Tyler Ennis is thriving in a big role for Reyer Venezia, which has three Canadians among its key players during the 2024-25 season.

Tyler Ennis enjoying playing with fellow Canadian and 'best GM in Europe' Wiltjer 

[Umana Reyer Venice](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/umana-reyer-venice/vnc/) kind of feels like Team Canada among the BKT EuroCup teams thanks to a trio of international stars from the North American country. And [Tyler Ennis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/tyler-ennis/008858/) is definitely enjoying playing alongside his compatriots [Mfiondu Kabengele](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/mfiondu-kabengele/012796/) and [Kyle Wiltjer](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/kyle-wiltjer/008052/) – the latter being one of his closest friends in the game. 

Ennis is spending his second season in the EuroCup after playing four games during the 2021-22 season with Turk Telekom Ankara, a campaign during which he was coming back from a major injury and eventually left the team. Wiltjer was playing with Ennis in the Turkish capital as well during the 2020-21 campaign. 

Ennis actually called that 2020-21 season his favorite memory with Wiltjer, who is two years older than him. 

“It was during COVID and that team spent a lot of time together off the court. We all just wanted to win and were willing to sacrifice individual stats. Again, we had amazing chemistry and trust with each other and with that team. If I don’t get injured, I think we win one or two trophies that year,” says Ennis, who tore his Achilles in November 2020 and missed the remainder of the season with the Turkish team. 

“We just have a chemistry. We are close friends off the court, which also helps. We hold each other accountable, which is necessary. Scoring is easy for him and I sometimes just have to get him the ball in his spots. But we think in the same way and have had success in the pick and roll because there isn’t much teams can do to stop it. He makes my job easier. He trusts I’m going to get him open shots,” Ennis says about playing with Wiltjer.

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overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DENrmbbsmoS/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Tyler Ennis (@1tylerennis)</a></p></div></blockquote>
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The two also played in the NBA together, spending the 2016-17 season united on the court with the Houston Rockets. That made Ennis’s decision to come to Venice that much easier.

“It always helps joining a team with someone you are close friends with. He never put pressure on me.”

Ennis joked that Wiltjer is nicknamed the “best GM in Europe”.

“He was behind getting myself, Sam Dekker, Nick Johnson on Turk Telekom with him a few years ago,” Ennis says. “Kyle is such a talented player and we have always had a great chemistry playing together from Houston Rockets to Telekom and now in Venice.” 

This time around, Ennis is playing with a third Canadian in the big man Kabengele.

"This is my first time playing with Mfiondu. We are both from Toronto and I watched his career from college," Ennis notes. "I knew that we would play well together. He’s having a monster season and showing how good he is. I think after this year, he deserves to get a chance to show he belongs back in the NBA."

The best plays of Umana Reyer Venice guard Tyler Ennis through the first 14 rounds of the 2024-25 BKT EuroCup season.

Tyler Ennis's best plays so far this season

Reyer is Ennis’s second club in Italy after playing parts of five seasons in Turkiye for Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, Turk Telekom and Tofas. Last season, he helped Napoli win the Italian Cup in his first season in Italy. 

“Naples was amazing – one of my favorite stops of my European career," he said. "We had a great group of players that loved playing and being around each other. For me, I wanted something new after being in Turkiye. I enjoyed Turkiye, but I wanted a different market and Italy checked the boxes."

After the Italian season was over, Ennis decided against returning home and joined Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv in mid-May for the final stretch of the Israeli regular season and playoffs.

“I didn’t know what to expect. At first, I didn’t want to go. My wife and I just had a baby in April and I was ready to get home. But again, a gut feeling told me it was something that I should do, like signing with Naples," Ennis remembers. 

"Everything about that move was eye-opening. The coach, the fans, the organization, the city and players were all top of the line. I joined the team to win the championship and we were one game from achieving that goal. I really wanted to give that club a championship and we were close. I had an amazing time in Tel Aviv and loved my time with the club.”

