Gian Clavell showed a glimpse of what could come for Prometey

For Prometey Slobozhanske, Wednesday's victory over the winless Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana was not easy. It was entertaining and fun to watch, but far from easy as the team pulled out a 105-100 triumph in a shootout.

And event though Coach Ronen Ginzburg said he was only satisfied with the victory, there are couple of positives from the game that lifted Prometey's record to 7-6 and solidified its position in the playoff race while keeping the team one win behind the spot that carries home-court advantage in the eighthfinals.

One positive, surely is the fact that Prometey avoided a loss against a team with nothing to lose. Cedevita not only is winless, and now mathematically eliminated from the playoff race, but also had only seven players in its rotation. But its record is somewhat misleading, and those players, led by Justin Cobbs and Jaka Blazic, who combined for 49 points, can hurt any opponent.

Prometey also managed to bounce back after a heartbreaking 89-88 loss at London Lions last week. But this team keeps refusing to use excuses and now, with five wins in its last seven games, has all but secured a playoff spot.

In a win over Cedevita Olimpija, Gian Clavell was tied for team high with 17 points, shooting 3-of-7 from long range, and also had 6 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals. Prometey was +13 with him on the floor.

Clavell had 17 points, 6 assists vs. Cedevita

Another big plus from last night's game for Prometey was the performance of Gian Clavell. He tied for the team high with 17 points, shooting 3-of-7 from long range, and also had 6 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals. Prometey was +13 with him on the floor. It could be just a glimpse of what's to come.

Last year, Clavell was one of Prometey's driving forces. He played an average of 29 minutes per game and was worth 15.2 points and 2.5 assists as Prometey went all the way to the EuroCup Semifinals in its premier season in the EuroCup.

Clavell started the season injured and missed the first nine rounds. However, once he did return, he needed time to get into a rhythm. He scored 10 points in his season debut against Veolia towers Hamburg, but then was scoreless in just 3 minutes on the floor against Besiktas and went for 3 points in 19 minutes against the London Lions.

"It took him time, but I am happy he played good", said Prometey head coach Ronen Ginzburg.

This performance might be just what the doctor ordered for Prometey. With DJ Kennedy now registered and also nearing his return from an injury, and Clavell hinting he is on the way to play like his former self, do not be surprised if Prometey re-captures last season's magic in the weeks to come.

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In Wednesday's win, the guard showed glimpses of the performances he made regularly for the club last season.

Prometey Slobozhanske v Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (2023-12-27T17:00:00.000Z)

Congratulations to Srecko Kozic, the Round 13 winner in [EuroCup Fantasy Challenge](https://eurocupfantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/home)! Srecko's team KiLLer_ns2 posted a score of 239.05.

The team featured the following lineup: team captain Tyrone Wallace of Turk Telekom Ankara, Karlo Matkovic of Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, his teammate Justin Cobbs, Yannick Kraag of Joventut Badalona and Deividas Sirvydis as starters; Vassilis Toliopoulos of Aris Midea Thessaloniki as sixth man; Okben Ulubay of Turk Telekom, Karim Jallow of ratiopharm Ulm, Conor Morgan of the London Lions and Kevin Kokila of Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse as bench players; and Ioannis Kastritis of Aris as head coach.

The prize for finishing first in Round 13 is a free subscription to Euroleague TV for the 2024-25 season!

The overall leader after 13 rounds is Uros Kostic, whose GargamelFalkao team is ahead of everyone with 2,386.80 fantasy points.

Trades are now open for Round 14. Remember, three trades are allowed before each round until the end of the regular season, and you can also trade your head coach.

Make new teams now or improve your existing ones and try to become EuroCup Fantasy Challenge's next winner!

EuroCup Fantasy Challenge offers weekly prizes to the top team manager, so get in the game and go for the gold!

EuroCup Fantasy Challenge: Round 13 winner

Dezmine Wells scored 16 points in his EuroCup debut to lead Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv to a 118-101 victory over Hamburg Towers in Round 13 of the EuroCup.

Hapoel’s Dez Wells made an impact in his debut

Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv’s new signing [Dez Wells](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/dezmine-wells/012794/) had a fine debut with the club. He came into the game off the bench early and produced 16 points, 3 assists and 2 steals for a PIR of 20 in 25 minutes as his team defeated Veolia Towers Hamburg 118-101 at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in Belgrade.

Listen to what head coach Danny Franco said of Wells and his performance comes across as even more impressive: “I am happy that we brought Dez in. He just landed last night. He helped us out a lot.”

Indeed, Wells was still getting to know the names of some of the players he was sharing the court with, but with Hapoel missing several key players, he stepped up. Braian Angola, J’Covan Brown, Tomer Ginat and Jaylen Hoard – four of the team’s top five scorers – missed the game due to injuries, which meant whatever help Wells could provide would be appreciated. And Wells proved to be up to the task.

