FC Barcelona center Jan Vesely is set to miss the remainder of the regular season due to a knee injury that should keep him sidelined for the next eight weeks. 

Barcelona's Jan Vesely, out 8-10 weeks 

FC Barcelona center [Jan Vesely](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jan-vesely/000925/) is set to miss the remainder of the regular season due to a knee injury that should keep him sidelined for the next eight to 10 weeks. 

Vesely (2.13 meters, 34 years old) has been dealing with an osteochondral injury in his right knee, and it has been decided that he will opt for conservative treatment. 

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="ca" dir="ltr">[COMUNICAT MÈDIC]<br><br>El jugador Jan Vesely pateix, des de principis de gener, una lesió osteocondral al fèmur del genoll dret.<br><br>El pivot txec serà baixa de llarga durada, per un període mínim de 8 a 10 setmanes, i seguirà un tractament conservador. <a href="https://t.co/AK5yG5DWgq">pic.twitter.com/AK5yG5DWgq</a></p>&mdash; Barça Basket (@FCBbasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/FCBbasket/status/1887545154984169793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></center>


Vesely has averaged 9.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and a PIR of 12.1 in 21 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague games so far this season. He was chosen as the 2018-19 EuroLeague MVP and is a three-time All-EuroLeague First Team selection.

The 2018-19 EuroLeague MVP is sidelined with a knee injury


### Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz

 

**Streaks**

Chima Moneke has double-digit PIRs in 18 of his last 19 games.

Moneke has scored 10 or more points in nine of his last 10 games.

Moneke has made at least 1 three-pointer in eight of his last nine games.

Nikos Rogkavopoulos has made at least 1 three-pointer in 18 straight games. He's made multiple threes in 14 of those games.

Donta Hall has accumulated double-digit PIRs in 13 of his last 14 games.

Markus Howard has made at least 1 three-pointer in 10 of his last 11 games.

 

**Season rankings**

Chima Moneke ranks sixth in average index rating with 20.0 per game.

Moneke ranks fifth in rebounding with 6.6 per game.

Moneke ranks seventh in offensive rebounding with 2.3 per game.

Donta Hall is tied for third in blocks with 1.2 per game.

Hall ranks sixth in two-point shooting at 71.0%.

Markus Howard ranks 10th in three-pointers made with 2.2 per game.

Tadas Sedekerskis ranks sixth in three-point shooting at 48.3%.

Baskonia ranks second in rebounding with 36.4 rebounds per game.

Baskonia leads the league in offensive rebounding with 12.6 per game.

Baskonia has held opponents to 53.0% two-point shooting, the second-lowest in the league.

 

**Records/Milestones**

Markus Howard made 148 triples last season to set the all-time single-season record.

Donta Hall leads the all-time charts in two-point accuracy at 74.1%.

Tadas Sedekerskis ranks 14th all-time in two-point accuracy at 64.9%.

Ognjen Jaramaz needs 5 points to reach 500 for his career.

Game Videos

### Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv

 

**Streaks**

Jake Cohen has made 19 consecutive free throws.

Tamir Blatt has made at least 1 three-pointer in seven of his last eight games.

Blatt has made 16 consecutive free throws.

Jaylen Hoard has had a PIR of at least 10 in 22 of his 23 EuroLeague appearances.

Hoard has scored 12 points or more in 14 of his last 15 games.

Hoard has collected at least 1 steal in four straight and nine of his last 10 games.

Rokas Jokubaitis has had a PIR of at least 14 in five of his last six games.

Jokubaitis has had at least 1 steal in four of his last five games.

Roman Sorkin has scored at least 10 points in six straight and nine of his last 10 games.

 

**Season rankings**

Tamir Blatt leads the league in assists with 7.5 per game.

Rokas Jokubaitis is joint eighth in assists with 5.0 per game.

Blatt ranks sixth in free-throw shooting at 94.7%.

Blatt ranks seventh in three-pointers made with 2.3 per game.

