Olympiacos Piraeus eased to a 75-57 home victory over Anadolu Efes Istanbul in Round 5 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, thanks to rock-solid defending which the former champions struggled to cope with from start to finish.

Ironclad defense steered Olympiacos Piraeus past misfiring Anadolu Efes Istanbul

Olympiacos Piraeus eased to a 75-57 home victory over Anadolu Efes Istanbul in Round 5 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, thanks to rock-solid defending which the former champions struggled to cope with from start to finish.

Efes endured a miserable shooting night, having been undone in other key departments too as Olympiacos dished out more assists (21-14) and outrebounded the visitors (39-35), in what turned out to be a lopsided contest. Efes was only able to stand its ground in the first quarter, which Olympiacos won 17-14, as the home team piled the pressure from there on to force the Turkish side into early submission.

Olympiacos Piraeus-Anadolu Efes Istanbul | Round 5 Highlights | 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague

"We did a very good job, we came out strong because we knew that Efes is a very talented team," Papanikolaou said in a post-game interview.

"They have a lot of great scorers and are able to create a lot of problems if they get into their rhythm. We were very focused and the result came as everyone did their job. We get our momentum and confidence from defense and hopefully, we will keep going in that direction," he said.

Coach Georgios Bartzokas added: "We were patient in offense and tried to find good looks. But it was the defense that gave us the momentum as we kept Efes down to 57 points. We had three days to prepare this game and this was very important for us amid a tough schedule."

Game News

Following a low-scoring first half (33-25), the floodgates opened in the second as Olympiacos started hitting three-pointers and came up with a barrage of layups from a quick transition of the ball. The home team’s hustle forced a barrage of tough perimeter shots at the other end, as Efes made only 8 of 31 three-pointers and 15 of 33 from two-point territory. In contrast, Olympiacos sank 22 of 34 from inside the arc and 8 of 26 from downtown, having also confined Efes to just 4 free throws.

There was no way back for the visitors after Olympiacos opened a 61-43 lead at the end of the third quarter when Alec Peters nailed a buzzer-beating three-pointer.

"A very serious performance from our team as we focused on all the outstanding backcourt players that Efes has," Bartzokas added at the post-game press conference. "We were able to share the ball more in the second half and it’s a win we consider to be very important."

Olympiacos will visit fierce rival Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in Round 6, the team it knocked out in last season’s playoffs, while Efes is away to Virtus Segafredo Bologna.

The Reds made life difficult for the visiting team with aggressive half-court pressure.

Ironclad defense steered Olympiacos past misfiring Efes

Olympiacos Piraeus v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2023-10-26T19:00:00.000Z)

AS Monaco blew past the visiting Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 107-79 on Thursday night and in the process set a couple of a club records, while seeing its superstar guard reach a milestone of his own.

Monaco tied its club scoring record with 107 points, which is also the club's new scoring mark in a non-overtime game. The final margin of victory is also the biggest since Monaco joined the league in the 2021-22 season.

In the process, Mike James became the fourth player ever, and the fastest, to reach 4,000 career points. He was 7 points short entering the game, but reached the milestone in the first quarter and finished with 24 points in just over 21 minutes on the floor, without even playing in the fourth quarter.

Game Videos

The way James was hot, the entire team was hot.

Monaco shot 12-of-22 (54.5%) from three-point land, and had 14 offensive rebounds despite only 28 missed field goals. The team also had 23 assists and just 9 turnovers.

"It was a lot of fun", James said after the game. "We shot the basketball extremely well, we played one of the best basketball games since I've been here, really."

And that says a lot for a team that reached the playoffs two seasons ago, in James's first campaign with the club, and then went to the Final Four last year.

But just two weeks ago things did not look so bright, after Monaco scored a total of 125 points in the first two rounds combined.

"We needed this one, because we previously got our butts kicked in this arena", said Monaco forward John Brown. He was referring to a 59-83 beating to the hands of Virtus Segafredo Bologna in Round 2.

And while that defeat looked worrisome, only 14 days later things look very bright for Monaco.

Brown provided energy with his 11 points and 8 rebounds, Elie Okobo played with ease to a tune of 17 points and 6 assists, and Kemba Walker had his first double-digit scoring game, finishing with 10 in 17 minutes.

Add to the equation that Jordan Loyd is nearing his return to the floor, and this Monaco looks the part of the title contender we all thought it will be before the season started.

James, Monaco sent a message on a milestone night

AS Monaco v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2023-10-26T19:00:00.000Z)

Aleksa Avramovic stepped up late to guide KK Partizan to a win in the Belgrade derby against KK Crvena zvezda in Round 5 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague season.

Aleksa Avramovic turned on the heat as Partizan clinched a thrilling Belgrade derby

Aleksa Avramovic had a quiet Belgrade derby for long spells, but the 29-year-old point guard saved his best for last. The Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade player stepped up late by hitting one trademark clutch shot after another to inspire his team to a [comeback 88-86 home win over Crvena Zvezda Meridian Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/news/euroleague-live-blog-kk-partizan-vs-kk-crvena-zvezda/) in Round 5 on Thursday night.

