Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 26 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Pregame quotes hub: Round 26

## Friday, February 7

### AS Monaco vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (19:00 CET)

**Vassilis Spanoulis, AS Monaco head coach**

"The players showed a lot of character against Baskonia. That's bound to come in handy before we play another big game against Partizan. We know they're a team fighting for the playoffs, a very good team coached by a very good coach. Our aim will be to keep up the good momentum we've built up so far."

**Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade head coach**

"They are well known for their individual and team qualities. The difference compared to the first game is that some new players have returned from injuries, while others are now injured. What’s important is that Mike James remains the team’s leader – he has surpassed 5,000 points and is now the all-time leading scorer in EuroLeague history. Besides James, they have quality players in all positions. \[Matthew\] Strazel and \[Nick\] Calathes bring fresh energy to the team and are capable of playing extremely aggressive defense. Additionally, they rotate three big men and have individual players with outstanding physical attributes. Overall, they are an incredible team in terms of their tempo and rebounding game. These are the aspects we need to pay attention to."

**Sterling Brown, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade guard**

"I expect the same outcome as in the last game. We will go out and do our best to win. Mike James is the leader of the team — he gets them going, makes big plays, and hits key shots. Many players rely on his energy, so he will certainly be one of our main focuses."

### Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. Paris Basketball (20:30 CET)

**Dusko Ivanovic, Virtus Segafredo Bologna head coach**

"Paris is a team that is playing really well this season, they are a breath of fresh air in European basketball. It's really a team, every player is having fun and feeling part of the game, playing fast, very good in 'intensity and offensive rebounds, excellent in transitions and with a good coach. We have a very difficult game ahead of us."

**Andrejs Grazulis, Virtus Segafredo Bologna forward**

"Playing a EuroLeague back-to-back is never easy because it's two close games in a short time and you have to be good at resetting right away. Paris is a talented team that is doing well this season, we will have to be solid from the start and for the whole 40', reducing turnovers and mistakes on defense."

### FC Barcelona vs. Olympiacos Piraeus (20:30 CET)

**Joan Penarroya, FC Barcelona head coach**

"Olympiacos is surely the most dominant team, in the best shape, in the current season. It will be a really difficult game, it couldn't be any other way when you face Olympiacos. They are a really solid team with very important players and a really experienced coach, that know each other very well. They are showing in such a competitive EuroLeague season that they are surely the team whose playing level is a bit ahead of everyone else right now. It is a different game against an opponent that know how to play in many different ways and punished any weaknesses you have, no matter what it is, during the game. We have to make sure that our bad moments are short-timed because if not, they will hold on to those moments to break the game. We have to be solid at both ends, knowing they are a talented opponent and at some point they will have good moments and make the most out of that. We will look for a win in a tough game. We play at Palau and that will have us extra strength. We know we have to compete hard in order to win."

**Kevin Punter, FC Barcelona guard**

"It feels good. I have been here for about six months now and it's been really, really well. I like it here a lot. We have good chemistry, so I can't complain. Everything has been great. It's going to be a tough game. Obviously, they are first in the EuroLeague. I know a lot of guys on that team, so it's going to be an interesting game tomorrow, but it's going to be a good one. This is what we signed up for. We will be ready to go and try to get another win."

**Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus head coach**

"In the EuroLeague there is a certain intensity that the games are played. But there are some teams who play with more possessions, like Paris and Barcelona. Both play in high tempo. It’s obvious that Barcelona feels comfortable when the game is high scoring because they have a very talented and quality roster. We must play very well on defense like we did against Paris and stay focused on our game plan."

**Moustapha Fall, Olympiacos Piraeus center**

"We have to play with the same intensity we played against Paris. The tough schedule is not an excuse, all teams are facing difficulties. We have to play even better than we did against Paris in order to get the win."

### Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (20:30 CET)

**John DiBartolomeo, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv guard**

"A lot of it is focusing on ourselves. We want to play a better game than we did \[on Wednesday\], of course, to get our confidence back and some momentum going into a really important game \[on Friday\] and a really important game next week. We need to focus on what we need to improve on, specifically on the defensive end – they have a lot of weapons offensively. We need to slow them down. The big thing for me is we need to play well together, we need to support each other, we need to play hard. Things that we can control that will carry us going forward."

## Thursday, February 6

### Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul vs. Real Madrid (18:30 CET)

**Saras Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul head coach**

"Real Madrid is one of the most experienced teams. After a tough loss at Panathinaikos, we need to concentrate mainly on ourselves to play better basketball, but first of all to share the ball much better that we were not that good in Athens. Madrid presents difficulties with very good guards and \[Walter\] Tavares on the inside."