Dez Wells had a fine debut for Hapoel

He scored 4 points in 4:19 off the bench in the first quarter as Hapoel exploded for 35 points. Wells contributed 2 free throws and 2 assists in the second quarter as his team went for 30 more points to set a club record for points in a half with 65.

Wells was on the bench for much of Hamburg's comeback in the third quarter, in which the German side came from 13 down at halftime to get within 84-83. He then made his first 2 three-pointers for Hapoel in the fourth quarter as the team regained control of the game for good.

“I’m not sure we would have won this game without him,” Coach Franco said in the press conference.

The 31-year-old swingman, who played in Italy and Greece earlier in his career, but spent the past four seasons in China, was one of many stars for Hapoel on the night. Guards Bar Timor and Gil Beni and center Idan Zalmanson all set career highs in scoring with 21, 14 and 14 points, respectively, and in PIR with 25, 20 and 25, respectively.

“Like you expect from a team, the guys are filling in. There is no vacuum. The guys like to play together. They are making each other better. They are playing for each other,” Franco said.

And they were glad to have Wells as part of it on Wednesday.

The newcomer contributed 16 points in 25 minutes in his first EuroCup appearance.

Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv v Veolia Towers Hamburg (2023-12-27T17:30:00.000Z)

Patrick Richard and Bryce Jones combined for 20 points in the last period to help U-BT Cluj-Napoca erase an 11-point deficit and wrest the win away from KK Buducnost Podgorica.

Cluj’s backcourt made the difference in Podgorica

Only a few would have bet on a win by U-BT Cluj-Napoca at the halftime of the road game it played against Buducnost VOLI Podgorica on Wednesday night. The visitors trailed by 14 points at that moment, having displayed an erratic offense from which it only got 31 points, while also committing 12 turnovers.

The scenario wasn’t much better entering the last period, as Buducnost had resisted without big effort a timid comeback attempt in the third period and ruled 65-55 with 7 minutes remaining. But all of a sudden, Cluj reacted in a tremendous way.

The visitors gave the keys to their perimeter players and all of them responded in style. A 2-12 run fueled by Karel Guzman, Dennis Seeley, Bryce Jones and, especially, Patrick Richard, made it a brand new game, 67-67, in just 4 minutes.

Even though Buducnost tried to hold on, it was too late against a full-of-confidence Cluj, which managed to take its first lead of the night through Jones, 69-71, entering crunch time, and sealed the victory from the line from the hands of Richard, who stayed cold-blooded in the last minute to confirm the comeback.

“It’s a game in which my team, my players showed a lot of character and that’s why we won this game”, Mihai Silvasan, Cluj head coach explained. “After being minus 14 at half, after turning the ball over 12 times \[in the first half\], we didn’t give up and we fought, possession by possession to win this game. That’s how the character of this team should be. We showed it \[tonight\] and we showed it in almost all games this season in the EuroCup.”

After scoring just 31 points in the first 20 minutes, Cluj netted 29 in the last 10, which turned the tables when nobody expected it. In that final quarter, Cluj’s backcourt players had a key role combining for 25 points, 14 of which came from Richard, who finished as the game's top scorer with 16.

“It was difficult, but we showed the heart, we got the character we have as a team, we stayed with it, we stayed together, that’s all it is”, he celebrated after the game. “We Just stayed with it and kept fighting, kept fighting We found a way to pull it out in the end. This team, we have shown a lot of resilience all season, and we showed it tonight in a tough place to play.”

Patrick Richard and Bryce Jones combined for 20 points in the last period to help Cluj erase an 11-point deficit and wrest the win away from Buducnost.

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica v U-BT Cluj-Napoca (2023-12-27T18:00:00.000Z)

Trento's defense, timely plays, took care of Lietkabelis

Dolomiti Energia Trento finished the calendar year in style. After shocking Dreamland Gran Canaria a week ago, Trento doubled-down with a big 76-70 win over 7bet-Lietkabelis Paneveyzs, its direct rival in the playoff race.

Trento held the visitors, a dangerous shooting team, to just 7-of-25 (28.0%) from long range. Gediminas Orelik was just 2-of-8 and Paulius Valinskas 0-of-3. In the first half, Trento allowed just 27 points.

"Our defense made the difference", stated Trento's Lithuanian forward Andrejs Grazulis, who paced the winning team with 18 points and 7 rebounds.

Grazulis also pointed out: "We still struggled on defensive rebounds, but the defense made up for some mistakes."

The rebounding struggles Grazulis stressed were the 15 offensive rebounds Lietkabelis pulled down to just 5 for Trento.