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overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C8dKABWsb8-/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Tyler Ennis (@1tylerennis)</a></p></div></blockquote>
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Now the goal is for big things with Reyer, and the team is playing extremely well with six wins in the last seven games for an 8-6 record and a solid chance for a top-two spot in Group B. Included in the recent run was [an 81-74 home victory over Valencia Basket](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/reyer-kept-victories-coming-even-against-11-win-valencia/) in Round 13. 

“It was a good test. We approach every game the same since we had a lot of ground to make up after how the season started. The first round wasn’t pretty playing them and we wanted to continue building and stacking wins. They have a really good team,” says Ennis, who picked up 12 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists in the win over Valencia. 

Ennis knows the team is playing well, but they are still missing two pieces. 

When asked what the team needs to be successful, he said: “Health is important. We still aren’t 100% and hope to get [Xavier Munford](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/xavier-munford/007759/) and [Rodney McGruder](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/rodney-mcgruder/012800/) back. We know what works for us and how we have to play. It’s up to us to keep playing for each other like we have all season. With a healthy team the sky is the limit.”

All thanks to the EuroCup version of Team Canada. 

More Reyer News

The Reyer point guard is having a strong season back in the EuroCup and playing with two compatriots

Look back at all the action in Round 14 of the 2024-25 BKT EuroCup season by checking out the best photos of the week! 

Top 10 photos from Round 14

Look back at all the action from Round 14 of the 2024-25 BKT EuroCup season by checking out the best photos of the week! 

There are no more winless teams in the EuroCup after Trefl Sopot went on the road and ran past BC Wolves 74-97 on Wednesday night.

Trefl played a spoiler role in style: ’Can’t wait for another game’

There are no more winless teams in the BKT EuroCup after [Trefl Sopot](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/trefl-sopot/tso/) went on the road and [ran past Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius 74-97](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/winless-no-more-trefl-shock-wolves-74-97/) on Wednesday night.

“Finally! It took us 14 games," said team captain [Jaroslaw Zyskowski](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jaroslaw-zyskowski/013295/), who paced the team with 20 points, shooting 4 of 5 from three-point land, and also had 9 rebounds and 3 assists.

“Guys were passing the ball, I was open, I just knocked down the shots. That’s what I do. I am just happy I was making the shots."

The outcome came as a shock to most. After all, a team with 13 losses in as many games went on the road to down the Wolves, who are fighting for every win in the middle of a tight playoff race in Group A. But it was Trefl, a team seemingly with nothing to play for, coming out as a 23-point winner.

“We deserved it,” Trefl head coach [Zan Tabak](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/trefl-sopot/tso/tabak-zan/) stated. “In so many games this season, we gave our maximum. In so many games, we got really close and we didn’t get it.”

But on this night, they did. And how so.

The key was the third quarter, one which started with a close-range basket from Wolves big man [Marek Blazevic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/marek-blazevic/008186/). But then Trefl did not allow another field goal the rest of the quarter, and for more than 10 minutes in total. A 1-16 run opened a 17-point lead, which grew to 20 points in the fourth quarter as Trefl cruised to its first win of the season.

If you ask Zyskowski, or anyone else on Trefl, it was a long time coming.

“In the first games of the season we were so close to winning, but unfortunately we were always losing in some crucial moments,” Zyskowski said.

“So, it feels great. I think we played the best game in this competition, offensively and defensively. I am very proud of my team.”

“I believe we got better offensively, more relaxed. We played without pressure,” Tabak explained.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 😤<a href="https://twitter.com/EuroCup?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EuroCup</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/kkzoltoczarni?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kkzoltoczarni</a> 💛🖤<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoadToGreatness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoadToGreatness</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/plkpl?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#plkpl</a> <a href="https://t.co/68V5pmVkfi">pic.twitter.com/68V5pmVkfi</a></p>&mdash; MISTRZ POLSKI 2024 🏆 (@treflsopot) <a href="https://twitter.com/treflsopot/status/1877078329724948502?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

That should trigger alarm bells for future Trel’s opponents. Next up is [Bahcesehir College Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/bahcesehir-college-istanbul/bah/), a side fighting for first place in Group A and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

After that, it is [Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/besiktas-fibabanka-istanbul/bes/), [Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/hapoel-shlomo-tel-aviv/hta/) and [Dreamland Gran Canaria](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/dreamland-gran-canaria/can/), all teams in the fight for playoff places, as well as aiming to secure the best possible position in the standings.