**Khem Birch, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul center**

"It’s going to be a tough game because both teams are coming from a loss. So we just have to focus. To our fans, come and be loud because we are going to need it tomorrow."

**Chus Mateo, Real Madrid head coach**

"Fenerbahçe is shooting very well from three-point range and playing great on defense, forcing a lot of turnovers, so we have to try to take good shots and try not to lose balls, as well as to stay competitive during the 40 minutes of the game."

**Alberto Abalde, Real Madrid forward**

"It's going to be a very demanding game and we have to think about preparing well for the game against a complicated team, because of the players they have and their form this season. They are a very consistent team, with a lot of rotation, structured on defense and do not let you play what you want, so we have to be solid at the back and play with rhythm, because in static they are a very difficult team to beat."

### Zalgiris Kaunas vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (19:00 CET)

**Ettore Messina, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan head coach**

"Zalgiris is a team capable to express tremendous physicality, with guards who can produce a lot offensively and big men who set screens and take position inside with a lot of energy. Attacking well their defensive pressure and try to win the rebounding battle will be the first order of things to focus on."

### ALBA Berlin vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (19:00 CET)

**Israel Gonzalez, ALBA Berlin head coach**

"Red Star has a very deep roster and has made another top-class addition with John Brown. Our opponents are in a good momentum right now: They've won a lot of games recently and also won the derby against Partizan. The versatility and depth of the team makes it incredibly difficult to prepare for Red Star. They are physical, can play with big line-ups and switch a lot. They also have a lot of good guards who can attack one-on-one. We're very happy to welcome Rokas Giedraitis, an ex-Albatross, back to Berlin on Thursday."

**Yanni Wetzell, ALBA Berlin forward**

"After the disappointing game against Zalgiris, we have the chance to make amends. We want to show better basketball again against Red Star in front of our fans. However, our opponent has played strongly recently and is a real playoff contender. That should be enough fuel to motivate us as a team to play hard and fight in a great environment on Thursday."

### Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul (20:15 CET)

**Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach**

"Every game in the EuroLeague is difficult, whether you play on your home court or you play on the road. And now, in our situation, we're having difficulty with our big man rotation \[due to injuries\], so sometimes we have problems because all our scoring is coming from the perimeter players. We had a lot of chances to break the game open, but Fenerbahce had very good momentum and they came here with six victories in a row. We risked the game in the last 30 seconds, but we found a way to win on a night that saw some strange basketball. It was a very important victory for the standings situation; we beat Fenerbahce twice, we already won two times against Bayern, so it is very good for us." 

**Konstantinos Mitoglou, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens forward**

"At this moment, this is the roster we have. We are professionals, and we will give 100% of our abilities. We will do whatever it takes for Panathinaikos to win. The team comes above everything else, so we will do everything in our power to secure victory in this game. It does not matter who the opponent is—every time we step on the court, our goal is clear: to play with intensity and win."

**Luca Banchi, Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach**

"Double-game weeks always offer many reasons to analyze the pregame connected with the capacity to rebuild energy, focus very short time to prepare games plus travel that, of course takes time from our recovery and our preparation plus meeting the defending champions after playing yesterday against last season’s finalist. This time, it's a matter to meet the defending champion that they had a very incredible win, just a few hours ago against Fenerbahçe Beko. We will find a team very motivated to defend their court. We would like to show on the court that we are into a process to improve our consistency in such difficult games. One more time not having our captain limits our possible rotation, but one more time we will ask the team to respond collectively, to have from everybody something more, something extra in terms of focus, in terms of effort, in terms of responsibilities, otherwise games like Real Madrid are impossible to win. Let's approach this game with confidence, but also with proper aggressiveness. Because we know that Panathinaikos will try from the very beginning to impose their rhythm and we want to respond in an appropriate way."

**Erkan Yilmaz, Anadolu Efes Istanbul forward**

"We started the double-game week well and now we want to get the second victory. We know that the Panathinaikos game on the road is tough, but if we can perform the same toughness, concentration and effort we applied in defense in the Real Madrid game and stick to our game plan for 40 minutes, we can win. We want to get one more victory in this double-game week."

