Game Center: Round 13

Seven games follow on Wednesday night

Tuesday, January 6

Besiktas GAIN Istanbul 97-76 ratiopharm ulm

Besiktas remained the only undefeated team at home in the EuroCup by rolling past Ulm 97-76 to snap a two-game losing streak. Besiktas took control of the game with a 23-4 run spanning the middle two quarters to improve to 9-4 overall and 7-0 at home.

Vitto Brown paced five Besiktas players in double figures with 23 points while Jonah Mathews scored 18 points with 4 assists and Ante Zizic tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds in the win. Ulm continues to struggle with its sixth loss in the last seven games for a 5-8 record. Christopher Ledlum paced the guests with 17 points.

BAXI Manresa 113-99 Aris Thessaloniki Betsson

Manresa moved ahead of its opposition on Tuesday night at Pavello Nou Congost, holding on to win by 14 and move to 7-6 for the season. The home team's best work was done in the first half, in which they smashed their single-half scoring record by 63 in the opening 20 minutes. Despite a buoyant fourth quarter comeback attempt, Aris couldn’t quite come back from a sizeable 32-point deficit, so slips below the hosts with a 6-7 EuroCup record.

Diego Ocampo’s team scored by committee on their way to victory, with Retin Obasohan leading the way with 18 points from 7-10 shooting. Ferran Bassas, Agustin Ubal and Gerard Fernandez all finished the game with a total of 14, while Marcis Steinbergs and Alex Reyes reached 12 apiece.

With the win Manresa bounces back from last week’s loss to Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem and strengthens its hopes of postseason basketball. Aris now holds a two-game losing streak, so will hope to regroup ahead of next week’s contest.

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana 59-67 Bahcesehir College Istanbul

Bahcesehir secured a 59-67 road win over Cedevita Olimpija at Arena Stozice in a closely contested Group A matchup, breaking the tie between the two sides to move to 9-4 in the standings, while Cedevita dropped to 8-5. After Cedevita held the momentum and built a 10-point lead by halftime, Bahcesehir responded with a strong third-quarter run. The Istanbul side took control in the second half, stretching the lead behind effective shooting from beyond the arc and closing out the game.

Matt Mitchell led Bahcesehir with 13 points and 5 rebounds, while Tyler Cavanaugh posted 12 points and 10 rebounds. Trevion Williams added 9 points and 10 rebounds, and Ismet Akpınar contributed 12 points. For Cedevita Olimpija, Umoja Gibson led the way with 25 points, Aleksej Nikolic added 16 points, and Luka Brajkovic finished with 6 points and 9 rebounds.

Wednesday, January 7

Turk Telekom Ankara vs. Dolomiti Energia Trento (17:00 CET)

Another showdown between direct rivals in Group B will see fourth-placed Turk Telekom (7-5) face fifth-placed Trento (7-5). The Italian team boosted its playoff ambitions by downing London last week, and will hope that backcourt star DeVante' Jones can stay red-hot after netting 33 points in that win. The last time Jones failed to score in double digits came in Round 4 against Turk Telekom, so the hosts will attempt to repeat that formula as it chases the win it needs to seal the head-to-head advantage. Trento will have to confront the three-point shooting of Jaleen Smith, who netted six triples in Turk Telekom’s loss at Buducnost last time out.

Lietkabelis Panevezys vs. Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse (18:00 CET)

Runaway Group B leader Bourg (10-2) will attempt to take another step towards the postseason by downing desperate Lietkabelis (3-9). The Lithuanian team kept its faint playoff hopes alive with a strong win over Ulm last week, led by 26 points from red-hot guard Micheal Flowers, and needs more of the same to avenge a 28-point thrashing at Bourg in Round 4. The French team narrowly overcame Panionios last week partly thanks to another stellar night from Both Gach, who has exceeded 20 points in three of the last four games. Bourg boasts the best defense in the competition (72.7 points allowed per game), so Lietkabelis will need to improve its competition-worst 47.3% two-point shooting conversion rate.

Panionios Cosmorama Travel Athens vs. Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (18:30 CET)

Buducnost (8-4) will attempt to protect its position in Group B’s top two by piling more misery on rock-bottom Panionios (1-11). The Greek team fell short but delivered a much-improved performance under interim coach Nikos Karagiannis at Bourg last week, and will hope for another effective performance from forward Jackson Kreuser (16 points, 5 rebounds). Buducnost has lost its last two road games but will be confident of facing Panionios after smashing the Greek team by 28 points in Round 4, led by 16 points without a miss from shooting star Axel Bouteille, who ranks fifth in the competition with 51.7% of three-pointers converted. Panionios has only made 30% of its long-range strikes, so needs to improve that stat on Wednesday.

Slask Wroclaw vs. Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem (19:00 CET)

High-flying Jerusalem (10-2) will attempt to maintain its two-game lead at the top of Group A by taking a road win from Slask (4-8). The Polish team has suffered four straight losses to fall out of the playoff places, and needs to improve a defense which has allowed 100.3 points during that run. That won't be easy against a Jerusalem team which made it nine wins in a row by blasting 105 points over Manresa last week, led by 20 points from Cassius Winston. To counter him the home team needs another top performance from Noah Kirkwood, who averages 15.4 points in the last five games. Hapoel leads the competition in field goal conversion (52.1%), so Slask’s defense needs to be at its best.

Veolia Towers Hamburg vs. Neptunas Kleipeda (19:45 CET)

Neptunas (5-7) will attempt to climb into the all-important top six by ensuring that Hamburg (0-12) remains winless. The Lithuanian team has lost its last two games due to an alarming defensive dip, allowing 118 points in both games, but can rely on the remarkable consistent Rihards Lomasz, who has scored at least 14 points in nine straight games. Hamburg’s search for an elusive win took another hit with a 37-point defeat at Bahcesehir last week, despite Devon Daniels continuing his great form with 22 points. Hamburg has the worst three-point shooting record in the competition (26.7%), so needs the likes of Kenneth Ogbe (19.2% from deep) to find their range.

Umana Reyer Venice vs. U-BT Cluj-Napoca (20:00 CET)

A big battle in Group A will see Cluj (7-5) attempt to take a two-game margin over Reyer (6-6) by grabbing a key road win. The Italian team has won its last two games behind an outstanding offense, netting 118 points at Neptunas last time out as Kyle Wiltjer hit top gear with 28 points. Cluj has also won two straight with excellent offensive output, edging out Slask last week in a thriller thanks to a game winner from Dusan Miletic, who rediscovered his best form with 19 points and 14 rebounds. To compete with his physical presence, Reyer will need another strong night from Chris Horton, who has snared multiple steals in three straight games.

London Lions vs. NINERS Chemnitz (20:30 CET)

The round concludes with another vital matchup in Group B as seventh placed London welcomes sixth placed Chemnitz. The German team is in its best form of the season after winning three consecutive games, most recently producing a barrage of three-pointers – including 3-of-4 from Nike Sibande – to stun Besiktas last week. But London has already beaten Chemnitz once this season, triumphing 67-68 on the road in Round 4, and will hope that Kam McGusty can return from injury absence to repeat his 20-points heroics from that night. London ranks last in the competition in turnovers (15.9 per game), so needs to play with greater efficiency to seal the head-to-head advantage.