Deividas Sirvydis of BC Lietkabelis has lit it up in the EuroCup in recent weeks.

Who's hot: Deividas Sirvydis, BC Lietkabelis

As the regular season heads towards the final stretch, teams will be counting on their best performers to carry them as they make one last push. That applies for almost every squad across the BKT EuroCup, as the race for the playoffs, home-court advantage and a top-two finish are all on teams’ minds. 

One of those teams fighting for a playoff berth is 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys (5-8). The player it will be hoping can help it carry towards the postseason is [Deividas Sirvydis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/deividas-sirvydis/007029/), who has been one of the hottest – while arguably the most accurate – shooter in the entire competition in recent weeks.

### Sirvydis has been on fire for Lietkabelis

There are three players who scored more than 100 points over the last five rounds and Sirvydis is one of them. His 103 points, or 20.6 ppg., are third over that span, but what really stands out is his consistency.

Since Round 9, the 23-year-old guard has not scored fewer than 16 points in any of those games. He has, in fact, done it twice: both in Rounds 11 and 12, respectively, in a loss at Aris Midea Thessaloniki and a home win over ratiopharm Ulm.

In each of the other three games, Sirvydis has topped the 20-point mark. He scored 29 in a Round 9 loss against U-BT Cluj Napoca and had 21 apiece in games against Buducnost VOLI Podgorica and Dolomiti Energia Trento.

Who's hot: Deividas Sirvydis, 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys

### Making the most of his shots

What Sirvydis has also managed to do is score a lot but with exceptional shooting percentages.

Over the last five games, the Lietkabelis guard is a fantastic 20-for-28 (71.4%) on two-pointers and 14-for-26 (53.8%) from three-point land.

With such production over the last five rounds, Sirvydis has climbed into third place in scoring for the season (17.3 ppg.), while improving his shooting accuracy to 64.8% on twos and 42.6% on threes this campaign.

His 34 field goals made are the fourth most over the last five games, but his shooting accuracy is far and beyond everybody else.

Sirvyids is the only player who has made at least 18 field goals over this five-game span, while he’s managed to shoot at above 60.0% accuracy in that time, all while making better than 50.0% of his shots from behind the arc.

Lietkabelis has a tough task on its hands when it hosts Dreamland Gran Canaria on Wednesday, so the Lithuanian team will need Sirvydis to continue playing at the same level he has been since late November. With Lietkabelis trying to register its sixth win of the season and position itself better in the playoff race, expect Sirvydis’s fingerprints to be all over this game.

The 23-year-old has been on fire on offense in recent weeks.

7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys v Dreamland Gran Canaria (2024-01-10T17:00:00.000Z)

In his latest blog this season, Kyle Wiltjer of Umana Reyer Venice talks about what it'll take to survive the BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Kyle Wiltjer, Reyer: 'It's cool to see how competitive the EuroCup is'

Here comes 2024! We start the year leading the Italian League with an 11-3 record and sitting 4-9 in our EuroCup group. It just shows how tough the EuroCup is. If you are a EuroLeague fan, you obviously know how tough that is, but I think the EuroCup has really improved this year. I think our biggest problem is that we have lost a couple of close games, and that's the big difference. Instead of being 4-9, we could be 6-7 or even 7-6, and then we would be moving up the standings a couple of spots. So I think we are not far off. I think most of our defeats have been close. We had some injuries piling up, so it just has been a difficult time, but it also speaks volumes of how tough this EuroCup group is. 

"It's going to be a tough task winning all five."

Take Hapoel and Paris, for instance, scoring 100 points almost in every game. They are playing fast and very unselfish basketball. Both have given us problems, and they are posting some numbers we have never seen before at this level. They are playing great. The good news is that we play three of our next four games at home. We will probably need to win all five games to qualify, but I believe we can do it. We just made a new signing at the 'five' position in [Mfiondu Kabengele](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/reyer-bolsters-frontcourt-with-kabengele/), who's going to really help us out, and now [Max Heidegger](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/reyer-venezia-adds-scoring-punch-with-max-heidegger/) is on the way, too. It's going to be a tough task winning all five, but I think we just take one game at a time. I think it's definitely attainable, and we are playing great basketball now. We are playing really well in Italy, so now it's time to just keep fighting in the EuroCup and try to qualify to the playoffs.