### FC Bayern Munich vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (20:30 CET)

**Gordie Herbert, FC Bayern Munich head coach**

"This is the best possible news we could have received (about Devin Booker not having a serious knee injury). We are all very relieved and will try to stick together as well as we did against Milan during Devin's absence. We discussed in the locker room before the Milan game that we would give 100% in this game, despite the double week. We’ll approach Villeurbanne the same way. We know they’ve significantly improved in the last few weeks after a rough start to the season. But we are playing at home in front of our fans, and we want to use that advantage."

Pregame quotes hub: 'Mike James will certainly be one of our main focuses'

Virtus Segafredo Bologna v Paris Basketball (2025-02-07T19:30:00.000Z)

FC Barcelona v Olympiacos Piraeus (2025-02-07T19:30:00.000Z)

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2025-02-07T19:30:00.000Z)

AS Monaco v Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (2025-02-07T18:00:00.000Z)

FC Bayern Munich v LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (2025-02-06T19:30:00.000Z)

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2025-02-06T19:15:00.000Z)

Zalgiris Kaunas v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2025-02-06T18:00:00.000Z)

ALBA Berlin v Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (2025-02-06T18:00:00.000Z)

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul v Real Madrid (2025-02-06T17:30:00.000Z)

Zach LeDay showed 'eye-of-the-tiger' mentality against his beloved Zalgiris

The next-man-up mentality can take a team all the way to success and this is precisely what [EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/ea7-emporio-armani-milan/roster/mil/?season=2024-25) demonstrated against [Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/zalgiris-kaunas/roster/zal/?season=2024-25) through an extraordinary [Zach LeDay](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/zach-leday/008987/). The Milan forward felt like home at Zalgirio Arena on Thursday evening, when he pulled off a brilliant display for yet another game to lead Milan to [an 87-89 triumph](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/milan-holds-off-zalgiris-to-win-thriller-87-89/).

Injuries kept [Nikola Mirotic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nikola-mirotic/000796/), [Fabien Causeur](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/fabien-causeur/001392/) and [Josh Nebo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/josh-nebo/011199/) out of contention again, but LeDay stepped up big time with 26 points against a team that he holds dearly to his heart after his spell at Zalgiris back in the 2019-20 season.

“\[Zalgiris\] is one of my homes in Europe,” LeDay told EuroLeague TV after the game. “I’m blessed to have played here. I still bleed green and white. But in the end, like I said before the game, the heart of a lion to make those free throws, big plays at the end. Eye of the tiger.”

Heading into the game, LeDay was averaging 13.3 points against his former team. He had also scored at least 10 points in seven straight games and recorded PIRs of double figures in six of his last seven outings.

His 33 points led Milan to [an 85-75 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/zach-leday-shines-as-milan-roars-back-to-beat-panathinaikos-87-75/) over [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-bc-athens/roster/pan/?season=2024-25) in Round 24, with LeDay averaging 17.4 points over his last seven games. The Milan forward was unable to inspire his team to a victory at [FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-bayern-munich/roster/mun/?season=2024-25) a couple of days ago, but he would have none of it on Thursday.

Milan led for the majority of the game, but when Zalgiris took a 73-71 lead midway through the fourth quarter, the previous game between the two teams came back to haunt the visitors. The Lithuanian side fought back from a 27-point deficit in the third quarter to grab [an 82-85 victory in Italy](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/zalgiris-stages-huge-comeback-to-edge-milan-on-the-road-82-85/) back in October.

“I think we almost led the whole game,” Messina said in the press conference after the game in Lithuania. “But this also happened in the first game, so I was a bit scared to tell you the truth.”

Game Videos

Enter LeDay, who scored 8 of his team’s last 10 points in crunch time to seal the outcome. Despite the decibels skyrocketing in the closing stages, LeDay remained calm from the charity stripe, making 2 of 2 for a 77-83 lead with 1:53 remaining and then another couple of free throws to make it 84-88 with 21 seconds left on the clock. In fact, he converted all his 13 attempts from the line, extending his streak to 39 consecutive free throws made.

“I’m just trying to be the best leader,” LeDay added. “Like I said, just the eye of the tiger. It’s a blessing to be able to step out on the floor and to prove that I'm the best in Europe. So, I just try to go out there and give my team my all and be a warrior.”

[Niccolo Mannion](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/niccolo-mannion/011064/) also deserves a special mention after recording career highs in points (21), PIR (27), rebounds (7) and 2-pointers made (6). He also dished 6 assists and recorded a block in what was a sublime display in Kaunas.

“I want to give a big shoutout to Niccolo Mannion,” LeDay noted. “He’s a young point guard, learning in every game in the EuroLeague. He stepped up big tonight. He led us till the end. Just a big shoutout to him and his growth on this trip.”

