to be attentive to the pace of play that they try to impose. We have to continue with the defensive intensity that we have had in recent games, which allows us to run and have a balance in our game, have good ball circulation and be consistent on the rebounds."

**Usman Garuba, Real Madrid center**

"We are eager to continue adding victories in the EuroLeague and to do so we have to play as a team, with intensity and with great defense, without relaxing at any time. We are playing against a different ALBA Berlin from the one we faced in the first round, which plays at a great pace and will be very motivated against us."

### AS Monaco vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul (19:00 CET)

**Tomislav Mijatovic, Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach**<br>
"We are entering the first game of the second phase of the regular season with a very demanding and challenging road game. Our opponent is a high-scoring potential team with several players who have high scoring capacity. We are ready to face the challenge. We have to play the complete Anadolu Efes game both offensively and defensively and put our maximum effort individually and as a team in order to reach our goal, which is to win the game."<br>
**Jordan Nwora, Anadolu Efes Istanbul forward**<br>
"We are going to Monaco to play against a very good team. If we continue to build good habits and grow as a team we can extend our winning streak."

### Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv vs. Zalgiris Kaunas (20:05 CET)

**Oded Kattash, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv head coach**

"Zalgiris doesn’t score a lot of points, but that’s due to their pace, so first and foremost, defense is key. We have weaknesses on defense, and as a team, we’ll need to compensate for them against very dominant scorers. Every time one of their players has the ball, we’ll need five players focused on him, and that’s something we didn’t do well in the \[Israeli League\] game against Jerusalem. We need to do that much better. Of course, as always against Lithuanian teams, we need to box out well for rebounds."

**Jake Cohen, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv forward**

"We are in the middle of a process and trying to improve. I think the results haven’t been good, but we know what we need to work on and believe in ourselves. \[Coach\] Oded \[Kattash\] will get us there, and the roster is capable. We know what needs to be done to reach the highest levels possible. We were very close in several games. We just need to execute."

### EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. Olympiacos Piraeus (20:30 CET)

**Ettore Messina, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan head coach**

"We face one of the most consistent team in the EuroLeague, a very aggressive team defensively, who will use its quality of passing to free up shooters on offense. We really intend to play a good game, get back on track, and give our fans a game to be proud of, because they have remained very close to us, especially lately, and will our arena one more time."

**Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus head coach**

"It's going to be a tough game. Before the two losses in the previous two EuroLeague games, Milan was on a big winning streak. Also, they played very well against Trapani in the Italian league. As I said, we expect a very difficult game. We will have to fight hard, give our best, and be totally focused in order to get the win. We will miss Nikola Milutinov, and that's a big problem for us. Mensah did travel with us by bus, but as anyone can imagine, he is not ready to help us."

**Nigel Williams-Goss, Olympiacos Piraeus guard**

"Milan is a very good team. Offense is their strength. It is always tough to play away, especially against a talented team like Milan. It is a big challenge for us. We will miss Milutinov, and that means that we all must give our best effort to overcome his absence and get the win. We should stick together and play harder on defense."

Pregame quotes hub: 'It's more about us'

Virtus Segafredo Bologna v LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (2024-12-27T19:30:00.000Z)

FC Bayern Munich v Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (2024-12-27T19:30:00.000Z)

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v Paris Basketball (2024-12-27T19:30:00.000Z)

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade v Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2024-12-27T19:30:00.000Z)

FC Barcelona v Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (2024-12-27T19:30:00.000Z)