Olympiacos BC trailed 59-46 entering the third quarter of its game at KK Partizan, yet it came away with a 69-74 win after a fantastic fourth-quarter display.

Fourth-quarter turnaround inspired Olympiacos past Partizan

The raucous atmosphere inside Stark Arena on Thursday night [forced Olympiacos Piraeus into a nervy start against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/live-blog-kk-partizan-vs-olympiacos-bc/). With both teams aware of just how much a win would mean, Partizan was the side keeping a cool head through the first 30 minutes, outscoring the visitors in each of the first three quarters (22-17, 18-15, 19-14) to take a 59-46 lead into the final period.

“In the first three quarters, we were nervous,” head coach Georgios Bartzokas stated in the post-game press conference. “We missed many wide-open shots. We had opportunities to end a 4vs1 transition and we made a turnover. We were trailing for more than 30 minutes.”

In fact, Olympiacos hadn’t been in front since early in the game, when [Alec Peters](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/alec-peters/008829/) gave the Reds a 7-9 lead with a couple of free throws four minutes into the first quarter. However, the Greek side tightened up its defense, which provided a shot in the arm for its offense once again – a recurring theme for Olympiacos this season.

### Taking charge in the fourth quarter

Partizan ended up going on an almost four-minute scoreless spell in the last quarter, with Olympiacos capitalizing by scoring 12 straight points to cut the gap to one point, 59-58. “Our fourth quarter was dominant,” Bartzokas added. “We won 10-28 in this period of time, which was crucial and started from our amazing defense that three players – [\[Kostas\] Papanikolaou](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kostas-papanikolaou/001255/), [\[Thomas\] Walkup](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/thomas-walkup/008855/) and [Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/) – gave to the team by defending the very dangerous guards, creators and scorers that Partizan has.”

Olympiacos recorded 4 fourth-quarter steals, forcing Partizan to commit 5 turnovers. The three aforementioned players dominated on both ends of the court, as they also netted a combined 21 points in the last period, with the Greek side outscoring Partizan 10-28 to grab a statement 69-74 victory.

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Bartzokas didn’t hesitate to praise Walkup and Williams-Goss, both of whom have been dealing with injuries over the last few games. “I have to tell you that Williams-Goss and Walkup can’t practice in this period because they have injuries and they are trying to protect themselves,” the Greek coach noted. “So, giving this intensity on the court for almost 20 minutes was crucial.”

With 10 minutes to go, Olympiacos was trailing by 13 points and the objective of securing home-court advantage in the playoffs seemed anything but doable. Yet, a week after outscoring LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 26-9 in the fourth period to clinch an 80-64 victory at home, the Greek side pulled off another extraordinary fourth-quarter display to down Partizan.

“It was such a tough atmosphere to play in,” Williams-Goss admitted. “Obviously, a lot was on the line for both teams and you saw that from both teams’ effort. It was a fight until the end and I’m super proud of the way we stuck together and pulled it out. With the standings being so close, now it’s just two games left. So, all these games are critical and we knew the importance coming into \[this game\].”

Nigel Williams-Goss spoke to the media after Olympiacos Piraeus beat Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Nigel Williams-Goss post-Partizan win

### Olympiacos and its elite defense

Despite boasting the sixth-best offense in the EuroLeague with 83.2 scored per game coming into Thursday’s contest, Partizan was held to just 69 points by the guests, which is the second round in a row Olympiacos’s opponent has failed to score more than 70 points and the 11th time this season. It was also Partizan's lowest-scoring display in 32 games this year, which speaks volumes of the Reds’ defensive outing at Stark Arena.

Olympiacos will return to the Serbian capital next week to face Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade on Thursday night. Then, it will host top-four aspirant Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in what is expected to be one of the most decisive games in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season. 

Having won eight of its last nine games, the Greek side is keen to end the season in style – and its victory at Partizan showed why Coach Bartzokas’s squad have what it takes to make a third straight Final Four.

Game News

The Olympiacos Piraeus players come together after beating Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Georgios Bartzokas's side recorded a statement victory at Stark Arena in Round 32

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade v Olympiacos Piraeus (2024-03-28T19:30:00.000Z)

Ahead of the EuroLeague's Hoop District tournament, Geoff Gillingham caught up with Denzel Kazembe of Simply British Ballers (SBB), the Team London co-captain.