What follows is a tough [clash against AS Monaco ](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/ea7-emporio-armani-milan-as-monaco/E2024/236/)after the break. For the time being, it remains uncertain whether the aforementioned players will be back from injuries. But in LeDay, the Italian side has a leader to step up when needed – a warrior with an eye-of-the-tiger mentality.

Game News

The big man netted 26 points in an 87-89 win against his former team

Crvena Zvezda left Uber Arena with a 71-77 victory over ALBA Berlin thanks to some strong defense, and the only number that mattered is the 16th win of the season for Coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos's charges.  

A season-high 13 steals was among the main keys to the victory over ALBA

Some might have called [Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/crvena-zvezda-meridianbet-belgrade/roster/red/?season=2024-25)’s trip to face [ALBA Berlin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/alba-berlin/roster/ber/?season=2024-25) on Thursday a "trap game". As in, a game that should be easy on paper, so you overlook it in preparations and mentally. And in the end, you suffer a costly loss.

After all, Zvezda was playing its fourth game in seven days, coming off a [home win over LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/crvena-zvezda-gets-total-team-effort-in-73-66-win-over-asvel/) and ranked 13 spots ahead of last-placed ALBA. The team's center [Joel Bolomboy](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/joel-bolomboy/009035/) alluded to how important it was to lock up this game in his post-game comments.

"Weeks like this, games like this, it's nice to have under our belt because when it gets closer to the end of the season, had you lost these games, you're going to be looking back like, 'Man I wish you would have won this game,'" Bolomboy said.

And in the end, Zvezda left Uber Arena with [a 71-77 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/zvezda-hangs-on-for-71-77-win-in-berlin/) that may not have been as easy as some would have predicted, but thanks to some strong defense, the only number that mattered is the 16th win of the season for Coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos's charges.  

Zvezda relied on its defensive chops in Berlin

"Our defense was great. Most part of the game, we played solid defense. We allowed only 71 points to ALBA and it's not only that. We forced them into 21 turnovers and I think we have our record in steals this year with 13 steals," Sfairopoulos said. "So you understand how aggressive the defense we had and we controlled the game from this part with our good defense."

Sfairopoulos is right that the 13 steals were a season-high for the club. In fact, they were just 2 off the club record. Moreover, the 21 turnovers ALBA committed were a season-high. Zvezda committed only 11 turnovers. But the number that sheds the most light on the importance of those turnovers is that Zvezda outscored ALBA on points off turnovers 2-24.

In addition to the lockdown defense that forced all those turnovers and turned them into points, Sfairopoulos mentioned two assists the players got from elsewhere. One was directed at the team president and the other at Zvezda’s travelling fans, who could be heard loudly in Berlin.

"I want to thank our president, Mr. Drcelic, for the charter flight we went to Igokea \[for Sunday's Adriatic League game\] because that flight saved us the energy that are required to play two EuroLeague games Tuesday and Thursday," Sfairopoulos said.

"Last but very important, I want to thank from my heart all our fans that filled up the gym, almost filled up the gym I think, and we give them a big happiness. They made us proud to play in front of them in an away game and for us was very important their voice, their support all the time during the game to push us to our limits and that's why I want to thank them on behalf of all the team from our hearts."

Zvezda relied on its defensive chops for another road win

In Thursday's 104-89 victory against Anadolu Efes Istanbul, Kendrick Nunn shined with 36 points for Panathinaikos BC

Vintage Kendrick Nunn showcased his class again  

[Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-bc-athens/roster/pan/?season=2024-25) hit top gear in crunch time to earn a pair of vital home wins in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, which left the defending champion sitting pretty in fourth place with eight rounds left in the regular season.

Tuesday’s heart-stopping [91-90 defeat of Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/panathinaikos-edges-fenerbahce-91-90-in-a-titanic-tussle/) was followed by [a masterclass 104-89 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/kendrick-nunn-powered-panathinaikos-brushes-aside-efes-104-89/) against [Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/roster/ist/?season=2024-25), in which [Kendrick Nunn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kendrick-nunn/012774/) shined as he displayed a vast repertoire of offensive skills.

The 29-year-old shooting guard finished the game on 36 points, having sank 30 in a breathtaking second half as he mixed lethal long-range shooting with some dazzling layups which put Efes to the sword after the visitors held their own for three quarters.