It all makes already eliminated Trefl in a position to play the perfect role of spoiler, something the team already did on Wednesday night and plans to do again in coming weeks.

“We all are gonna believe we can actually win at this level,” Zyskowski said. “I can’t wait for another game.”

Game News

After losing its first 13 games of the season, the Polish side finally tasted victory in Round 14

Trefl played spoiler role in style: ’Can’t wait for another game’

Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius v Trefl Sopot (2025-01-08T17:00:00.000Z)

Turk Telekom Ankara basketbol has announced the signing of Kay Bruhnke 

Turk Telekom adds Kay Bruhnke to frontcourt

Turk Telekom Ankara announced the signing of [Kay Bruhnke](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/-/008259/) on Thursday. Bruhnke (2.01 meters, 23 years old) has spent the past season and a half playing in Lithuania for M Basket-Delamode Mazeikiai. He averaged 18.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 12 games this season and led the league in PIR with 20.7 per game.  

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">✍️ Kay Bruhnke, artık <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AnkaraBasketbolu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AnkaraBasketbolu</a>&#39;nun bir parçası! 💙🤍<br><br>Welcome to family Kay Bruhnke 👏 <a href="https://t.co/OXKdGxDWjS">pic.twitter.com/OXKdGxDWjS</a></p>&mdash; Türk Telekom Basketbol (@TT_Basketbol) <a href="https://twitter.com/TT_Basketbol/status/1877332149356863505?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Bruhnke is a product of the BBC Bayreuth youth setup and he later played professionally for that club as well as Brose Bamberg. He has also been a member of the German youth national teams. Bruhnke will now make his EuroCup debut with Turk Telekom.

More Turk Telekom news 

The power forward was leading the Lithuanian League in PIR this season

A huge performance in a winning effort allowed Jaleen Smith of Bahcesehir College Istanbul to earn Round 14 MVP honors with a PIR of 32. Smith led Bahcesehir to a 95-93 overtime home win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica.

Round 14 MVP: Jaleen Smith, Bahcesehir College Istanbul

A huge performance in a winning effort allowed [Jaleen Smith](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jaleen-smith/011192/) of [Bahcesehir College Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/bahcesehir-college-istanbul/bah/) to earn Round 14 MVP honors with a PIR of 32. Smith led Bahcesehir to a 95-93 overtime home win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica.

He finished the game with 19 points on 3-of-6 two-pointers, 2-of-4 three-pointers and 7-of-7 free throws, plus 3 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and 8 fouls drawn, for a career-high PIR of 32, the highest in Round 14. Smith earned EuroCup MVP of the Round honors for the first time and is the second Bahcesehir player to do so; Axel Bouteille was Round 5's co-MVP along with Marko Pecarski of 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys.

Bouteille had the second-highest PIR of the round with 28 against Buducnost. He had 23 points on 5-of-6 three-point shooting and 4-of-5 free throws, 9 rebounds and 4 fouls drawn. [Jared Harper](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jared-harper/011970/) of Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem, [Jaroslaw Zyskowski](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jaroslaw-zyskowski/013295/) of Trefl Sopot and [Bruno Caboclo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/bruno-caboclo/012096/) of Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv, each of whom had a PIR of 26, complete the top individual performances in Round 14.