Getting to know: SBB’s Denzel, Team London captain

With excitement levels reaching fever pitch ahead of [the first edition of Hoop District](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/euroleague-basketball-launches-3x3-content-creators-tournament-hoop-district/), which takes place on Saturday in Paris, France, we caught up with [Simply British Ballers (SBB)](https://www.instagram.com/sbb_uk/)’s Denzel Kazembe, who will be flying the flag for Great Britain – alongside co-captain Behrad Bakhtiari – by representing Team London.

This is the fifth of six ‘getting to know’ [interviews with the Hoop District captains](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/carousels/hoop-district/?q=%7B%22articleId%22%3A%2261e015cd-793a-43d3-b751-70262c7c9947%22%2C%22relatedCategories%22%3A%5B%5D%2C%22specificContent%22%3A%5B%5D%2C%22tags%22%3A%5B%222324hoopdistrict%22%5D%7D&carouselTitle=HOOP%20DISTRICT). Here’s what we found out while speaking to Denzel.

**SBB has blown up over the last year. How did it start?**

“Well, SBB actually started as Behrad’s own thing. He had a YouTube channel – he was streaming \[the video game NBA\] 2K on there and he wanted to get some real-life basketball stuff on his channel, so I proposed the idea of rating basketball courts. I had seen a channel on YouTube called ‘Chicken Connoisseur’ and the guy used to rate chicken and chip shops out here in the UK, so I thought if you can do that, you might as well try and rate basketball courts. We didn’t have a TikTok account or anything, then our friend showed us how to use TikTok and we went out to do three courts, posted them and they all went viral. From there, we started seeing people in the comments saying to come here, come here – all these places, we had never heard of in the UK, we’d never been to them, we’d never seen them, and we immediately saw that there was a community in the UK that was wider than we had known, so we decided to try to bridge those gaps between all these communities in the UK.”

SBB's Behrad Bakhtiari, the Team London co-captain

**Did you guys specifically target a UK audience or something more worldwide?**

“At first, it was just the basketball community in general, then we saw the demand in the UK. But as we’ve grown, we’ve started to see again that the basketball community worldwide is something that we definitely want to connect. Just like us in the UK, a lot of people didn’t even know that people play basketball in the UK or that it is a thing out here, so we want to get to more places where that’s the case, but also places where it’s established already like America, Lithuania, Serbia – just everywhere.”

**How did you guys fall in love with basketball in a football-dominated country?**

“There’s always the age-old story of basketball players – we start off playing football. It’s just a thing that you have to do. For me personally, I started playing football but I didn’t like the mud, I didn’t like the cold or the rain. I wasn’t with it. I was cycling through a lot of sports: tennis, cricket, handball, all outdoors. But what really brought me in was the culture. It’s the same for a lot of people – you like the shoes, you like MJ \[Michael Jordan\] maybe, you start watching and you have a favorite player that you like, then basketball just kind of takes over your whole life. You start dressing like a basketball player, you start watching basketball, you start thinking about basketball, and that’s how I got into it.”

<center>
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transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4YiWNjNAfD/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by SBB. - Simply British Ballers. (@sbb_uk)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>

**SBB has grown significantly over the last year. What are your objectives for the channel moving forward?**

“Like I said, we just want to continue this movement and take it everywhere we can – every nook and cranny in the world that maybe we don’t even know that there’s basketball there, we just want to get out there, see what it is and tell that story. Then the places where basketball is like a religion. One big one that we want to get to is the Philippines, for sure. We grew up on a lot of Filipino hoopers. We want to definitely bridge those gaps. Within the UK, we want to make sure we’re changing the infrastructure of basketball. We’ve been blessed enough to have people come up to us and say, ‘We’ve started playing basketball because of your videos’, which is amazing. But now we want to give those people facilities and better courts to play on. As you’ve probably seen, the courts that we have out here, some of them are crazy, man. So we definitely want to change that at its core, not just after it's done but before it's built to be able to have something in place where people can’t just do whatever they like, put whatever lines on the ground – things like that.”

**Is there a particular moment that stands out on your journey so far?**

“There’s been a few, there’s been a few. First of all, our first viral video, which was at Rottingdean Beach at Connor’s Court, really changed the trajectory of things for us. We realized that there was really something to hold on to. I think getting to go to the \[British Basketball League\] All-Star Game was amazing as well. And now here with the EuroLeague, getting to potentially win 10k \[the prize for winning Hoop District\]. These things are milestones for us and it’s amazing to be a part of this.”