Trevion Williams ranks ninth in offensive rebounding with 2.1 per game.

Jaylen Hoard ranks fourth in steals with 1.3 per game.

Maccabi ranks third in the league in offensive rebounding with 12.1 per game.

Maccabi has allowed a league-high 59.9% on two-point shooting.

 

**Records/Milestones**

John DiBartolomeo is 12th all-time with a 2.6-to-1 career assist-to-turnover ratio.

Rokas Jokubaitis needs 5 three-point shots made to reach 100 for his career.

Game News

Game Facts: Baskonia vs. Maccabi

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2025-02-07T19:30:00.000Z)

Another excellent performance by Olympiacos Piraeus’s Sasha Vezenkov has seen him earn Round 25 MVP honors with a PIR of 30. This is the fifth time he has earned MVP of the Round honors this season.

Round 25 MVP: Sasha Vezenkov, Olympiacos Piraeus

Another excellent performance by [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/)’s [Sasha Vezenkov](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/sasha-vezenkov/003469/) has seen him earn Round 25 MVP honors with a PIR of 30. This is the fifth time he has earned MVP of the Round honors this season.

Vezenkov led Olympiacos to [a 73-90 road victory over Paris Basketball](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/vezenkov-fournier-power-olympiacos-past-paris-73-90/). He finished the game with 23 points on 4-of-5 two-pointers, 3-of-5 three-pointers and 6-of-6 free throws, adding 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 fouls drawn for a PIR of 30, the highest in Round 25. He has the third most MVP of the Round awards all-time with 14, only behind Shane Larkin (17) and Nando De Colo (16).

[Kostas Sloukas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-sloukas/001926/) of Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens reached a PIR of 28 in his team's 91-90 home win over Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. Sloukas had 23 points on 3-of-4 two-pointers, 4-of-6 three-pointers and 5-of-5 free throws, adding 5 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and 4 fouls drawn. 

[Nigel Hayes-Davis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/nigel-hayes-davis/008962/) of Fenerbahce, [TJ Shorts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tj-shorts/012608/) of Paris and [Toko Shengelia](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/tornike-shengelia/001133/) of Virtus Segafredo Bologna, each with a PIR of 26, complete the top individual performances in Round 25. 

Hayes-Davis posted 21 points on 4-of-7 two-pointers, 3-of-6 three-pointers and 4-of-4 free throws, 9 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block in Fenerbahce’s loss at Panathinaikos; Shorts recorded 15 points on 7-of-12 two-pointers and 1-of-2 free throws, 4 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals as Paris fell to Olympiacos; and Shengelia finished with 16 points on 4-of-7 two-pointers, 2-of-3 three-pointers and 2-of-2 free throws, 5 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals in Virtus’s 71-81 loss to Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade.

### Individual highs: Georgios Papagiannis, Monaco, 4 blocks

[Kevin Punter](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kevin-punter/009862/) of FC Barcelona was this round's top scorer, getting 28 points. Sasha Vezenkov of Olympiacos is the overall leader with 20.4 points per game.

[Tyrique Jones](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/tyrique-jones/011981/) of Partizan led all rebounders by pulling down 12 boards. Joel Bolomboy of Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade ranks first overall with 8.1 rebounds per game.

[Facu Campazzo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/facundo-campazzo/005928/) of Real Madrid was the only player to reach double digits in assists, dishing 10. Tamir Blatt of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv is the competition's assists leader with 7.5 per night.

Five players had 3 steals apiece in Round 25: [Juan Nunez](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/juan-nunez/010106/) of Barcelona, [Chima Moneke](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/chima-moneke/012201/) of Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, [Jasiel Rivero](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/jasiel-rivero/011214/) of Maccabi, [PJ Dozier ](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/perry-dozier-jr/012742/)of Anadolu Efes Istanbul, and [Bonzie Colson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/bonzie-colson/009783/) of Fenerbahce. Nick Weiler-Babb of FC Bayern Munich leads the 2024-25 EuroLeague in steals with 1.6 per night.