Nunn, who struggled for form recently, came 3 points shy of the [career-high 39](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/kendrick-nunn-enjoyed-record-night-at-oaka/) he scored in [December’s 103-74 home win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/nunns-39-points-leads-panathinaikos-past-milan-103-74/) over EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, when he did most of the damage in the first half.

Kendrick Nunn scored 18 points in the third quarter

It looked like Nunn would have a patchy night as he netted a mere 6 points in the first half against Efes before he catapulted himself to another level after the break, shooting 4 of 5 from deep in the third quarter and keeping his foot on the gas in the fourth. 

Overall, Nunn was 7 of 10 from downtown, 5 of 11 from inside the arc and a perfect 7 of 7 from the line, once again demonstrating that he is in a league of his own in Europe after being instrumental for much of this season and last, when he lifted the trophy with Panathinaikos in the continent’s premier club competition.

In his postgame comments, Nunn played down the individual goal of setting new personal records as Panathinaikos aims to win back-to-back titles after Efes did the same in 2021 and 2022.  

“We prepared ourselves for a big double week and we got it done,” he said courtside.” We took care at home and now we’ve got to focus on the road. I am not thinking about \[my career-high\], I am just trying to make the right plays, feeding off my energy to help the team.”

Coach Ergin Ataman, the architect of that double feat by Efes before he joined the Greens in 2023, acknowledged that the unstoppable Nunn was a menace all over, but also singled out veteran point guard [Kostas Sloukas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-sloukas/001926/), who pulled the playmaking skills by dishing out 9 assists to go with 13 points.   

“Sloukas was great in terms of organization and of course Kendrick is an amazing offensive player,” the Turkish tactician said. “When he gets the confidence, he is very difficult to stop.

“We played good defense and perfect basketball overall in the fourth quarter. We won two very difficult games in two days so congratulations to my players, they deserve to rest tomorrow.”

The 35-year old Sloukas, a captain who leads by example and arguably the Greek giant’s most consistent performer lately, in turn heaped praise on [Juancho Hernangome](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/juancho-hernangomez/012712/)z and [Cedi Osman](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/cedi-osman/004088/), the latter pouring 20 points in his most impressive performance of the season.  

“We had two must-win games against a pair of great Turkish teams and having struggled against Efes in the first half, we played good defense in the second with Kendrick leading us at the other end with 30 points,” Sloukas said. “Great hustle by my teammates, Cedi did a great job at both ends while Juancho picked up some crucial rebounds and also came up big when he made some clutch shots.”

The Panathinaikos guard displayed an array of offensive skills to lead the champs against Efes 

FC Bayern Munich had to fight hard for its latest win, a 76-67 victory over LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne on Thursday at SAP Garden. As always, Nick Weiler-Babb did a little bit of everything. 

Nick Weiler-Babb was Bayern's defensive anchor against ASVEL

[FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-bayern-munich/roster/mun/?season=2024-25) had to fight hard for its latest win, [a 76-67 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/bayern-beats-asvel-for-fourth-straight-win-76-67/) over [LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/ldlc-asvel-villeurbanne/roster/asv/?season=2024-25) on Thursday at SAP Garden. As always, [Nick Weiler-Babb](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nick-weiler-babb/010391/) did a little bit of everything. 

Weiler-Babb was Bayern's silent leader at both ends of the floor. On offense, he was held scoreless in the first half, but he contributed in many aspects of the game. When he got going in the second half, Weiler-Babb made sure ASVEL did not get within striking distance at any point after the break. He finished the game with 7 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals for a PIR of 15.

On defense, Weiler-Babb had the tough mission of stopping ASVEL star guard [Theo Maledon](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/theo-maledon/007027/), who earned EuroLeague MVP of the Month honors in December. Maledon struggled to find his rhythm and finished with 7 points, 2 assists and 5 turnovers for a PIR of 3, which was far below his season averages (17.8 ppg., 4.7 apg., 22.1 PIR). Two of those turnovers went straight into Weiler-Babb's hands. It is no surprise that Weiler-Babb leads the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague in steals (1.67 spg.).

"We didn't have a great first half. They had a lot of open shots, they just missed them. But I think in the second half we came out to play better defense better, with a lot more movement on the offensive end. And I think that's what helped us as well," Weiler-Babb said. "It's a very tough opponent to play against, and I am glad we came out on top."

Nick Weiler-Babb of FC Bayern Munich stepped up against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. He finished the game with seven points, seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and a PIR of 15.