Partizan looked out for the count after Zvezda overcame a slow start in a fervent atmosphere and turned an early 17-2 deficit into a 64-75 lead midway through the quarter, but the sublime Avramovic ignited the final twist with a couple of three-pointers and some spectacular drives to the basket.

“All 10 players were the man of the night, as well as the coaching staff and our incredible fans,” Avramovic said in a flash courtside interview after sinking 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor. “We were in a tough spot when we trailed by 13 points in the fourth quarter but we believed in each other. Winning the derby is always a special thing,” he said.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">ALEKSA AVRAMOVIĆ.<a href="https://twitter.com/EuroLeague?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EuroLeague</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KKPartizan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KKPartizan</a> <a href="https://t.co/bdjmdLe55q">pic.twitter.com/bdjmdLe55q</a></p>&mdash; KK Partizan Mozzart Bet (@PartizanBC) <a href="https://twitter.com/PartizanBC/status/1717645025553613162?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Forward Zach LeDay added: “Congratulations to Aleksa, he came up big in the second half. We are going through a tough period right now but we showed fight and resilience. In a derby game anything can happen but we stayed together and that’s the most important thing.”

### Almost a perfect start for Coach Sfairopoulos

Partizan improved to 2-3 while Zvezda slipped to 1-4, after coming close to giving a perfect start to its new coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos, who took over from Dusko Ivanovic on Sunday.

Partizan fired on all cylinders in the early exchanges as Frank Kaminsky was unstoppable in the paint, scoring 8 of the home team’s opening 16 points. Ognjen Jaramaz, who managed a grand total of 0 points in the opening four rounds, was a surprise starter and sank 11 in the first half.

However, Zvezda quickly regained its composure after falling behind and drew level by halftime, 42-42, as Shabazz Napier, Adam Hanga and Joel Bolomboy got the visitors going on offense. The visiting team looked the more likely winner after romping into a 52-65 lead late in the third quarter and 55-68 early in the fourth, with Yago Dos Santos also finding his range from three-point territory.

Aleksa Avramovic scored 14 points, most of which were crucial, as Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade beat Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade 88-86 in Round 5 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

Aleksa Avramovic's highlights vs. Zvezda

Enter Avramovic! With Zvezda running out of steam late on, like it has done so often in the EuroLeague this season, Partizan’s point guard found two extra gears as he had more left in the tank than anyone else on the court. Zvezda’s seemingly insurmountable lead vanished in thin air as Avramovic sank a long triple over Napier to give Partizan a crunch 83-80 lead and the hosts held on to victory with cool shooting from the foul line, sending their passionate fans into raptures.

More Partizan News

Aleksa Avramovic (right) and James Nunnally (left) of Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade celebrate with the fans after they beat Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in Round 5 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

The Serbia international came up big in the fourth quarter to turn the game around for the home team.

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade v Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (2023-10-26T16:30:00.000Z)

ALBA Berlin had high expectations for Sterling Brown coming into the season as the main guard following an off-season of change. And the former NBA wing is starting to justify those hopes as he played a major role in ALBA getting its first win of the season. 

Sterling Brown showed vs. Olimpia Milano that he is finding his form for ALBA Berlin

ALBA Berlin had high expectations for Sterling Brown coming into the season as the main guard following an off-season of change. And the former NBA wing is starting to justify those hopes as he played a major role in ALBA getting its first win of the season.

The 28-year-old poured in 18 points including the game-deciding layup with 24 seconds to go in ALBA’s come-from-behind 85-82 win over EA7 Emporio Armani Milan.

Sterling Brown shined for ALBA against Milan

"We had a lot of guys come out and just do what they do. We have a lot of young guys and they brought the energy. We just stayed with it. Stayed with the offensive concepts and defensive schemes and we came out with the win," said Brown, who also had 5 rebounds and 5 assists in the victory.

It was the third straight game in which Brown has scored at least 15 points and grabbed at least 4 rebounds while totaling 10 assists in those three games. Brown had a combined 13 points, 1 rebound and 4 assists in his first two EuroLeague contests.

"I’m getting more and more comfortable every day. Putting in the extra work at practice and putting up the extra shots. Teammates and coaching staff confident in what I can do," said Brown, who appeared in 292 NBA games over six seasons for four teams.

The native of the Chicago suburb Maywood had his best NBA season in 2020-21 when he averaged 8.2 points and 4.4 rebounds for the Houston Rockets. Brown appeared in just 4 games in the NBA last season, playing the rest of the season in the NBA G-League.

That led him to come to Europe for the first time and he is making his debut in the EuroLeague for ALBA. The German club hopes Brown can be the replacement for Maodo Lo, who left the club and headed to Milan. And Brown is ready for the challenge.

"I just have to go out there and perform. It’s no stress. This is basketball. I just gotta stay in a rhythm and get more comfortable," he said.