Umana Reyer Venice power forward Kyle Wiltjer is in his second BKT EuroCup season.

2023-24 EuroCup highlights: Kyle Wiltjer, Reyer

This is my first EuroCup season in five years. In the meantime, I have been all over the world, so I have seen so many different styles of play. For me, I'm more experienced, but like I said before, the EuroCup has evolved every year. The EuroLeague and EuroCup have just got stronger and stronger. As you see in the EuroLeague, with all these NBA players who have come over here, and then the EuroCup, you have so much talent at this level. It has just continued and it shows the growth of basketball in Europe. It's fun to see, especially having played in the EuroCup five years ago and coming back. It's cool to see how competitive the EuroCup is.

### Holidays in Venice

Spending Christmas and New Year's Eve in Venice has been a dream for my family. It's hard not to think you are on vacation when you are living in such a beautiful, beautiful place. For us, it's amazing. My daughter has a school that she's going to start this week, which is really fun. She'll probably pick up some Italian. And then my wife and I, we are always working on our Spanish because I played in Spain, so it kind of helps in Italy because you can kind of understand some things. 

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During Christmas, we got to do some of the stuff that people do when they come to Venice. We have had some time here and there throughout the season and where we live, just a short little train ride over to Venice where all those gondolas are. So we did a Christmas Day gondola ride, my wife and I and our girls. They obviously don't understand how special it is, but when they are older and just seeing pictures and videos that me and my wife take, it will be a special memory that they are going to really cherish, and I'll cherish for the rest of my life.

### Meeting up with former teammates

Before Christmas, I got to see my old college teammates from both my colleges, Kevin Pangos and Alex Poythress. It's always fun seeing familiar faces and even a guy like Andrew Andrews, playing for Joventut. I grew up with him in Portland, Oregon. So just seeing some of your friends in Europe and in the same competition, it's always fun. Kevin just moved to Valencia, so I think for him it's going to be a good situation. And Spain is such a good place for him just the way they play, so I will definitely be tuned in to his games and will be excited to watch.

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OK, it was not EuroCup, but did you see that dunk by our guy Rayjon Tucker? He is a beast! He is one of the best athletes I've ever seen with my own eyes, and I played in the NBA one season, played everywhere in the world. He is just an unbelievable athlete and just a great dude off the court. He is super down to earth, always having a good time, and when you are playing such a long season, it really makes it fun when you have guys that you like and you can get along with. So this group of guys, we have had our ups and downs with the season, but we are having a great time right now being together and going to work every day. But yeah, "Air Tuck" is a beast, man. No one can jump with that guy.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It’s <a href="https://twitter.com/th3flighttuck?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@th3flighttuck</a> way 🚀<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/uniti?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#uniti</a> <a href="https://t.co/KDFSvk0XLW">pic.twitter.com/KDFSvk0XLW</a></p>&mdash; Reyer Venezia (@REYER1872) <a href="https://twitter.com/REYER1872/status/1738647863364653282?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### The challenge ahead

Our next EuroCup game is against Besiktas. We lost by six points in Istanbul and that is one of the goals, to beat them by more points. This is what makes European basketball interesting. Some fans back home in the U.S., they don't understand why you are playing until the last buzzer even if you are up 6 or 7 points, but those things do matter when you are playing EuroLeague or EuroCup. In those type of leagues where everyone is so close in the standings, every point matters. So, the goal is 100% to try to win by more than six. You can't really worry about that as a player. You just have to play hard, and whatever happens, happens. But you have to you play every possession until the end, for sure, in Europe.

Like I said, we can only focus on the next game. One game at a time! I think we are such a dangerous team. We have such a great roster and, as you see, we are the best team in Italy right now, so we have to continue with that confidence and just know that we might be low in the standings, but we have had some tough games and it's a tough competition. We just have to continue to fight... and fight until the end!