[Georgios Papagiannis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/georgios-papagiannis/005844/) of AS Monaco had 4 blocks to lead his team to a 92-85 home win over Baskonia. He ranks second overall (1.4 bpg.), only behind Walter Tavares of Real Madrid (1.44 bpg.).

Partizan’s Tyrique Jones (12 points, 12 rebounds) and ALBA Berlin’s [Yanni Wetzell](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/yanni-wetzell/011934/) (10 points, 10 rebounds) were the only players to register a double-double in this round.

The January MVP secured the award in the opening round of February

Paris Basketball v Olympiacos Piraeus (2025-02-05T19:30:00.000Z)

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade kept its postseason bid on track with an industrious 71-81 win at Virtus Segafredo Bologna, as an unlikely hero turned up to join the usual suspects in a concerted team effort 

Downtown firepower and defensive steel carried Partizan at Virtus 

[Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/partizan-nis-belgrade/roster/par/?season=2024-25) kept its postseason bid on track with [an industrious 71-81 win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/plucky-partizan-bounces-back-to-beat-virtus-71-81/) at [Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/virtus-segafredo-bologna/roster/vir/?season=2024-25), as an unlikely hero turned up to join the usual suspects in a concerted team effort that forced the home team into submission on Wednesday.

Small forward [Arijan Lakic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/arijan-lakic/007736/) racked up 6 rebounds and 2 steals to go with a mere 2 points against the Italian team, but the 25-year-old did so much more than meets the eye and the stats sheet to propel the Serbian team in a rugged and physical contest.

Lakic’s tireless hustle at both ends forced Virtus turnovers at key moments whenever the home team threatened to turn the game around, as he made life uncomfortable for the Italian side’s top performers all night in a cracking atmosphere.

Expectably, sharpshooter [Sterling Brown](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/sterling-brown/012720/) provided the spark on offense with a game-high 20 points to go with 5 boards, sinking 4 of 5 from deep while [Carlik Jones](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/carlik-jones/013369/) added 19 points as he once again pulled the strings in the opposition half of the court.

Having struggled early on, [Tyrique Jones](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tyrique-jones/011981/) quickly found another gear to rack up 12 points and as many boards, delivering at both ends as he personified a defensive wall while doing so much damage on offense in the fourth quarter when Brown was kept scoreless.

Last but not least, there was [Brandon Davies](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/brandon-davies/007870/) who chipped in with 11 points, including a clutch three-pointer which turned out to be a dagger into Virtus hearts after the Italian side had slashed the deficit to 65-69 in the closing stages of a pulsating matchup.

Brown, who’s been Partizan’s go-to man along with Carlik Jones throughout the season, heaped praise on the home team’s fighting spirit as well as on his own teammates.  

“It was a fight and we needed this one,” Brown said in his postgame comments. “Tip my hat off to Virtus, they stayed in the game but we had some guys who came up with some big plays, especially on the defensive end.

“It was a full team effort as Lakic’s contribution was huge on defense and then Carlik finished the game off for us. We’ve got to keep building on this as we’ve got another big one \[against AS Monaco\] on Friday.”

Coach Zeljko Obradovic was his usual temperamental self in demanding perfection from his team, having said that his outbursts during timeouts were necessary in order to root out any notion of complacency when Virtus came close to turning the game around.

“I am the coach and it’s my job to react,” said Obradovic. “We were up by 14 but then we committed some turnovers and Virtus is a good team that fights until the end so it was very tough just as we expected.

“They have a lot of quality inside and at the end of the day it’s a very important victory for us.”

The rock-solid support cast included [Iffe Lundberg](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/iffe-lundberg/010781/), who had 9 points and 6 assists, as well as [Isaac Bonga](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/isaac-bonga/006760/) who amassed 8 points and 5 rebounds as Partizan’s role players passed a stern test of their credentials with flying colors.