Harper had 21 points on 10-of-10 free-throw shooting, 6 rebounds and 7 assists in his team's 79-91 road victory over U-BT Cluj-Napoca. Zyskowski led Trefl to its first win, 74-97 over Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius, with 20 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists. Caboclo put his fingerprints all over Hapoel’s 89-68 win against Dolomiti Energia Trento, netting 19 points – shooting 5 of 5 on two-pointers and 3 for 4 from deep – and grabbing 9 rebounds in 22 minutes on the floor. He also had 2 steals, 1 block and drew 2 fouls.

### Individual highs: Yoan Makoundou, Turk Telekom, 4 blocks

[DJ Seeley](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/dennis-seeley/004862/) of Cluj led all players in scoring in Round 14 with 27 points. Jerusalem’s [Jared Harper](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jared-harper/011970/) leads the EuroCup in this category with 23.2 points per game.

[Mike Tobey](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/mike-tobey/008966/) of Dreamland Gran Canaria and [Tai Odiase](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/tai-odiase/011823/) of Bahcesehir each grabbed a round-high 10 rebounds. Umana Reyer Venice’s [Mfiondu Kabengele](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/mfiondu-kabengele/012796/) tops the rebounding charts with 9.5 boards per night.

[Sergio de Larrea](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/sergio-de-larrea/010750/) of Valencia Basket and Bahcesehir’s [Jaleen Smith](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jaleen-smith/011192/), this round’s MVP, each dished 9 assists, the most in Round 14. Cluj playmaker [Zavier Simpson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/zavier-simpson/013302/) is the EuroCup’s leading assist provider with 7.0 dimes per contest.

Ten different players recorded a round-high 3 steals. Valencia’s [Jean Montero](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/jean-montero/010042/) and Gran Canaria’s [Andrew Albicy](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/andrew-albicy/003425/) sit together atop the steals charts this season with 2.0 per game.

Turk Telekom Ankara’s [Yoan Makoundou](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/yoan-makoundou/011935/) had a career-best 4 blocks in this round, the most of any player. Makoundou’s teammate, [Kyle Alexander](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/kyle-alexander/011973/), is atop the season leaderboard in blocks with 2.1 per night.

Mike Tobey (10 points, 10 rebounds) and Tai Odiase (16 points, 10 rebounds) were the only two players to record double-doubles in Round 14.

The guard recorded his first such honor after helping his team to an overtime win


Congratulations to Iraklis Christou, our 14th winner in the 2024-25 EuroCup Fantasy Challenge! Israklis's team, 'μελισσες', posted a score of 197.30.

EuroCup Fantasy Challenge: Round 14 winner

Congratulations to Iraklis Christou, our 14th winner in the 2024-25 [EuroCup Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/)! Israklis's team, 'μελισσες', posted a score of 197.30.

Iraklis had the following starting lineup: Jared Harper of Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem as team captain, then Zavier Simpson of U-BT Cluj-Napoca, Anthony Cowan of Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius, and Bahcesehir College Istanbul duo Axel Bouteille and Tai Odiase. Sergio de Larrea of Valencia Basket was the sixth man.

The head coach of Iraklis's team was Jerusalem play-caller Yonathan Alon, while the four bench players were Kur Kuath of Veolia Towers Hamburg, Grantas Vasiliauskas of 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys, Ali Yuceoral of Bahcesehir, and Giga Janelidze of Umana Reyer Venice.

The prize for finishing first in Round 14 is a free subscription to Euroleague TV for the 2025-26 season, so congratulations, Iraklis!

The leader in the overall standings remains Milos Mihajlovic and his squad, 'BallIsLife', which has a total of 2,411.80 points after the first 14 rounds. Trades are now open for Round 15. Remember, four trades are allowed before each round until the end of the regular season.

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!

Umana Reyer Venice exhibited the veteran leadership it possesses by fending off a valiant comeback attempt by Veolia Towers Hamburg to keep its sights set on a top-two finish

Reyer 'stayed with it' to fight off Hamburg rally 

[Umana Reyer Venice](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/teams/umana-reyer-venice/roster/vnc/?season=2024-25) exhibited the veteran leadership it possesses by fending off a valiant comeback attempt by [Veolia Towers Hamburg](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/veolia-hamburg-towers/roster/ham/?season=2024-25) to keep its sights set on a top-two finish. 