Weiler-Babb's all-around performance

Bayern excelled on defense in the first half, limiting ASVEL to just 30 points before the break. The visitors made only 4 of 20 shots from beyond the arc (20%) despie [Paris Lee](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/paris-lee/011225/) hitting back-to-back three-pointers in the final 19 seconds, one of them from beyond midcourt at the halftime buzzer.

Bayern outrebounded ASVEL 25-18 and collecting 6 steals before the break. The hosts finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds, 8 steals and a season-high 5 blocked shots. It beat ASVEL in all of the hustle stats, as the visitors had 10 offensive boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks.

Despite not shooting the ball particularly well (56.3% 2FG, 33.3% 3FG), Bayern excelled on defense and had a solid contribution from backup center [Danko Brankovic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/danko-brankovic/007639/), who tallied 8 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks.

"Danko \[Brankovic\] hasn't played much. He has got the opportunity the last couple games and is really taking advantage of it. He gave us great energy in the limited minutes he played," Bayern head coach [Gordon Herbert](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-bayern-munich/mun/herbert-gordon?season=E2024) said. "You could tell both teams had their third game in five days. We were tired but fought through it, and I give our players a lot of credit."

With eight games left in the regular season, Bayern already has three more wins than last season and has a shot to match or even surpass the club's best regular season record, 21-13, achieved in the 2020-21 campaign.

The veteran guard stood out on both ends of the floor for Bayern

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens completed a perfect double-round week in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after a 104-89 home win over Anadolu Efes Istanbul behind 36 points from Kendrick Nunn

Kendrick Nunn-powered Panathinaikos brushes aside Efes, 104-89

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens completed a perfect double-round week in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after a 104-89 home win over Anadolu Efes Istanbul lifted the defending champion to 16-10 ahead of the February break in the continent’s premier club competition.

The big win came after Tuesday’s dramatic 91-90 victory over visiting Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, giving the Greens double delight against rivals from the Turkish capital, with the Efes result also dishing sweet revenge for a 93-67 debacle in the reverse fixture in December.

Top scorer Kendrick Nunn overcame a recent shooting slump with a majestic performance as he paced Panathinaikos on a game-high 36 points, scoring 30 in a rip-roaring second half as he annihilated Efes from all over.

Cedi Osman capped his best performance of the season with 20 points, 10 of which came in the fourth quarter when Panathinaikos pulled away to stay in the top four as the battle for playoff spots intensified. Juancho Hernangomez scored 14 points to go with 8 boards while Kostas Sloukas chipped in with 13 points and 9 assists.

At the other end, Darius Thompson led Efes with 14 points, Jordan Nwora and Rodrigue Beaubois amassed 13 each while Dan Oturu posted 11 for the visitors, who were ultimately undone as they sorely missed injured starting point guard Shane Larkin.

The high-octane clash kept fans on the edge of their seats from start to finish, with Efes thriving early on from pick-and-roll plays which facilitated a barrage of dunks by the visiting team’s big men Oturu and Nwora. Having carved out a 17-21 advantage in a rugged first quarter, Efes pulled away to 21-32 before the Greens hit back largely thanks to Osman, who kept the hosts going with Nunn struggling from long range in the opening half.

Feeding off 12 turnovers committed by Efes in the opening two quarters, Panathinaikos, turned the tide on the back of a barrage of fastbreaks and led 49-47 at halftime, despite shooting 4 of 13 from downtown. The Greens were much more clinical from inside, 17 of 24, having also committed a mere 4 turnovers against 11 assists.

Nunn caught fire straight after the interval as he sank 4 of 5 from deep and mixed his long-range shooting with some dazzling layups to keep Panathinaikos in the driving seat ahead of the final 10 minutes, 75-73, netting 18 points in the third quarter while Thompson delivered for Efes at the other end.  

With the game delicately balanced early in the fourth, 85-83, Panathinaikos conjured a decisive 10-2 run which effectively forced Efes into submission. Nunn and Osman did all the damage and Hernangomez followed in their footsteps, putting the icing on the cake with a three on the buzzer to spark wild celebrations among the joyous home fans inside OAKA Altion. 

The reigning champ’s top scorer sank 30 second-half points as the Greens completed the week’s double over Turkish rivals 

FC Bayern Munich finished a perfect double-round week by downing LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 76-67 at SAP Garden in Round 26 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague


Bayern beats ASVEL for fourth straight win, 76-67

FC Bayern Munich finished a perfect double-round week by downing LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 76-67 at SAP Garden in Round 26 on Thursday. Bayern improved to 16-10 in the standings, is on a four-game winning streak and 11-2 in front of its fans this season. ASVEL dropped to 11-15 after losing its last three games. 