The visiting team came up with clutch plays at both ends to grind out a precious road win

Virtus Segafredo Bologna v Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (2025-02-05T19:30:00.000Z)

Olympiacos BC shined on offense on the road at Paris Basketball, in large part thanks to the performance of guard Nigel Williams-Goss.

Nigel Williams-Goss helped Olympiacos hit the right notes in Paris

Both Thomas Walkup and Luca Vildoza have stayed back in Greece during this double-round week, yet their absence didn’t have much of an impact on [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/) against [Paris Basketball](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/paris-basketball/prs/), in large part thanks to [Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/).

The 30-year-old floor manager stepped up big time on both ends, leading his team to [an important 73-90 road win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/vezenkov-fournier-power-olympiacos-past-paris-73-90/) that also saw the Reds secure the tiebreaker advantage over Paris. Williams-Goss pulled off a complete outing, finishing the game with 14 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and not a single turnover, despite running the team for as many as 35.53 minutes – the longest he has spent on the court in a game so far this season.

More importantly, 7 of his points came in the last six and a half minutes, with Williams-Goss coming to the fore when it mattered most. Olympiacos led by as many as 20 points in the first half, but Paris was anything but willing to give up.

The hosts outscored the Reds 27-19 in the third quarter, with TJ Shorts scoring a layup in transition to bring his team within 65-71 with 6:49 minutes left on the clock. Enter Williams-Goss, who responded with a smooth floater on the other end to begin a 2-11 run that saw him drain a triple and go 2 for 2 from the line to give Olympiacos a 67-82 cushion with 3:10 remaining.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I fucking love yall man. Thank you<br>❤️🤍❤️🤍 <a href="https://t.co/JA9ny2bnhz">pic.twitter.com/JA9ny2bnhz</a></p>&mdash; Evan Fournier (@EvanFourmizz) <a href="https://twitter.com/EvanFourmizz/status/1887264960373227972?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Greek side took their revenge after losing 90-96 at home back in December, with [Sasha Vezenkov](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/sasha-vezenkov/003469/) and [Evan Fournier](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/evan-fournier/013380/) shining in yet another game. The former went 7 for 10 on field goals to record 23 points and a PIR of 30, with the Frenchman adding 18 points. Vezenkov has now scored in double digits in each of the 23 times he’s stepped on the floor this season and Fournier had done so in 18 of his last 19 games.

“They kicked our a\*\* in the first game,” Fournier told EuroLeague TV after Wednesday’s clash. “They surprised us a little bit. It ended up being a close game, but they were up 20 in the fourth quarter and there was no way we were going to let them do that again. We matched their intensity. We matched their physicality. Rebounded the ball pretty well. They still got too many second chances, but overall it was a good job.”

The Reds opened the last double-round week of the season with a hard-fought victory in France, two days before their upcoming clash away at FC Barcelona. With both Walkup and Vildoza out injured, Olympiacos will lean again on Williams-Goss to run the team from the point guard position – something that he demonstrated he can do pretty well as a starter, too.

The experienced guard stepped up in the absences of Walkup and Vildoza

KK Partizan delivered a resurgent performance to overpower Virtus Bologna on the road, 71-81, improving its EuroLeague record to 13-12 after last week’s painful 71-73 home loss to archrival KK Crvena zvezda.

Plucky Partizan bounces back to beat Virtus, 71-81

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade delivered a resurgent performance to overpower Virtus Segafredo Bologna on the road, 71-81, improving its Turkish Airlines EuroLeague record to 13-12 after last week’s painful 71-73 home loss to archrival Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade.

Virtus dropped to 7-18 as its slim hopes of reaching the business end of the competition took another blow in a bruising matchup, where the road fans roared Partizan to victory as the visitors rallied from a 23-17 first-quarter deficit.