<center>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cw0PjCEtp7h/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cw0PjCEtp7h/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; 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transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cw0PjCEtp7h/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by SBB. - Simply British Ballers. (@sbb_uk)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>

**Have any EuroLeague or EuroCup players inspired you?**

“We met \[Paris Basketball guard\] [TJ Shorts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tj-shorts/012608/) and he was around our height because we’re not the tallest guys! Just being able to see how he dominates at that position, we really look up to him as shorter guys.”

**What criteria did you look for when picking your team?**

“We really looked for people who can just hoop, as in really understand the game, know when to make the right passes, when to make the right reads – that’s what we were looking for. People who play basketball almost every day or on a team because you need to be in shape. I don’t know if we’re in shape, so we’ll need them to come in for us when we inevitably get winded. Ten minutes, 3x3, clock is running, there are no stops… we need a second wind, honestly.”

<center>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0FF-FOtIXj/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0FF-FOtIXj/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; 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transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0FF-FOtIXj/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by SBB. - Simply British Ballers. (@sbb_uk)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>

**Which Hoop District team could be the trickiest to face?**

“The one we have the most information on is [Paris](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/getting-to-know-rookicks-team-paris-captain/) and they’re in our bracket. We just know that there’s a lot of hoopers out there and they’re hooping a lot, so we just know by knowledge that they’re going to be tough. Obviously Athens is in our bracket as well and we know that’s another basketball country, so a dangerous, dangerous opponent.”

**What does it mean for you to be a Team Captain?**

“Me and Behrad actually met on our university team and I was the team captain at that time, so it’s kind of going back to the old days. I would say he’s my co-captain now, so we’re on an equal footing, we both listen to each other, we respect each other’s game. It feels like old times to us!”

Hoop District

Simply British Ballers (SBB)’s Denzel Kazembe, the Team London co-captain alongside fellow SBB star Behrad Bakhtiari.

Over the course of this week, Euroleague.net will be posting interviews with the Hoop District team captains

Nigel Williams-Goss was the star on the night as Olympiacos BC grabbed a come-from-behind victory at KK Partizan in Round 32 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague season.

Williams-Goss did it on both ends as Olympiacos flipped the script at Partizan

Despite starting the game slow and trailing by 13 points coming into the fourth quarter, Olympiacos Piraeus found inspiration in [Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/), who made the difference and [led his team to a 69-74 victory at Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/live-blog-kk-partizan-vs-olympiacos-bc/) on Thursday night.

The Reds’ starters struggled in the first quarter, with Partizan dominating the paint and outrebounding the visitors 13-3 in the first 10 minutes. The hosts led 22-17 after 10 minutes, with Williams-Goss scoring the final basket of the opening period before going from strength to strength in the remainder of the game, starting in the second quarter.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/bwinMVP?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#bwinMVP</a>, Nigel Williams-Goss! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OlympiacosBC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OlympiacosBC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TogetherWeFight?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TogetherWeFight</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreOlympiacos?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreOlympiacos</a> <a href="https://t.co/ktYp49s6a7">pic.twitter.com/ktYp49s6a7</a></p>&mdash; Olympiacos B.C. (@Olympiacos_BC) <a href="https://twitter.com/Olympiacos_BC/status/1773468442659594660?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Olympiacos guard recorded 3 steals in a space of 3 minutes and allowed his team to score in transition, with the guests trimming the deficit to 25-23. Partizan bounced back and secured a 40-32 cushion at halftime, but Williams-Goss had already managed to keep a struggling Olympiacos in the game. 

“Partizan started the game very well, but in the second quarter the guys who came from the bench did an amazing job and put us back into the game,” Olympiacos captain Kostas Papanikolaou admitted afterward.

The Serbian side retained control of the game in the third period, but Williams-Goss, who finished the first half with a team-high 7 points, came to the fore again in the last 10 minutes. Partizan took a 59-46 lead into the fourth quarter, but the 29-year-old set the tone on defense and contributed the most during Olympiacos’s 0-12 run.

### Williams-Goss and his fourth-quarter heroics

After netting a tough triple to make it 59-55, Williams-Goss registered his fourth steal of the night and found Thomas Walkup, who completed a three-point play to cut the difference to 59-58. The game turned into a back-and-forth affair, with Williams-Goss netting one from inside the arc (61-60) with 5:00 left on the clock. 