However, in the fourth quarter, it was Trento that benefited from action on the offensive glass, as it allowed just 1 offensive rebound, while grabbing 3 key offensive boards in the final 3 minutes of the game.

First, Graziulis picked up a miss from Quinn Ellis, and scored a layup that made it 68-61. Then, with 65 seconds left, Kamar Baldwin missed a three-pointer only to get first to the ball before Paul Biligha scored on a second-chance opportunity and extended the lead to 74-63. Finally, Grazulis got another offensive board with 13 seconds left with Trento up 74-67, making sure there would be no drama.

Such timely plays made the difference and allowed Trento to complete a season sweep of Lietkabelis, giving Trento a two-win advantage in the standings.

And with Grazulis consistently posting numbers like in this game, and with Kamar Baldwin flashing serious finishing skills, both from long range and close to the rim, Trento has positioned itself well with five games to go to break its eight-year playoff drought.

Dolomiti Energia Trento v 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys (2023-12-27T19:00:00.000Z)

Prometey and Cedevita flirted with scoring history

Prometey Slobozhanske and Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana put together a highly-entertaining clash that had everything you can ask for from two offenses, but very little defense. Prometey pulled out a 105-100 win over a winless and depleted visitor who had only 7 players in its rotation, but that did not stop Cedevita from producing on offense.

The first half, after which Prometey led 60-55, was especially productive, ending up as the fourth highest-scoring first half in competition history. When all was said and done, there were a dozen players who finished with double figures in points. 

Five of Cedevita's seven players finished with 14 or more points. Jaka Blazic scored 26, Justin Cobbs had 23,  Karlo Matkovic 17 points, Shawn Jones finished with 15 and Gregor Glas with 14.

Prometey, on the other hand, had seven double-digit scorers. Tai Odiase had 17 points, Gian Clavell 17, Oleksandr Lypovyy netted 16 points on 4-of-5 three-point shooting, Ronald March and Issuf Sanon scored 15 apiece while Rob Gray and Caleb Agada each scored 10 points in an important win for Prometey.

Trento holds off Lietkabelis, 76-70

Dolomiti Energia Trento protected its home floor and solidified its position in a tight playoff race by holding off visiting 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys 76-70 on Wednesday night. With the win, Trento not only improved to a 6-7 record and a share of the fifth-best record in Group B, but also gave it a season-sweep of its direct playoff-chasing rival Lietkabelis, which dropped to 5-8.

Trento trailed only in the opening minute and controlled the majority of the game. Its lead was as big as 12 points late in the second quarter, and reached 11 points in the third. Lietkabelis was not going away, but Kamar Baldwin made sure Trento never relinquished its lead before Andrejs Grazulis finished the job. 

Grazulis collected 18 points and 7 rebounds while Davide Alviti netted 14 on 4-for-5 three-point shooting to lead the winners. Baldwin and Paul Biligha added 12 points apiece with Baldwin also dishing 5 assists. Deividas Sirvydis paced the visitors with 21 points and 7 rebounds, Paulius Valinskas scored 11 and Nikola Popovic 10 points in defeat.

Grazulis was front and center for Trento early on, scoring the first 8 points, including a three-pointer from each corner. He also set up Myles Stephens's alley-oop dunk that opened a 12-5 lead, but Lietkabelis replied with a 0-7 run capped by a triple from Sirvydis. Toto Forray hit a three on one end, before Sirvydis and Alviti traded triples, making it 20-17 at the end of the first quarter. 

The scoring slowed down in the second as Luca Conti made a triple to extend the margin to 25-17. Trento held the visitors to a single basket in the first 5 minutes of the quarter, a three-pointer from Liutauras Lelevicius. Trento's defense was not letting down, helping create a 7-0 run that included a transition three from Baldwin and opened a 34-22 margin. Paulius Valinskas snapped the drought with a three-point play and Nikola Popovic battled inside to get Lietkabelis within 35-27 after two quarters.

Lietkabelis halved the deficit after just two possessions, but Trento answered with Biligha scoring twice from close range and Alviti knocking down a three-pointer to cap a 9-1 run and make it 44-33. But Lietkabelis was not going away, scoring 7 unanswered points, including Lelevicius making a corner three in transition. The teams traded blows the rest of the quarter, but Baldwin's 5 points, a mid-range jumper and a triple, helped Trento to a 54-46 lead going into the fourth quarter. 

Sirvydis and Baldwin traded baskets before Valinskas and Gabrielius Maldunas cut the deficit to 56-52. Alviti and Gediminas Orelik exchanged three-pointers and it remained a 4-point margin midway through the fourth quarter. Alviti nailed another triple, his fourth, and Grazulis scored twice inside to open 70-61 lead with 2:06 to go. Trento made another defensive stand, before Baldwin restored a double-digit lead and then pulled down an offensive rebound to ice the game.