Sterling Brown paced Partizan on 20 points and livewire playmaker Carlik Jones scored 19. Tyrique Jones posted 12 points and as many rebounds while fellow big man Brandon Davies chipped in with 11, as the twin towers provided power in the paint.

The unsung hero accolade goes to Arijan Lakic, whose relentless hustle at both ends of the court facilitated 4 points off turnovers and 17 second-chance points for Partizan, which fended off a second-half fightback from Virtus.

“We showed character to clear our heads after the derby defeat and win this one,” Lakic told Serbia’s Sport Klub television straight after the final buzzer. “Defense was once again the key as it provided for a barrage of open shots and fast breaks at the other end of the court. A big shout out to our fans too, they carried us like so many times before.”

Tornike Shengelia led Virtus on 16 points and Isaia Cordinier added 13 but the support cast fell short as the home team got overpowered in the paint (27-34), having also been outshot from long range with Partizan sinking 11 of 18 from deep while Virtus made 9 of 24.

Virtus made a brighter start as Shengelia caused Partizan all sorts of problems early on, while Brown soon found his range at the other end. The Italian team was lethal from inside in the first quarter, 8 of 9, but the second was a very different story as the visitors ramped up on defense and turned the contest on its head.

Carlik Jones started pulling the strings on offense and Brown kept rifling in his shots from long range, mixing them with drives to the basket while Virtus failed to make a single shot from inside. The hosts were 0 of 5 from inside the arc in the second quarter and Partizan hit top gear to engineer a 36-44 halftime lead.

Partizan was an impressive 6 of 8 from deep in the first half and the visiting team pressed on relentlessly early in the third quarter as three-pointers from Carlik Jones and Iffe Lundberg allowed the Serbian side to pull away into a 40-54 lead.

The tireless Shengelia kept Virtus alive as the home team slashed the deficit to 57-66 ahead of the final 10 minutes despite Brown doing his thing for Partizan, with the versatile forward adding 5 points to his tally in the third period.

The visitors started to struggle on offense early in the fourth as Brown was starved of service, which allowed Virtus to close in to 65-69 and galvanize a vocal home crowd inside Virtus Segafredo Arena.

With Brown stifled out, Davis and Tyrique Jones came up big to keep the home team at bay in a frantic finish to the game and Carlik Jones finally forced Virtus into submission with a reverse layup to delight several hundred noisy Partizan fans. 

The Serbian team recovered from a tough Belgrade derby loss to jump back into the postseason picture 

The final score did not reflect just how tight the game between FC Barcelona and Maccabi Tel Aviv BC was in the opening 23 minutes, despite the Blaugrana's eventual 100-71 victory.

Barcelona went to another level after the break to defeat Maccabi

The final score did not reflect just how tight the game between [FC Barcelona](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-barcelona/bar/) and [Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/tel/) was in the opening 23 minutes. 

Maccabi played a very solid first half, outrebounding Barca 18-23, pulling down 10 offensive boards and limiting the hosts' ball circulation. 

Indeed, Barca had just 6 assists before the break and picked up as many as 5 turnovers. Despite being very effective inside the arc (12 of 18, 66.7% 2FG), Barca only hit 5-of-15 three-pointers (33.3% 3FG).

Once both teams returned to the court, Barcelona had a very different mentality. First, it found new go-to guys. 

[Kevin Punter](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kevin-punter/009862/) scored 19 of his 28 points after the break to make the difference in the game. [Chimezie Metu](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/chimezie-metu/013379/) went scoreless in the opening 28 minutes but finished the game with 11 points, striking three times from beyond the arc. Once Barca found its scoring references, everything was way easier.