His fifth steal of the game shortly after led to a Papanikolaou bucket in transition (61-64), before finding Moustapha Fall with a smart dish for a slam (69-71). Most importantly, the Olympiacos guard was called to finish the game off from the line with 13 seconds remaining and he duly delivered by hitting both free throws to make it a two-possession affair (69-73).

Nigel Williams-Goss shined bright at Olympiacos Piraeus beat Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Williams-Goss highlights vs. Partizan

Williams-Goss pulled off a complete performance, ending the game with season highs of 17 points and 5 steals. He also recorded 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 drawn fouls for a PIR of 19. Having struggled with an injury over the last month, the Olympiacos guard stepped up big against his former team and led the Reds to a statement victory that keeps them in contention for home-court advantage in the postseason.

Olympiacos will return to Belgrade next week as it will face Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade on Thursday night. Williams-Goss led the way against Partizan, and Olympiacos will now push for back-to-back wins in the Serbian capital.

Olympiacos Piraeus guard Nigel Williams-Goss looks to score against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

The guard took over for the Reds in the second half

AS Monaco trailed 61-50 late in the third quarter of its Round 32 showdown against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne, but ended up getting a 77-87 victory. What happened? 


Okobo sparked Monaco's huge comeback 

AS Monaco trailed 61-50 late in the third quarter of its Round 32 showdown against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne, but ended up rallying for a 77-87 victory. What happened? 

Monaco had a horrible day from the three-point line. It finished the game making just 3 of 19 three-pointers (15.8% 3FG), while ASVEL buried 12 of 26 three-pointers (46.2% 3FG) and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot hit more shots from downtown (5) than the entire Monaco team.

Okobo, however, buried two in a row which were enough to put Monaco back in track. His back-to-back three-pointers allowed Monaco to get within 61-56 at the end of the third quarter. Until that point, ASVEL had outplayed Monaco with very physical basketball, many plays above the rim and even an extraordinary four-point play by Nando De Colo.

ASVEL still led 66-60 with 8 minutes remaining but Monaco regrouped on defense at the right time, going on a mammoth 5-24 run over the next 7 minutes. ASVEL was forced into 5 turnovers during that run, in which Alpha Diallo stood out. he had 9 of his 15 points in those 7 minutes. Jared Blossomgame had 5, including a go-ahead three-pointer with the game tied at 71-71, while Mike James and Okobo each had 4.

Monaco's comeback at LDLC Arena

Monaco dominated in the paint, making 30 of 42 two-pointers (71.4% 2FG) and committing just 11 turnovers against ASVEL's 16.

"They have been playing in the last four games with great confidence and made crazy ones," Okobo said after the game. "We stayed locked in. Like Coach said, we are supposed to play the last three \[regular season\] games like finals to be in the top four and get home-court advantage for the playoffs. We didn't show it the entire game, but when it mattered the most, we did."

"It is always an intense matchup against ASVEL," Diallo added. "I am glad we came out with a win. We have to clean up a little bit more stuff going back home next game. Every game is important right now for seeding."

Monaco finished the regular season with a 10-7 road record. Its last two games are at home, against Zalgiris Kaunas and FC Bayern Munich.

Game Videos

The French guard led his team with 16 points

Elie Okobo sparked Monaco's huge comeback 

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne v AS Monaco (2024-03-28T20:00:00.000Z)

Zalgiris Kaunas registered its third double-digit home win in as many games, downing EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 87-73 in Round 32 to go up to 14-17 in the standings, keeping its play-in hopes alive. 


Sumner keeps Zalgiris's dream alive

Zalgiris Kaunas registered its third double-digit home win in as many games, downing EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 87-73 in Round 32 to improve to 14-17 in the standings and keep its Play-In Showdown hopes alive. 

Zalgiris struggled in the first half, making just 4 of 16 three-pointers and turning the ball over six times. Zalgiris did much better in the second half, burying 6 of 11 shots from beyond the arc and committing just 2 turnovers, outrebounding Milan 36-29 and getting 12 offensive boards.

It also found an unexpected go-to guy. Edmond Sumner, who had 3 points in the first two quarters, thrilled Zalgiris fans with an outstanding performance after the break. When he returned to the floor midway through the third quarter, Zalgiris led 41-39 and Shavon Shields was at the foul line to shoot a pair of free throws. Sumner immediately grabbed the ball and scored in penetration.

He soon found Laurynas Birutis for a two-handed dunk and hit an acrobatic one-handed floater in the lane. Right after that, Sumner found Kevarrius Hayes for a one-handed alley-oop. All of a sudden, Zalgiris had a 56-48 margin and was well on its way to winning the game.