Angel Delgado was dominant inside for Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul and led the Turkish side to a comfortable 72-59 victory over Wolves Vilnius on Wednesday. 

Angel Delgado dominated the paint against Wolves

[Angel Delgado](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/angel-delgado/012647/) was dominant inside for Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul and led the Turkish side to a comfortable 72-59 victory over Wolves Vilnius on Wednesday. The Besiktas center bagged a double-double by recording 16 points and matching his career-highs of 14 rebounds and a PIR of 30. Delgado recorded a career high in assists with 6 and his complete stat line included 1 steal and 6 drawn fouls in just 25:58 minutes on the floor.

The 29-year-old made the difference in the first half, finishing the second quarter with 9 points and 9 rebounds. He completed his double-double less than four minutes into the second half when he already had 11 points and as many rebounds. Meanwhile, 2 of his assists in the last quarter produced a couple of highlights, with Kyle Allman pulling off two dunks to get the fans off their seats.

Delgado dominated in the paint against Wolves

“Without my teammates, I would never play like this,” Delgado said after the game. “I want to thank the coaches too for preparing me to have an amazing game.”

Back in October, Wolves grabbed a narrow 90-88 victory, with Tre'Shawn Thurman scoring 31 points, including the winning basket. Delgado admitted that the loss in Lithuania frustrated his team which sought revenge at the Bjk Emlakjet Sports & Event Hall on Wednesday evening.

“I feel good about this win,” Delgado added. “Because of what they did to us in the last game, that’s why we came \[into the game\] really aggressive. We wanted to destroy them. And that’s what we did.”

Besiktas was solid on defense throughout the encounter. The hosts allowed Wolves to score just 1 point in the first 7 minutes of the duel, with the visitors finishing the first quarter with just 9 points. Wolves improved its scoring tally in the second quarter, but netted just 23 points in the first half. Besiktas forced the visitors to 21 turnovers and scored 27 points off these errors to clinch a comfortable victory.

“Everything started and ended today with our defense and our toughness,” head coach Dusan Alimpijevic said after the game. “When we play like this, I’m really not afraid of anyone. I think that my team has a big potential, especially defensively, to play games like this. At the end of the day, I think that this will be the most important thing when important times come. Now we have five tough games in front of us and we’re playing for \[a\] better \[position in the\] standings.”

With Wednesday’s home win, Besiktas improved to an 8-5 record. The next game of the Turkish side will take place at Umana Reyer Venice on January 10, with their last three duels being against strong sides London Lions, Paris Basketball and Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv.

The Besiktas center collected his fifth double-double of the season.

Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul v Wolves Vilnius (2023-12-27T17:00:00.000Z)

Kris Bankston set the early tone for Aris 

Aris Midea Thessaloniki ended 2023 in style by cruising to a comfortable home win over Slask Wroclaw on Wednesday night, 93-71, and the tone was set in the opening minutes by a dominant phase of play from big man [Kris Bankston](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/kris-bankston/012760/). 

Ensuring his team made a fast start, Bankston scored three of Aris’s first five baskets and delivered the assists for the other two, allowing Vassilis Toliopoulos and Roberto Gallinat to sink the first pair of a new club record 17 three-pointers. And that wasn’t all because he completed his stellar start to the action by grabbing 4 offensive rebounds and a steal, giving him a PIR of 11 in just five minutes. 

Kris Bankston set the tone early for Aris

Bankston didn’t continue that level of dominance but continued to be a regular contributor to his team’s easy win, ending with 9 points, a team-high 7 rebounds – including 5 at the offensive end – 3 assists and 2 steals for a PIR of 19, the second-highest of all Aris players behind Vassilis Toliopoulos (25 PIR). 

And that marked a welcome return to form for a player who hasn’t shined in recent weeks, with Bankston – who is enjoying his first season in European basketball after coming through Norfolk State University – failing to reach double digits PIR in the previous five games and recording a minus tally in two of those. 

Aris’s leading scorer on the night was Toliopoulos, who combined 25 points with 6 rebounds and 5 assists, and after the game, he asserted that his team’s strong start – powered by Bankston – was the key to the outcome. “We were very serious from the beginning, offensively and defensively,” he said. “We never let the opponent believe they could win.” 

Indeed, after Aris’s powerful early surge there was never any real doubt about the outcome, which gave the Greek team its third consecutive victory – and second straight with 90+ points on the scoreboard – and keeps it right in the fight to progress from a very tight Group B. 

Aris is one of four teams separated by just one win between fifth and eighth place, and if Bankston maintains his return to form it could prove crucial heading into the decisive final weeks of the regular season. 

It was another strong performance for the EuroCup rookie. 

Aris Midea Thessaloniki v Slask Wroclaw (2023-12-27T18:00:00.000Z)