Round 16 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup is officially in the books.
Game Center: Ulm, Prometey are new playoff teams after Round 16
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6 Minute de lecture
Wednesday, January 24
Turk Telekom Ankara 88-73 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys
Turk Telekom's quest to turn its season around took a major step in Round 16 as the 2022-23 EuroCup finalist finally moved into the playoff spots following an 88-73 victory over 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys. The Turkish side wasted an 11-point lead but used a 13-3 run in the fourth quarter to grab its fourth straight win and its sixth in the last seven games for a 7-9 record. Tyrone Wallace poured in 31 points with 7 rebounds, James Palmer had 20 points and Yigitcan Saybir and Jarrod Jones both added 13 points for the winners. Lietkabelis lost its fourth straight and its seventh in the last eight games for a 5-11 record. Deividas Sirvydis scored 18 points and Dovis Bickauskis added 14 points.
Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv 105-113 Prometey Slobozhanske
Prometey boosted its playoff hopes with a 105-113 road win over Hapoel at Belgrade’s Aleksandar Nikolic Hall on Wednesday night. Prometey scored 32 fourth-quarter points to come from behind and improve its record to 9-7, which sent Hapoel to its third straight loss and an 11-5 mark. Ronald March rocked with 27 points to lead the winners, and Gian Clavell and Caleb Agada netted 19 points apiece. Braian Angola led Hapoel with 24 points and 8 rebounds in defeat.
Aris Midea Thessaloniki 68-76 Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse
Bourg never trailed and moved another step closer towards locking up first place in Group B thanks to a 68-76 road win over Aris on Wednesday night. Bourg improved to a 13-3 record in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup season, maintaining a one-win lead atop of the Group B standings, while Aris dropped to 7-9 and shares the fifth-best record in the group. Bourg led by as many as 13 points in the first half and held a 51-61 lead in the opening minute of the fourth quarter, but Aris made a run and got within 60-63. However, that's as close as the hosts got as Jeremy Morgan and Zaccharie Risacher made key shots to help Bourg pull away again, and record a valuable win. Risacher was the visitors' only double-digit scorer as the 18-year-old dropped 20 points, while Bodian Massa collected 9 points and 8 rebounds. For Aris, Roberto Gallinat had 20 points and Vassilis Toliopoulos scored 17 in defeat.
Veolia Towers Hamburg 83-114 Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana
Cedevita grabbed its first victory of the 2023-24 EuroCup campaign by thrashing Hamburg 83-114 on Wednesday night. The guests were superior from start to finish and managed to prevent the German side from securing its first home win of the campaign. Cedevita now has a 1-15 record, while Hamburg dropped to 2-14. Jaka Blazic led all scorers with 24 points, Justin Cobbs had 16 and DJ Stewart added 15, with Zoran Dragic and Karlo Matkovic scoring 12 each. For Hamburg, Aleksander Dziewa netted a team-high 21 points, VJ King recorded 19 and William Christmas had 15.
Slask Wroclaw 68-92 Dreamland Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria strengthened its push for a top-two finish by totally dominating Slask, 68-92, on the road. The reigning champ improves to 12-4, while eliminated Slask is now 2-14 at the foot of Group B. The first quarter was closely contested but Gran Canaria pulled away to lead 33-50 at the interval, and it was never close again. Miquel Salvo was an all-round inspiration with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, while Ben Lammers top scored with 12, and Ferran Bassas and AJ Slaughter both netted 11. Dusan Miletic led Slask’s resistance with 15 points, while Daniel Golebiowski added 13.
Umana Reyer Venice 57-75 Wolves Vilnius
Wolves continued their good recent form by knocking off Reyer with a 57-75 road victory, but the win was not enough for them to stay alive in the hunt for the playoffs. Wolves started the fourth quarter with a 1-18 run which put them on track to notch their second win in the last three games for a 6-10 record. The Lithuanian side needed to win by 30 points and also have Prometey Slobozhanske lose at Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv, so it is eliminated from playoff contention for that reason. Tre’Shawn Thurman led the way with 14 points, Christian Mekowulu had 12 points and Garrison Brooks added 11 points. Due to Wolves' loss and Prometey’s win, Reyer has also been eliminated with a 6-10 record. The Italian side, which only scored 7 points in the fourth quarter, could not use a 19-point night from Max Heidegger, while Amedeo Tessitori chipped in with 13 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals.
London Lions 93-72 Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul
London celebrated an emphatic 93-72 home win over Besiktas and remained on course to clinch a top-two finish in Group A of the EuroCup. The outstanding Matt Morgan paced London with a game-high 20 points, while Donta Gratham, David Nwaba and Gabe Olaseni chipped in with 12 each for the home side. Tarik Phillip added 10 points, underlining London’s balanced workload, which saw the Lions dish out 23 assists to Besiktas’s 12. At the other end, Matthew Mitchell led Besiktas with 16 points, Kyle Allman netted 12 while Derek Needham and Angel Delgado scored 10 each.
Tuesday, January 23
U-BT Cluj-Napoca 88-83 Dolomiti Energia Trento
Cluj survived a late push from Trento to claim the victory on Tuesday at BT Arena. Despite dominating for stretches and leading by as many as 17 in the fourth quarter, the hosts needed some key plays by Bryce Jones in the final minute to preserve the win. Cluj improved to 12-4 on the season and Trento slipped to 7-9. Andrija Stipanovic posted 16 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists and Karel Guzman also scored 16 and grabbed 3 steals to lead the winners. Trento’s Kamar Baldwin led all scorers with 21 points plus 4 steals.
Buducnost VOLI Podgorica 80-84 ratiopharm Ulm
Ulm escaped with a hard-fought victory from the Moraca where it defeated Buducnost on Tuesday. Juan Nuñez and LJ Figueroa took over in overtime, combining for 10 of Ulm’s 12 points in the extra period to help Ulm end its four-game losing streak and secure a playoff spot. Ulm’s record improved to 9-7, while Buducnost slipped to 6-10. Figueroa led all scorers with 24 points while Juan Nuñez finished with 9 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists. Yogi Ferrell paced Buducnost with 15 points and 8 assists.
Paris Basketball 89-82. Joventut Badalona
Paris put an end to Joventut's seven-game winning streak. The hosts were in control of the game in the first three quarters, but Joventut took its first lead of the night in the opening stages of the closing quarter. Nadir Hifi came to the fore in crunch time and netted his team’s last 8 points of the game to seal Paris’s eighth win in a row. With its victory on Tuesday, Paris improved to a 15-1 record. Badalona dropped to 15-6, but remains in pursuit of a top-two spot. Hifi led Paris with 17 points, with Collin Malcolm and Tyson Ward scoring 15 each. Andres Feliz scored a game-high 20 points for Joventut.