Barca had 58 points after the break, the second-best scoring mark in a second half during this EuroLeague season, en route to [an eventual 100-71 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/kevin-punter-leads-barcelona-past-maccabi-100-71/); Paris Basketball had 60 points in the second half of a 109-107 road loss against FC Bayern Munich in Round 4. Its is Barca's third-best scoring mark in a second half: it had 61 points in a 65-104 road win against PGE Turow Zgorzelec on December 5, 2014, and reached 59 in a 107-76 home victory over Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir on November 19, 2015. [Alex Abrines](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/alex-abrines/003478/) and [Tomas Satoransky](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tomas-satoransky/002939/) were present in all three games.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ca" dir="ltr">Gràcies culersss!!! Gran, CAT 💙❤️ <a href="https://t.co/GYSaigNZWR">pic.twitter.com/GYSaigNZWR</a></p>&mdash; Barça Basket (@FCBbasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/FCBbasket/status/1887255043390513311?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The hosts dramatically improved under the boards, which was one of the biggest keys to this game. Barca outrebounded Maccabi 20-10 in the second half, allowing Maccabi to get just 2 offensive boards and grabbing 11 on the defensive end. Barca also improved its ball circulation, getting 11 assists and 7 turnovers in the second half. Maccabi had 12 second-half turnovers, twice as many as before the break.

All that led to a very comfortable win after a difficult first half in which Maccabi competed much better.

"We played more consistent in the second half, more solid in different situations, and we controlled our defensive rebounds," Barca head coach Joan Penarroya said after the game. "We needed to play solid against Maccabi, it is a very good team on offense, but I think we played a good game."

On Friday, Barca hosts league leader Olympiacos Piraeus while Maccabi visits Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in a rematch of the 2005 EuroLeague Championship Game.

After a tight first half, Joan Penarroya's team went on to win by 29 points


FC Barcelona v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2025-02-05T19:30:00.000Z)

Sasha Vezenkov and Evan Fournier combined for 41 points as Olympiacos BC beat Paris Basketball 73-90 in Round 25.

Vezenkov, Fournier power Olympiacos past Paris, 73-90

Turkish Airlines EuroLeague leader Olympiacos Piraeus thrashed Paris Basketball 73-90 on Wednesday night at Adidas Arena. The visitors led throughout the game and absorbed Paris’s comeback attempt in the fourth quarter to claim the tiebreaker advantage. With this win, Olympiacos improved to 18-7, while Paris dropped to 14-10.

January MVP Sasha Vezenkov led all scorers with 23 points, 17 of which were scored in the first quarter. Evan Fournier followed with 18 points and Nigel Williams-Goss netted 14, with Giannoulis Larentzakis and Nikola Milutinov adding 10 each off the bench. Nadir Hifi paced Paris with 19 points, TJ Shorts recorded 15, Kevarrius Hayes had 11 and Tyson Ward scored 10.

Eight points from Vezenkov and a three-point play by Moustapha Fall gave the visitors a 5-10 lead. Hayes netted Paris’s first 5 points of the game and TJ Shorts opened his account from inside, but Vezenkov added 5 points to his tally for a 7-15 cushion. Fournier and Yakuba Ouattara traded triples before baskets from Vezenkov and Fournier extended Olympiacos’s lead to 10-22. Nigel Williams-Goss took over with 5 straight points before a Vezenkov three-pointer opened a 20-point lead. Yet, Paris ended the first quarter with a 5-0 run, trimming the deficit to 15-30.

Ward opened the second quarter with a hard-fought bucket, before scores by Shorts and Hifi brought Paris within 21-32. Mikael Jantunen drilled one from deep to extend Paris’s run to 14-2, but Alec Peters responded with a three-point play to make it 24-35. Seven points from Larentzakis off the bench and a layup by Peters gave Olympiacos a 26-45 cushion. Maodo Lo drilled a three and Hayes slammed it home, but a red-hot Larentzakis netted a buzzer-beating triple for a 31-48 lead at halftime.

Paris started the third quarter with a 9-1 surge inspired by Ward, but Fournier netted a midrange jumper to restore a 40-51 lead. Collin Malcolm replied with a layup, but 5 straight points from Fournier made it 42-56. The game turned into an exchange of blows, with Ouattara and Fournier exchanging triples as Olympiacos maintained a 52-64 cushion. But 4 points from Hifi and a layup by Shorts brought Paris within 58-67 heading into the closing quarter.