A crucial Group A game went the way of the London Lions thanks to a parade of players, including one in his first BKT EuroCup game, taking responsibility.

David Nwaba quickly added his name to London's list of aces

London Lions may have been on the road against a team with a seven-game winning streak, Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv, but the visitors had a few aces up their sleeve on the way to [a 96-100 victory on Tuesday](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/hapoel-shlomo-tel-aviv-london-lions/U2023/132/) that makes sure the Group A race for second place will stay hot over the season's final four games.

The first ace was more like a good-luck charm. London head coach Petar Bozic played the bulk of his pro career for Partizan Belgrade in the same Aleksandar Nikolic Hall where Hapoel is playing its home games these days.

"It's beautiful to be back in the arena where I spent almost all my career," Bozic said pre-game.

He felt even better about the setting after.

"As I said before, it's great to be back home," Bozic said post-game. "I felt great in the arena today."

The first playing ace was forward [Conor Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/conor-morgan/009680/) who did nothing less than make 5 three-point shots soon after tipoff to open up double-digit leads for London that proved extremely valuable later. Only twice in EuroCup history has any player made more than 5 three-pointers in the same quarter – Adas Juskevicius with 7 for Lietkabelis Panevezys and Alexey Shved with 6 for Khimki Moscow Region, both in 2017 – and Morgan's came in just the first 6 minutes!

Morgan would pass the baton to [Gabe Olaseni](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/gabe-olaseni/006600/) and [Luke Nelson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/luke-nelson/004773/) in the second quarter. Olaseni, the league's second-best player by PIR, scored 10 points in three and a half minutes while Nelson buried 3 triples as London cruised into halftime ahead 44-58, having matched the EuroCup's record for three-pointers made in a first half with 12.

Less noticed in that first half was a more-or-less cameo appearance by London's newest signing, swingman [David Nwaba](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/david-nwaba/012797/), who arrived with a solid NBA career behind him. His first 6 minutes consisted of 2 fouls, 2 rebounds and 1 assist. Despite a couple of turnovers when he came back early in the third quarter, Nwaba retained the confidence of Coach Bozic, who was soon rewarded.

David Nwaba's 17 points for London vs. Hapoel Tel Aviv

Nwaba's first EuroCup points came emphatically, on a swooping baseline dunk. Then, when Hapoel had whittled a 17-point deficit down to 67-73 late in the third quarter, Nwaba responded with 5 points in a row that let London breath a 70-78 advantage. He would score 5 more in a row early in the fourth to restore a double-digit lead at 73-83.

[Tarik Phillip](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tarik-phillip/009649/) soon dished his sixth and seventh assists consecutively to [Josh Sharma](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/josh-sharma/012020/) and Nelson returned with 5 points in a row as Hapoel desperately tried to rally. A key moment came with under 2 minutes left as Nelson drew an offensive foul on [Tomer Ginat](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tomer-ginat/010550/) of Hapoel, giving way to Nwaba's final basket, which made it 81-98 with 90 seconds left. Still, London needed Phillip's 2 perfect free throws with 5 seconds remaining to deny Hapoel a chance at tying on the final shot.

In the end, six London players scored at least 10 points, led by newcomer Nwaba, whose 17 fell over a 15-minute span of the second half. The collective contribution couldn't have been more crucial. Not only did London qualify early to the BKT EuroCup Playoffs, but with a 10-4 record inched closer to Hapoel's 11-3 in the race for a top-two finish in Group A, which comes with a free pass to the single-game quarterfinals and home-court advantage in that game.

Olaseni spoke for everyone when he said after the game:

"We're just happy. A lot of guys came to play today. So many guys stepped up at different times, at different moments, so we are very happy. We knew they were going to come out with a lot more fire \[in the second half\] but luckily we got the win."

More Game News

A crucial Group A game went the way of the visitors thanks to a parade of players, including one in his first BKT EuroCup game, taking responsibility.

Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv v London Lions (2024-01-09T17:30:00.000Z)

Rasheed Sulaimon played a key role in ending the six-game losing streak of BC Wolves, as it defeated KK Cedevita Olimpija in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup season.

Rasheed Sulaimon's heroics lifted BC Wolves, kept playoff hopes alive

Wolves Vilnius kept their BKT EuroCup playoff hopes alive on Tuesday night, pulling out [a 91-89 win over the winless Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/wolves-snap-losing-streak-hold-off-cedevita-91-89/). That victory ended the team's six-game losing streak and also reminded fans of the quality of [Rasheed Sulaimon](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/rasheed-sulaimon/011150/).

The 29-year-old forward returned to action last week after being sidelined since Round 6. In his first five appearances of the season, Sulaimon averaged 20.2 points. Since his return, he has been proving how much he was missed.

Rasheed Sulaimon had 23 points as Wolves Vilnius beat Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Sulaimon's highlights vs. Cedevita

### Unstoppable Sulaimon

Last week against Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv, he scored 20 points in vain as his team fell to another defeat. On Tuesday night, however, Sulaimon not only scored 23 points but also made plays down the stretch to secure an important win for the Wolves.

"Through the whole game, we just could not stop Sulaimon", Cedevita head coach Zoran Martic admitted. "He was hurting us throughout the game."

Sulaimon was 4-of-10 on two-pointers and 5-of-8 from downtown, while he also had 3 assists and 2 rebounds. After scoring 12 in the first half, Sulaimon scored 8 points in the final 6 minutes of the game.

He first knocked down a three-pointer to restore the Wolves' lead, 75-74. His fifth triple came with 1:20 to go, again turning a 1-point deficit into the hosts' lead, 89-87. Finally, Sulaimon scored what turned out to be a game-winning basket, a shake-and-bake drive against Karlo Matkovic and a difficult layup off the glass to make it 91-89.

No team scored in the remainder of the contest as the Wolves prevailed.

<center>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Solid home win vs <a href="https://twitter.com/KKCedOL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KKCedOL</a>. Finally ended the drought in the BKT-<a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EuroCup</a>. 🐺 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreWolves?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreWolves</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BKTEuroCup?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BKTEuroCup</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoadToGreatness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoadToGreatness</a> <a href="https://t.co/FXAymJl1UY">pic.twitter.com/FXAymJl1UY</a></p>&mdash; BC WOLVES (@wolves_bc) <a href="https://twitter.com/wolves_bc/status/1744796567415205954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

"We made few really crucial stops \[and we won\] because of our energy, because of our concentration and because of Rasheed's big plays", Wolves head coach Kestutis Kemzura stated after the win. "He hit big threes at the end and made big plays."

Sulaimon's performance, coupled with the all-round game of Jeffrey Taylor, who had 13 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists, improved the Wolves to a 5-9 record. The last place that reaches the playoffs from Group A is currently occupied by Prometey Slobozhanske (7-6).

"We will fight until the end, no matter what. We have to fight, we have to lay it out on the court every game", Kemzura concluded.

More Wolves News

Rasheed Sulaimon in action for Wolves Vilnius against Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana in Round 14 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

The 29-year-old forward, who returned to action last week, reminded his team just how much it has missed him.

Rasheed Sulaimon's heroics lifted Wolves, kept playoff hopes alive

Wolves Vilnius v Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (2024-01-09T17:00:00.000Z)

It was going to require something special for the visitors to stop the streaking hosts, and they found it.

To ace crucial test, London took pages from Hapoel's book

London Lions faced a formidable task visiting Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv in snowy Belgrade on Tuesday.

Hapoel arrived with a seven-game winning streak and record-threatening averages of 23.6 assists and 118.0 PIR per game. 

It became clear quickly, however, that London's motivation to reach the BKT EuroCup Playoffs with a victory would be just as strong as Hapoel's momentum until then. And so it proved as London catapulted out of the gate after tipoff and then faced down every Hapoel comeback attempt to prevail in [a 96-100 shootout](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/hapoel-shlomo-tel-aviv-london-lions/U2023/132/).