Andreas Obst led the winners with 15 points. Carsen Edwards added 14 while Vladimir Lucic had 10 points and 8 rebounds for Bayern. Paris Lee paced ASVEL with 14 points, Joffrey Lauvergne added 12 while Neal Sako had 10 for the visitors.

Theo Maledon got ASVEL going with a three-pointer and Andre Roberson added back-to-back layups for a 2-7 lead. Oscar da Silva stepped up with a put-back basket that a red-hot Roberson matched with a driving layup. Edwards stepped up for the hosts and da Silva scored twice around the basket to give Bayern an 11-9 edge. Sako found his first points and Danko Brankovic banked in a close shot before Nando De Colo restored a 13-14 ASVEL lead. Obst struck from downtown and Brankovic's layup gave the hosts an 18-15 lead. De Colo and Obst each buried one from beyond the arc, then Niels Giffey's layup made 23-18 after 10 minutes.

Brankovic kept pacing Bayern with a put-back layup early in the second quarter. ASVEL was held scoreless for 4 minutes when Giffey beat Maledon in the low post to give his team a 27-18 Bayern lead. Maledon tried to change things with a one-handed floater in the lane that Lucic erased with a turnaround jumper. Elias Harris scored down low and Edwards's driving layup caused ASVEL to call timeout at 33-20. Johannes Voigtmann buried a corner triple that capped a mammoth 18-2 run, as David Lighty stepped up with a layup. Harris dunked, Sako scored in transition and Lee followed a three-pointer with a buzzer-beating midcourt shot off the glass, bringing ASVEL within 38-30 at halftime.

Joffrey Lauvergne scored around the basket soon after the break. Edwards and Lucic each struck from beyond the arc to restore a double-digit Bayern lead, 44-34. Nick Weiler-Babb scored in penetration and added a wild basket off a spin move to boost his team's lead to 48-34. Lee stepped up with a driving layup that Obst bettered with a catch-and-shoot triple. Weiler-Babb joined the three-point shootout and De Colo downed a mid-range jumper before Sako gave ASVEL hope at 54-41. Brankovic took over with an alley-oop dunk that Giffey followed with a jumper. De Colo and Roberson each struck from downtown to get ASVEL closer, 58-47, after three quarters.

Lucic beat the shot clock with a corner triple early in the fourth quarter. Obst buried his fourth triple to boost Bayern's margin to 64-48 with more than 8 minutes left. Lee and Lighty joined the three-point shootout for a 64-54 score. Voigtmann and Lucic rescued Bayern, which had already started to use longer possessions to run the game clock down. Lauvergne made a three-pointer and added a fastbreak dunk to make it a single-digit game, 67-59. Lauvergne hit a jump hook that Edwards matched with free throws. Lucic found Voigtmann for an alley-oop layup that sealed the outcome, 71-61, in the next-to-last minute.

Andreas Obst and Carsen Edwards led their team to its 16th win


Milan executed its offensive plan to perfection to down Zalgiris

Bouncing back from a blowout defeat is anything but easy in basketball. Doing so just 48 hours after [losing 87-70](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/bayern-thrashed-milan-at-home-87-70/) away at [FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-bayern-munich/roster/mun/?season=2024-25) is even harder. But recovering from that loss with a victory at a packed Zalgirio Arena takes more than talent.

[EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/ea7-emporio-armani-milan/roster/mil/?season=2024-25) showed character in Lithuania and executed its offensive plan to perfection to defeat Zalgiris on the road. The Italian side [netted 89 points](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/milan-holds-off-zalgiris-to-win-thriller-87-89/) against a defense that was the stingiest in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague with an average of just 78.0 points conceded per game heading into Thursday’s evening clash.

Ettore Messina put together a strategy to unlock Zalgiris’s defense and his players followed it to the letter. Three of them stood out, with [Zach LeDay](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/zach-leday/008987/) netting 26 points, [Niccolo Mannion](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/niccolo-mannion/011064/) scoring a career-high 21 and [Shavon Shields](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/shavon-shields/007831/) recording 17.

“I think that we attacked fairly well the switches either with the perimeter drives of Mannion or Shavon and with the post-up of Zach,” Messina told EuroLeague TV after the game. “Kudos to all my players for coming here after a poor performance in Munich 48 hours ago. It shows that this group has character and hopefully we can build on that.”