Reyer watched a 25-point cushion get trimmed down to 9 points in the fourth quarter but finished the deal for [a 77-90 road victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/reyer-downs-feisty-hamburg-77-90-to-remain-in-top-form/) to improve to 8-6. Reyer’s sixth victory in the last seven games has the team just one victory behind second-placed team [Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/hapoel-jerusalem/roster/jer/?season=2024-25) at 9-5. 

“We’ve been stepping up our defense. We have guys healthy now. Offensively we are moving the ball and we’re starting to play with the team that we signed up to play,” said [Kyle Wiltjer](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/kyle-wiltjer/008052/), who scored 16 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in the victory. “We’re excited. We have a good rhythm and we hope to continue this success moving into the new year.”

Game Videos

Wiltjer was not concerned about the team giving up so much of the big advantage. 

“We just tried to stay with it. It’s tough to play with the lead. We kind of got complacent for a couple minutes. But we stayed with it, we made it tough for them. We got some steals and did enough to get the victory,” he said. 

Reyer did a good job shooting the ball from the outside, hitting 11 of 28 three-point attempts. That 39.3% percent is 7.1% better than the team’s percentage coming into the game - which was ranked 14th in the competition. But Reyer was also facing the second-worst team in defending the long ball as Hamburg’s opponents shot 38.5% on three-pointers. 

Reyer coach Neven Spahija was not pleased that Hamburg made things interesting, but he was not surprised.

“At halftime, I said to my team that Hamburg would not give up. They are so competitive. They are physical and they scored 29 points in the third quarter which is not acceptable for us,” the coach said. “But we controlled the game for three quarters and found a way to bring it to the end.”

Reyer showed class by not letting Hamburg finish comeback 

Veolia Towers Hamburg v Umana Reyer Venice (2025-01-08T18:30:00.000Z)

Joventut Badalona did not find much trouble to beat Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul 93-70 and go up to 5-9 in the standings. 


Joventut's quiet day in the office 

[Joventut Badalona](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/joventut-badalona/roster/jov/?season=2024-25) did not find much trouble in securing [a 93-70 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/joventut-thrashes-besiktas-93-70/) over [Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/besiktas-istanbul/roster/bes/?season=2024-25) and improving to 5-9 in the standings. 

It was a key game for Joventut in its goal to reach the playoffs, as it needed to win and to get the potential head-to-head tie-break advantage, as [it lost 82-76](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/ec2425-rs5-report-bes-jov/) against Besiktas in Istanbul. For a change, Joventut fans had a chance to enjoy a quiet night, as their team dominated from start to finish, never trailing at any point.

[Yannick Kraag](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/yannick-kraag/010161/) was the first to score, igniting a 12-1 game-opening run that [Adam Hanga](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/adam-hanga/005099/) capped with back-to-back three-pointers. Joventut was far from being done, playing one of its best first halves of the season despite being without star forward [Sam Dekker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/sam-dekker/009672/). It led 22-11 after 10 minutes and extended its margin to 49-27 at halftime.

Joventut Badalona beat Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul 93-70, using a 12-1 opening run to get the lead and never look back.

Joventut's 12-1 opening run

Stats left no doubt about Joventut's dominance before the break. The hosts made 12 of 19 two-pointers (63.2% 2FG) and 7 of 13 three-pointers (53.8% 3FG), getting 12 assists with only 6 turnovers. On the other hand, Besiktas struggled to score from all angles (28.6% 2FG, 33.3% 3FG), tallying more turnovers (9) than assists (7). Five Joventut players scored at least 6 points before halftime, with [Devon Dotson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/devon-durrell-dotson/013285/) (11) and [Kassius Roberson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/kassius-robertson/012740/) (10) already in double digits.