Not only did London  guarantee itself a playoff spot with its 10-4 record, it stayed on the heels of Hapoel (11-3) for second place, which comes with a direct pass to the quarterfinals and home-court advantage at that stage. They will likely battle for that prize until the end of the regular season now.

London Lions top assists vs. Hapoel ShlomoTel Aviv

In putting itself in position to do even more than make the playoffs, the Lions stole a page or two from Hapoel's book.  Their season high of 29 assists included six players reaching at least 3 assists, something so rare that it has only been bettered twice in EuroCup history.

[Tarik Phillip](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tarik-phillip/009649/) led the parade of passers with 7 dimes, while [Donte Grantham](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/donte-grantham/012586/) added 5, [Matthew Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/matthew-morgan/012585/) and [Conor Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/conor-morgan/009680/) 4 each, and [Gabe Olaseni](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/gabe-olaseni/006600/) and [Luke Nelson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/luke-nelson/004773/) 3 each. 

Not as rare, but almost, was Conor Morgan and Nelson hitting 5 and 4 three-pointers each. Only 20 teams in EuroCup history have seen more than two players make at least 4 triples in the same game. What's more 8 of their 9 fell in the first half. 

It all added up to London winning in PIR by 119 to 105, which is saying something against a team that is on pace to shatter the single-season average PIR with still 117.1 per game.

Not a bad night's work on the road in snowy Belgrade for the boys from London.

Game Videos

Game News

A losing streak was vanquished and playoff hopes retained in Lithuania on Tuesday.

Wolves snap losing streak, hold off Cedevita 91-89

Wolves Vilnius pulled out a dramatic 91-89 home win over the winless Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana on Tuesday to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Wolves snapped a six-game losing streak and improved to 5-9 in Group A, while already-eliminated Cedevita Olimpija dropped to 0-14.

In a back-and-forth affair, the hosts made more plays down the stretch. Rasheed Sulaimon scored the hosts' final 2 baskets, including a tough tie-breaking layup with 41 seconds left that proved to be the game-winner. Sulaimon, who played his first game since Round 6, led the winners with 23 points, making 5 of 8 three-pointers. Vaidas Kariniauskas scored 15, while Jeffery Taylor collected 13 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. Tre'shawn Thurman scored 12 and Kristupas Zemaitis 10 points in the victory. Karlo Matkovic had 21 points and 6 rebounds for the visitors. Justin Cobbs had 15 points and 6 assists, while DJ Stewart finished with 12 in a losing effort.

### Wolves, Cedevita traded leads through 20 minutes

Early on, Matkovic had a three-point play and a monster dunk, but Sulaimon had a three-pointer and fastbreak dunk for the hosts. Taylor nailed a triple but Cobbs and Jaka Blazic made it 14-17. Eigirdas Zukauskas downed a pair of dunks to get the Wolves back in front before a three-point play from Kariniauskas and a buzzer-beating jumper from Thurman made it 27-23 after 10 minutes.

Kariniauskas scored the first basket of the second quarter but Cedevita replied with a 3-9 run during which Gregor Glas knocked down a three-pointer. Nikola Radicevic added back-to-back three-point shots for the visitors, making it 37-38, but the hosts scored the next 9 points. Suleimon sparked the run with a triple and Christian Mekowulu scored twice inside to open a 46-38 advantage. Cedevita found the final 6 points of the half, including a tip-in from Luka Scuka that made it 46-44.

The Wolves scored the first 10 points of the third quarter, including a triple apiece from Zemaitis and Zukauskas for the game's first double-digit lead, 56-44. Cobbs snapped that run with a three-point play. After Sulaimon nailed a triple, the visitors did not allow another basket for more than 4 minutes. During that time, Cedevita put together its own 0-10 run, capped by 2 baskets from Matkovic that cut the deficit to 59-57. Matkovic had a block and a pair of alley-oop dunks before the end of third quarter, which ended with Wolves clinging to a 66-65 edge.