"I felt great. Like I said, I've been sticking with the process throughout the whole season, just trying to adjust to this game," Sumner said after the game. "And I feel like I put a complete game together, even playing limited minutes the first half. But Coach has been giving me confidence. He's been staying on me, giving me pointers. I have been just trying to implement it."

Zalgiris Kaunas swingman Edmond Sumner only was on court for 14 minutes against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, in which he had 17 points on 4 of 4 two-pointers and 2 0f 2 three-pointers, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 6 fouls drawn and a PIR of 28.

Sumner leads Zalgiris's victory

Sumner only was on court for 14 minutes, in which he had 17 points on 4-of-4 two-point shooting and 2-of-2 on three-pointers plus 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 6 fouls drawn for a PIR of 28. He had 8 points in the fourth quarter but his favorite play was an assist to Arnas Butkevicius for a corner three-pointer that sealed the deal.

"My assist! As soon as I got back, threw a corner pass, Arnas hit the corner three," he said. "That was big."

Coach Andrea Trinchieri joked about his whereabouts after the game, as if Sumner had finally found himself.

"Where was he until now? This is what I just asked him, where have you been? Amazing game," he said. 

"My players put together a perfect effort. We never made open shots and this could make us feel depressed. And this can take a little bit of energy from us," Trinchieri said. "But the second half, whoever stepped on the court gave his maximum intensity, energy, hustle. And this is a great win. This is a very, very sweet win."

With this win, Zalgiris has a 2-0 record against Milan and will most likely need to win its two remaining games - against AS Monaco on the road and at home against Real Madrid - to reach the Play-In Showdown.

The Lithuanian champs' guard had his best game yet in the EuroLeague

Sumner helped keep Zalgiris's dream alive

Zalgiris Kaunas v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2024-03-28T18:00:00.000Z)

Barça Basket took a big step towards making the EuroLeague Playoffs by beating FC Bayern Basketball in Round 32.

Barcelona on the cusp of making playoffs after beating Bayern

FC Barcelona (21-11) took a big step towards securing a playoff berth in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after [a clinical 79-87 win at FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/live-blog-fc-bayern-basketball-vs-fc-barcelona/), which came as a result of a cohesive team effort against shorthanded opposition.

With Devin Booker, Niels Giffey, Andy Obst and Danko Brankovic missing from the home team’s roster, Barcelona fired on all cylinders for three quarters before battling Bayern made a fight of it in the fourth.

### Barcelona got its work done early

Having won the opening period 19-25, Barca then steamrolled into a whopping 21-43 lead before Bayern trimmed its deficit to 30-47 at halftime. It was pretty much the same script in the third quarter, with the *Blaugrana* taking a 53-71 advantage into the home stretch. Only then did Bayern step up to the plate and cut the gap to 77-83 in the closing stages, but the hosts ran out of time to force what would have been a spectacular comeback.

A pair of giants take to the European stage bidding to restore winning-ways and revive their respective postseason aspirations. Two veteran Spanish stars could dominate in different ways, with Bayern hoping to control the paint through Serge Ibaka while Barça looks for orchestration from Ricky Rubio.

FC Bayern Munich-FC Barcelona | Round 32 Highlights | 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague

Power forward Serge Ibaka, who played extended minutes at center in the absence of the towering Devin Booker, came up big for Bayern with 17 points and 12 rebounds, but his valiant solo effort was cancelled out by a flowing team work from Barca.

Among a crop of players who contributed for the visiting team, [Jabari Parker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/jabari-parker/012745/) earned the player of the game accolade with 15 points and he summed up that hitting the ground running at Bayern was crucial for Barcelona.

“We were up against a very talented team and we had to get going at the beginning of the game,” Parker said in a flash post-game interview. “We had good energy and played good defense, so the offense kind of took care of itself.”

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ca" dir="ltr">𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐧 𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨̀𝐫𝐢𝐚, 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐜̧𝐚! 💙❤<br><br>Ens queden dues finals. Volem ser als play-offs i volem ser caps de sèrie 💪 <a href="https://t.co/WbnL8d5PNg">pic.twitter.com/WbnL8d5PNg</a></p>&mdash; Barça Basket (@FCBbasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/FCBbasket/status/1773462914571055502?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Head coach Roger Grimau added: “We had a great first half and a good third quarter. They pushed us hard in the fourth but we controlled the game and eventually won it. We moved the ball well and found some clear situations.”