The EuroLeague rookie scored the game-winner on Thursday as ALBA claimed its first win of the season

Sterling Brown showed vs. Milan that he is finding his form for ALBA

ALBA Berlin v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2023-10-26T18:00:00.000Z)

Real Madrid improved to 5-0 after coming out on top in El Clásico, having downed FC Barcelona 65-64 at WiZink Center in Round 5 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season. Following this defeat, Barca dropped to a 4-1 record.

Real Madrid beats Barcelona 65-64 to grab Clásico bragging rights

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Facundo Campazzo of Real Madrid has possession during his team's game against FC Barcelona in Round 5 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

Los Blancos mounted an impressive comeback, before holding off the Blaugrana late on.

Real Madrid v FC Barcelona (2023-10-26T18:45:00.000Z)

AS Monaco Basket dominated against Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. en route to a huge 107-79 win at Salle Gaston Medecin in Round 5 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague Regular Season.

Monaco Basket dismantles Maccabi Tel Aviv, 107-79

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Elie Okobo of AS Monaco has possession during his team's Round 5 game against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

The French side grabbed a historic win over the team is also eliminated from last season's EuroLeague Playoffs.

Monaco dismantles Maccabi, 107-79

Two powerhouses, Olympiacos B.C. and Anadolu Efes S.K., come head-to-head in Greece in Round 5 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague Regular Season.

EuroLeague Live Blog: Olympiacos B.C. vs. Anadolu Efes S.K.

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EuroLeague Live Blog: Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul.

Olympiacos routs Efes, 75-57, on back of strong defense

ALBA Berin (0-4) and Olimpia Milano (1-2) face off at Mercedes-Benz Arena in Round 5 of the 2023-24 EuroLeague Regular Season.

EuroLeague Live Blog: ALBA Berlin vs. Olimpia Milano

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EuroLeague Live Blog: ALBA Berlin vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan.

ALBA overcomes Mirotic, Shields for first win

In his 248th game, Mike James of AS Monaco Basket became the fourth, and fastest, 4,000-point scorer in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history.

Mike James is fastest ever to reach 4,000 EuroLeague points

AS Monaco guard [Mike James](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mike-james/005985/) made Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history on Thursday night, becoming the fourth player in the competition to get 4,000 points.

With a triple off a screen late in the first quarter against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, [James joined a select group of players](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/key-stats-players/?size=25&misc=&category=Score&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&aggregate=accumulated&phase=) led by all-time leading scorer Vassilis Spanoulis, who amassed 4,455 points in his career.

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne guard Nando De Colo ranks second at 4,278 points and could go past Spanoulis later on this season. Juan Carlos Navarro finished his EuroLeague career with 4,152 points, all of them with FC Barcelona, and was the first player to ever reach 4,000 points.

James, however, is the fastest among them to 4,000 points, having reached the milestone in his 248th game. De Colo is second-fastest, in 258 games. Spanoulis hit the milestone in his 303rd game and Juan Carlos Navarro in his 319th.

James scored 467 points with his first EuroLeague team, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, in 45 games. He went on to play for Panathinaikos Athens, getting 522 points in 37 games. In his only season with EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, James scored 595 points in 30 games. James had 1,122 points in 55 games with CSKA Moscow, and got 1,277 in 81 games with Monaco before Thursday.

Mike James hits the 4,000-point milestone

James is one of only two players to score 600 points or more in two EuroLeague seasons: he did so with Monaco in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns with 622 and 605 points, respectively. Ex-Anadolu Efes Istanbul guard Vasilije Micic also broke the 600-point barrier in each of the last two seasons, getting 668 and 619 points. James reached 500 points in a EuroLeague season as many as five times: twice with Monaco, twice with CSKA and once with Milan. Only De Colo matches that achievement.

At 16.2 points on average coming into the game, [James is also the fourth-best per-game scorer in competition history](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/expanded/?size=25&viewType=traditional&statisticMode=perGame&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&statistic=score). The late Alphonso Ford leads that list (22.2 ppg.), followed by Kaspars Kambala (16.7 ppg.) and two-time EuroLeague MVP Anthony Parker (16.3 ppg.). None of these players, however, took part in more than 90 games, while James just played his 248th game in the competition.

Proving that he is much more than a scorer, James also ranked sixth all-time in [fouls drawn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/expanded/?size=25&viewType=traditional&statisticMode=accumulated&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&statistic=foulsReceived) (1,061), seventh in [PIR](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/expanded/?size=25&viewType=traditional&statisticMode=accumulated&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&statistic=valuation) (4,052) and ninth in [assists](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/stats/expanded/?size=25&viewType=traditional&statisticMode=accumulated&seasonMode=All&sortDirection=descending&statistic=assistances) (1,114), coming into Thursday's contest.

More Mike James News

Mike James is the fastest-ever player to reach the 4,000-point barrier in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague.

In his 248th game, Mike James of AS Monaco became the fourth, and fastest, 4,000-point scorer in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history.