Joventut managed to keep a double-digit lead all the way in the second half. All 11 players who stepped on court scored, including [Ian Platteeuw](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/ian-platteeuw/012226/), who received a warm ovation in his first EuroCup home game of the season. Joventut finished the game with a season-high team PIR of 120. Its previous record was 116 in [a 92-89 home victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/news/joventut-survives-trefl-rally-wins-92-89/) over Trefl Sopot. [Ante Tomic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/ante-tomic/002507/) needed just 18 minutes to get 5 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists for a PIR of 16.

"We played a great game, surely one of our best games. I am happy because we played with consistency and good basketball for 40 minutes. I think we deserved this victory and also won the tie-breaker, which was very important for us," Joventut head coach [Dani Miret](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/joventut-badalona/jov/miret-daniel/?season=U2024) said. 

"We still have \[playoff\] chances if we stay at a good level and win all of our games. We have to focus on what we can control, which is playing at this level. If we do that and keep winning games, we will have a chance."

The hosts never trailed in recording a comfortable home win

Joventut had a quiet day at the office against Besiktas

Joventut Badalona v Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul (2025-01-08T18:30:00.000Z)

Cedevita Olimpija trampled Aris all over

[Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/cedevita-olimpija-ljubljana/roster/lju/?season=2024-25) took a big step toward securing a postseason berth in the BTK EuroCup with a 98-79 whitewash of [Aris Midea Thessaloniki](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/aris-thessaloniki/roster/ari/?season=2024-25), which lifted the Slovenian side to an 8-5 record in [Group B](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/standings/) of the competition.

The hosts thrived from a fast-paced offense which generated a barrage of assists and high percentages, as Cedevita made 26 of 42 shots from inside and 5 of 10 from long range, while forcing 17 turnovers from Aris at the other end.

Aris held its own early on as the visitors sank their first 5 three-pointers but missed 8 of their next 9, allowing Cedevita to pull away by halftime and stay in cruise control in the second half.

Among a pack of players who made an impact, [Brynton Lemar](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/players/brynton-lemar/013261/) stood out with a game high 18 points as he shot 5 of 8 from the floor and 6 of 7 from the foul line. 

“They are a pretty good team but we fought hard and played together,” Lemar said in his postgame comments. “We knew how important this game was so we just wanted to come out and get the win,” he added.

The home team’s head coach [Zvezdan Mitrovic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/cedevita-olimpija-ljubljana/lju/mitrovic-zvezdan?season=U2024) praised his men for a smooth effort.

“The players showed great energy for the full 40 minutes at both ends of the court. It’s a very important win for our bid to reach the playoffs as we controlled the game throughout, except for early in the second half, said Mitrovic. “We were able to pull away by making some shots from deep, while long-range shooting kept Aris in the game early on.

“This was one of our more notable performances of the season and I am really happy for the players. We now face some tough road games and hopefully the physios can keep the team in shape for the upcoming challenges.”

Aris head coach [Ioannis Kastritis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/teams/aris-midea-thessaloniki/ari/kastritis-ioannis?season=U2024) pointed out that his team was undone by a cartload of fouls committed, which made it difficult for the visitors to play stronger defense.

“After the first half, we were in foul trouble so we couldn’t be more aggressive,” he said. “Cedevita was very physical and congratulations to them for the victory. We tried to do a better job but Cedevita is a really good team and very well coached.”

In [Round 15](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/game-center/?round=15&season=U2024), Cedevita [visits Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/game-center/2024-25/hapoel-bank-yahav-jerusalem-cedevita-olimpija-ljubljana/U2024/146/) while Aris, which slipped to 3-11 in what has so far been a poor season for the Greek outfit, is [at home to Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/eurocup/game-center/2024-25/aris-midea-thessaloniki-cosea-jl-bourg-en-bresse/U2024/147/).

The home side was head and shoulders above its Greek rival at both ends of the court

Cedevita Olimpija trampled all over Aris 

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana v Aris Midea Thessaloniki (2025-01-08T17:45:00.000Z)