### A big game on the way

Barcelona next play Maccabi Tel Aviv at Palau Blaugrana in the penultimate round of the regular season and [Willy Hernangomez](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/willy-hernangomez/003196/), who racked up 9 points and 8 rebounds, succinctly summed up what the clash meant to Barcelona in its bid to secure a playoff berth.

Barcelona will be assured of finishing in the top six on Friday in the unlikely event that bottom team ALBA Berlin (5-26) wins at Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (19-12), but Hernangomez had his sights on what should be a titanic tussle with Maccabi. 

“It’s going to be like a final,” he commented. “I am really looking forward to it as we’re playing at home where the fans are like an extra man on the court.”

Willy Hernangomez spoke to the media after FC Barcelona beat FC Bayern Munich in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Willy Hernangomez speaks post-Bayern win

Bayern head coach Pablo Laso acknowledged that his team was left with a mountain to climb after being blown away in the first half. “We played better offensively in the second half and made some shots, so we got back into the game,” said Laso. “However, we played a great team and they found solutions in the right moments.”

The FC Barcelona players come together after beating FC Bayern Munich in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

The Spanish giant closed in on a top-six berth after a dominant performance in Munich

FC Bayern Munich v FC Barcelona (2024-03-28T19:30:00.000Z)

AS Monaco took another critical step to reach the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs by downing LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 77-87 on the road in Round 32 on Thursday

Monaco dominates late for 77-87 W at ASVEL

<incrowd-live-blog id="660404b959f35bd260edcf7d" client-id="EUROLEAGUE" server="standard"></incrowd-live-blog><script src="https://live-blog.incrowdsports.com/index.js"></script>

EuroLeague Live Blog: LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. AS Monaco.

The visitors used a 0-13 fourth-quarter charge to break open a tie game

Anadolu Efes Istanbul’s veteran duo of Shane Larkin and Will Clyburn stepped up as the two-time champion rolled past Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 76-97 for its first road win of 2024 to stay in contention for a spot in the Play-In Showdown. 

Larkin, Clyburn shined in Efes’s first road win of 2024

Anadolu Efes Istanbul’s veteran duo of Shane Larkin and Will Clyburn stepped up as the two-time champion rolled past Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 76-97 for its first road win of 2024 to stay in contention for a spot in the Play-In Showdown.

Larkin drained 5 three-pointers in scoring 28 points and Clyburn poured in 20 points to help Efes improve to 15-17 with its fourth win in the last five games. The win also upped the team’s road mark to 3-13, snapping an eight-game losing streak going back to December 7 at ALBA Berlin.

“We know what we are fighting for. Everybody is locked in, everybody is on the same page. We know what our ultimate goal is,” said Clyburn, who started strong in the game.

Larkin eventually took over the offensive responsibility.

“We have a veteran group. We have a lot of new guys but they have all grown during the season. We all understood the importance of this game from the very beginning. We came out intense on the defensive end and stayed focused and didn’t let their shooters get going, and got a big win,” said Larkin.

Shane Larkin put on a show in Vitoria-Gasteiz

25-year-old forward Ercan Osmani chipped in a career-high 15 points; EuroLeague rookie Tyrique Jones scored 8 points on breathtaking dunks and 4 rebounds; and fellow EuroLeague newcomer Justus Hollatz contributed 4 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists.

The offense stood strong for Efes, but the team’s third-quarter defense really changed the game, conceding just 8 points in the frame.

“We had to play really well on the offensive end because this team can get out in transition and use their speed, quickness, athleticism and shot-making ability. They’re pretty hard to guard. We had to control the ball on the offensive end,” said Larkin, who also had 2 of Efes’s 10 steals.

“We got a lot of steals on the defensive end. We were active with our hands and helping each other. And that is what will have to do. It will be about us coming out with intensity on the defensive end. If we can do that. Then we can do something special.”

With the likes of veteran leaders Larkin and Clyburn, Efes fans can still dream about the Play-In Showdown.

The two combined for 48 points in the victory

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2024-03-28T19:30:00.000Z)

Olympiacos BC completed a fourth-quarter comeback to defeat KK Partizan 69-74 in Round 32 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague season.

Olympiacos rallies back to stun Partizan, 69-74

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Shaquielle McKissic of Olympiacos Piraeus looks to get past James Nunnally of Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 32 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

The Reds turned the game on its head with an impressive fourth-quarter comeback