Glas opened the fourth quarter with a three-pointer to flip the lead, but the hosts scored the next 6 points. Rok Radovic and Glas hit back-to-back threes for the visitors, only for Sulaimon to make another one from downtown for the Wolves to go up 75-74. The teams continued trading leads as Jaka Klobucar's triple made it 80-81 for Cedevita. Matkovic added a dunk, but a steal and a dunk by Thurman put the hosts back in front, 84-83. Stewart scored twice for the visitors, but another triple from Sulaimon made it 89-87. After a runner from Cobbs, Sulaimon's acrobatic layup made it 91-89 with 41 seconds to go. That turned out to be the last basket of the game, as the hosts prevailed.

The top of Group A turned a lot more suspenseful as third-place downed second on the road to set up tighter race between them for direct passage to the quarterfinals.

London beats Hapoel 96-100 to guarantee playoff spot!

London Lions came out smoking and finished strong to defeat host Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv 96-100 on Tuesday and guarantee a spot in the BKT EuroCup Playoffs for a second consecutive season. The victory lifted London to 10-4 in Group A, still behind second-place Tel Aviv (11-3), meaning both will be battling for a top-two finish the rest of the way. Hapoel will hold the head-to-head advantage, however, having beaten London 90-98 earlier in the season. 

Heroes abounded for London, for whom newcomer David Nwaba led six double-figure scorers with 17 points. Conor Morgan and Luke Nelson added 15 each, Gabe Olaseni 12 and 10 rebounds, while Matthew Morgan scored 11 and Donte Grantham 10. Hapoel got 24 points from Xavier Munford, 17 from Kyle Alexander, 14 from Tomer Ginat and 13 from Dezmine Wells while Bar Timor combined 15 points with 12 assists.

## Conor Morgan sent London to big leads

As Munford hit a triple and Ginat finished twice for Hapoel, Grantham matched them with 7 points for London. When John Holland hit from deep for Hapoel, Conor Morgan didn't just answer in kind: he buried 3 triples in a row to vault London in front 10-16. Four quick Hapoel subs forced 3 quick turnovers, but the hosts couldn't score and, worse, proceeded to leave Conor Morgan open for his fourth and fifth triples in less than 6 minutes to make it 13-22. In his debut for Hapoel, former EuroCup champ Will Cummings joined Idan Zalmanson in steadying the hosts but London till led 19-28 after 10 minutes.

Grantham, Luke Nelson, from deep, and Ciaran Sandy quickly pushed the lead to high of 21-36 and London kept it at 15 points until Munford's three-pointer and Bar Timor's free throws at 33-43. Olaseni went to work inside with 2 baskets to make it 33-47. Alexander dialed it back for Hapoel to 36-47 but Olaseni unleashed an intimidating slam and Nelson buried a triple at 36-52. Nelson's next three-pointer made it 38-55, but Timor answered twice and Alexander's put-back got Hapoel within 11, although Olaseni kicked out to Matthew Morgan for a triple that left a 44-58 halftime score. 

### London outlasted Hapoel's comeback try

Munford, Ginat and Timor gave Hapoel a 5-2 run after the break but Matthew Morgan answered from long distance at 49-63. Alexander and Nwaba traded dunks as Wells and Tarik Phillip did strikes from downtown at 58-69, but Ginat's 2 strong layups suddenly got the difference to single digits, 62-69. Wells struck again from the arc on a broken play to make it 65-69 before Josh Sharma and Matthew Morgan responded for London. Cummings and Nwaba traded 5 points each as London stayed up 70-78 after 30 minutes.

Munford's triple seemed to keep Hapoel close, but Nwaba scored the next 5 points on fastbreak layups to restore a double-digit London lead, 73-82. Munford and Timor kept scoring but so did Sharma for London. Munford's nest three-pointer made it 79-87 with 6:30 to play but Nwaba scored in response. Timor's quick 5 points lowered the difference to 84-91 with under 5 minutes left. Next to strike was Munfort at 87-91. Nelson answered with a stop-and-pop jumper but Munford matched him. Nelson hit from the arc next and Alexander's put-back made it 91-96 with 2 minutes left. Nelson drew an offensive foul on Ginat and Nwaba scored on the other end at 91-98. Wells made a triple entering the final minute and scored again at 96-98 with 25 seconds left. Hapoel didn't foul until 5.2 seconds remained, however, and Phillip hit both free throws, preserving the London victory. 