A couple of buckets from Milutinov sandwiched a Malcolm basket before 3 points by Shorts cut the difference to 65-71. Yet, 7 points from Williams-Goss and a dunk by Milutinov restored a 67-82 lead. Hifi responded with a corner triple, but Vezenkov, Papanikolaou and Fournier scored inside to make it 70-88, practically putting the game to bed. 

The Reds led from start to finish and nailed a hard-fought road win

FC Barcelona returned to winning ways by thrashing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 100-71 at Palau Blaugrana in Round 25 on Wednesday

Kevin Punter leads Barcelona past Maccabi, 100-71

FC Barcelona returned to winning ways by thrashing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 100-71 at Palau Blaugrana in Round 25 on Wednesday. Barca improved to 14-11 in the standings while Maccabi dropped to 6-19 with its sixth road loss in a row.

Kevin Punter led the winners with a season-high 28 points. Jabari Parker and Willy Hernangomez each added 14, while Dario Brizuela and Chimezie Metu scored 11 apiece for Barca. Jasiel Rivero paced Maccabi with 16 points, Rokas Jokubaitis added 14 and Roman Sorkin 12.

Sorkin got Maccabi going with a mid-range jumper, which Youssoupha Fall bettered with a three-point play. Levi Randolph sank a mid-range shot and Jokubaitis erased Tomas Satoransky's dunk with a jumper. After Parker struck from downtown, Rivero answered with a jumper. Punter's layup made it 10-8. Jokubaitis scored again and Sorkin added a put-back layup for a 10-12 Maccabi edge. Parker sank back-to-back triples and Punter added a driving layup. Sorkin took over with an alley-oop slam and matched Punter's jumper with a layup. Hernangomez and Jokubaitis traded layups before John DiBartolomeo's three-pointer put Maccabi in charge, 22-23. Hernangomez followed a dunk with a jumper and Trevion Williams answered from downtown before Brizuela's layup made it 28-26 after 10 minutes. 

Brizuela dunked early in the second quarter and matched DiBartolomeo's three-pointer with his own shot from beyond the arc for a 33-29 Barca edge. Brizuela kept pacing the hosts before Rivero rescued the visitors with a three-point play. Punter beat the shot clock with a bomb from downtown at the other end and Parker took over with a coast-to-coast layup and a jump hook that made it 41-32. Rivero stepped up with a reverse layup and Randolph added a jumper to bring Maccabi closer, 42-36, at halftime.

Blatt struck from beyond the arc right after the break. Fall stepped up with a put-back layup and Punter bettered Rokas Jokubaitis's driving basket with a bomb from downtown that gave Barca a 47-41 edge. Punter took over with 7 quick points, boosting his team's lead to 54-44. After Sorkin scored around the basket, Alex Abrines dunked off a steal. Rivero's layup gave Maccabi hope at 56-49. Satoransky made a jumper and Abrines struck from downtown for a 61-51 Barca lead. Jokubaitis beat Fall's defense with a reverse layup, but Hernangomez scored down low and Brizuela's triple kept the hosts out of trouble, 66-53. DiBartolomeo splashed his third three-pointer and Rivero scored twice around the basket. Metu and Justin Anderson gave the hosts a 74-60 lead after 30 minutes.

Metu and Juan Nunez each struck from beyond the arc to make it a 20-point game (80-60) early in the fourth quarter. Metu improved on Rivero's close basket with his third three-pointer and Hernangomez's dunk broke the game open at 85-62 with over 7 minutes left. Williams buried a mid-range jumper but by the time Punter buried back-to-back three-pointers, everything was said and done. Both teams sat out their most important players for Friday's Round 26 game and the Barca fans had plenty of time to celebrate their team's no-doubt-about-it victory.

A 58-point second half paved the way to Barca's 14th win