Nearly half the teams currently in the playoff zone for the BKT EuroCup added pieces before the end of the transfer period. 

EuroCup contenders make moves before deadline

At 18:00 CET Tuesday, just as the first game in Round 14 of the BKT EuroCup between Wolves Vilnius and Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana is scheduled to tip-off, rosters for the 20 teams in the EuroCup will lock and there will be no more players signings or transfers for the remainder of the season. Knowing that, several EuroCup contenders made sure to strengthen their teams prior to the deadline, including four of the top five clubs in Group A.

All told, five teams signed players in the week before the deadline and two more teams made moves in December and registered the players now to debut in Round 14. The busiest team was Umana Reyer Venice, which added two players. 

The last flurry of signings saw two former EuroLeague players arrive with [Reyer bringing in sharpshooter Max Heidegger](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/reyer-venezia-adds-scoring-punch-with-max-heidegger/) and [Joventut Badalona signing playmaker Shannon Evans](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/joventut-badalona-signs-playmaker-shannon-evans/). The week before, Reyer announced [the signing of big man Mfiondu Kabengele](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/reyer-bolsters-frontcourt-with-kabengele). 

On Sunday [the London Lions landed David Nwaba](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/london-lions-wrap-up-david-nwaba-signing/) . The aforementioned players, as well as [new Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul addition Marko Simonovic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/marko-simonovic-heads-to-besiktas-basketbol-on-loan/), are all EuroCup newcomers, though like Heidegger and Evans, Simonovic also has EuroLeague experience. 

[Slask Wroclaw’s latest signing, Marek Klassen](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/slask-wroclaw-completes-move-for-marek-klassen/), returns to the EuroCup after a limited run last season with Prometey Slobozhanske. 

One move that came in mid-December, but has yet to see the player suit up for his new team, is [Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv’s signing of former All-EuroCup guard Will Cummings](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/hapoel-signs-star-combo-guard-will-cummings/). Cummings looks set to debut on Tuesday against London and Nwaba in a key Group A showdown. 

The teams ranked second through fifth in Group A – in order Hapoel, London, Joventut and Besiktas – all added weapons who could make plenty of noise here down the stretch in the regular season. 

In Group B, second-placed and reigning champion [Dreamland Gran Canaria welcomes aboard 25-year-old swingman Amar Gegic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/gran-canaria-shores-up-with-swingman-gegic/), who reached the quarterfinals last season with Paris Basketball. 

All of these key additions are sure to help turn up the temperature in the EuroCup over the next few months!

Hapoel Tel Aviv B.C. and the London Lions go head-to-head in Round 14 of the 2023-24 EuroCup campaign, with both teams playing at a record-best level this season.

Hapoel Tel Aviv hosts London Lions in a crucial game in Group A

With the battle heating up to secure one of the top two spots in Group A, which guarantee direct access to the BKT EuroCup Quarterfinals, [Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv (11-2) welcomes the London Lions (9-4)](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/hapoel-shlomo-tel-aviv-london-lions/U2023/132/) to Aleksander Nikolic Hall in Belgrade on Tuesday at 18:30 CET.

### The story so far

With a victory, Hapoel would have a three-game gap over London, as well as a 2-0 record in the series. Back in Round 5, both teams met in the English capital and [Hapoel edged London 90-98](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/london-lions-hapoel-shlomo-tel-aviv/U2023/42/). It was not a close game, despite how the final scoreline looks, as Hapoel led 59-77 at the end of the third quarter and only allowed London to get closer once the outcome was clear. [Xavier Munford](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/xavier-munford/007759/) and [Tomer Ginat](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/tomer-ginat/010550/) led the winners that night with 24 points apiece, while [Matt Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/matthew-morgan/012585/) had a team-high 22 points for London.

London Lions-Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv | Round 5 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup

London's first-ever EuroCup game was [a 76-59 road loss against Hapoel](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2022-23/hapoel-vegan-friendly-tel-aviv-london-lions/U2022/7/), but an injury suffered by star player [Sam Dekker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/sam-dekker/009672/) early on prevented what should have been a thrilling contest. That game saw [J'Covan Brown](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/j-covan-brown/011991/) pace Hapoel with 19 points and 6 assists. 

Hapoel is undefeated against London, as it also registered [a 93-95 come-from-behind victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2022-23/london-lions-hapoel-vegan-friendly-tel-aviv/U2022/97/) at OVO Arena, the Lions’ temporary home for the night. Over 1,500 traveling fans helped Hapoel win that game, as they gathered in London hours before the game and then all went to the arena together, leading to an unbelievable atmosphere. 

Now, London has a chance to get its first-ever victory against Hapoel and improve its chances of finishing first or second in the standings. 

### London: Better and stronger 

On Sunday, [London signed shooting guard David Nwaba](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/london-lions-wrap-up-david-nwaba-signing/) for the remainder of the season. He had a solid NBA career, averaging 6.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 237 games with several teams. One of those sides was the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he joined forces with London star forward Dekker for a while in the 2018-19 season. 

Speaking of Dekker, he did not play against Hapoel in Round 5 this year and is expected to be out in Round 14 after suffering an ankle injury against Paris Basketball. After having a career-best night against in his only full game against Hapoel in the 2022-23 campaign, scoring 29 points and recording a 32 PIR, his absence is a big blow as Petar Bozic’s squad looks to finally get a win on the board against Danny Franco’s charges.

In his only full game against Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv last season, London Lions star forward Sam Dekker had EuroCup career-highs of 29 points and a PIR of 32. He added 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks, playing all 40 minutes.

Dekker's career night vs Hapoel

London already has more wins than it achieved last year with five games left in the regular season. In the 2022-23 campaign, London had an 8-10 regular-season record before losing against Joventut Badalona in the eighthfinals. 

Center [Gabe Olaseni](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/gabe-olaseni/006600/) has arguably been one of the main reasons behind London’s improvement. He currently ranks second in PIR average (22.6), fourth in scoring (17.7 ppg.) and sixth in rebounds (8.1 rpg.), having played and started in all 13 of the Lions’ games this term. 

Olaseni’s matchup against [Kyle Alexander](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/kyle-alexander/011973/) is likely be one of the biggest keys to this game. Alexander has boosted his numbers to 18.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and a PIR of 26.0 in the last two games, and he had a higher PIR (21-16) and more rebounds (13-7) than Olaseni their last matchup in Round 5. 

### Hapoel: At a record-breaking pace

Simply put, Hapoel may arguably be playing some of the best basketball ever seen in the EuroCup – and it has the numbers to back up this statement. 

Hapoel is dishing 23.6 assists per night, which would be an all-time record. The highest assists average in a EuroCup season belongs to Virtus Segafredo Bologna at 23.4 per night in the 2020-21 season. 

Hapoel ranks second in scoring (96.7 ppg.), only behind Paris (99.1 ppg.). Both of them are on track for the all-time record, held by Avtodor Saratov (92.4 ppg.) since the end of the 2015-16 season. 

Hapoel could also shatter the PIR average record, which has belonged to Joventut Badalona since the 2007-08 season. Joventut won the 2007-08 EuroCup, losing just one game and averaging a PIR of 108.5. Right now, Hapoel leads the standings with a PIR of 118.0. 

London is also ahead of the all-time record with a PIR average of 109.9. In that sense, we are about to see an unprecedented showdown between two of the best teams ever in the competition, statistically speaking. It is also a crucial one, so tune in at 18:30 CET on Tuesday for a big showdown at the historic Aleksandar Nikolic Hall.

Two of the EuroCup’s strongest teams go head-to-head in Belgrade.