The visitors led for most of the game, but Zalgiris fought back and took a 73-71 edge halfway in the last quarter. Messina’s players didn’t flinch. They remained focused on the game plan by protecting the boards on one end and attacking the switches on the other despite the deafening noise at Zalgirio Arena and clinched a hard-fought win.

“When they got the 2-point lead, we did two very important things,” Messina said in the post-game press conference. “On the very few misses that they had shooting from outside, we always got the defensive rebound. We never allowed them to have a second shot and that limited the damage. Offensively, we attacked the switch well with the penetration, especially of Mannion, and the post-up with Zach. The team was mentally very focused and strong in obviously a very difficult environment.”

Having improved its record to 14-12, Milan remained in the playoff zone despite the important absences of [Nikola Mirotic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nikola-mirotic/000796/), [Fabien Causeur](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/fabien-causeur/001392/) and [Josh Nebo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/josh-nebo/011199/). And in Kaunas, the Italian side showed that heart and strategy could lead you to a triumph against all odds.

Mannion, LeDay and Shields effectively attacked the switches to clinch a bounce-back win

Errick McCollum continued making his mark with Fenerbahce

[Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/roster/ulk/?season=2024-25) has been badly hit by backcourt injuries so far this season, incurring the major blow of a long-term absence for shooting star [Scottie Wilbekin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/scottie-wilbekin/006661/) just 2 minutes into the campaign and also seeing [Wade Baldwin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/wade-baldwin-iv/009863/) only able to make 13 appearances – most recently in Round 16 at FC Barcelona in December.

But the silver lining to emerge from that injury cloud has been the arrival of the vastly experienced [Errick McCollum](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/errick-mccollum/005216/), who was added to Sarunas Jasikevicius’s roster in January to provide some backcourt depth and has immediately proved himself to be a EuroLeague-ready performer.

In Thursday’s showdown with [Real Madrid](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/real-madrid/roster/mad/?season=2024-25), McCollum made his clearest statement yet that he is ready to play a key role in Fenerbahce’s quest for title glory, netting 19 points and providing the foundations for [an impressive 78-67 victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/fenerbahce-cruises-past-real-madrid-78-67/) which allows his team to head into the break on a high.

McCollum's early contributions were particularly important. While everyone around him was missing, missing and missing again during an extraordinarily slow start to the action – featuring no points at all for nearly 4 minutes – the guard bucked the trend by repeatedly finding his range. After being introduced with the game scoreless, he netted the game’s first three-pointer 61 seconds later, added another 30 seconds after that and soon scored again to take his personal tally to 8 points in a 10-4 lead.

Errick McCollum rocked Real Madrid

He returned with similar effect in the second quarter, saving his most impressive moment for the halftime buzzer as he drove into the paint before finding fancy footwork to create space for a classy layup, drawing appreciative oohs and aahs from the home fans.

After the game, the veteran played down his early scoring exploits as he told EuroLeague TV: “I‘m a shot-maker, I’m a scorer, and I could see at that moment they needed a spark. So I tried to be really aggressive. Coach put me in a good situation, my teammates believe in me, and I just did what I do.”

Jasikevicius was much more effusive, praising McCollum’s transition to his new team as he said: “For him, it’s very easy to come in the middle of a season. He’s seen all kinds of coaches, all kinds of systems, he’s a very outgoing person, so he fit into the locker room immediately with the guys, and he’s seen everything already. He’s been a great addition, no question.”

Such success at this level has been a long time coming for McCollum, who first appeared in European competition with Greek team Panionios in the 2013-14 EuroCup. He made a major impression in the same competition with Galatasaray, winning both the title and the MVP award in 2016, earning a step up to the EuroLeague with Anadolu Efes Istanbul for a solid 2017-18 season. McCollum’s nomadic existence continued with spells at Russian teams UNICS Kazan, Khimki Moscow and Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar, before returning to Turkiye with Pinar Karsiyaka.

It seemed that his time in the continent’s elite competition was already over, but then came Fenerbahce’s injury crisis and the subsequent mid-season return to Istanbul, where he has now represented three different clubs.

And it’s fair to say that he has easily exceeded expectations, becoming far more than just a role player with a prominent role in a run of five wins out of six. During that time he has averaged 12.8 points, netting double digits in four consecutive games and also dishing 3 assists in each of the last three.

Wilbekin and Baldwin are major losses…but Fenerbahce has found a significant gain with the arrival of McCollum, who is fast becoming one of the best mid-season signings in EuroLeague history.

The Turkish team’s recent signing made another big contribution to down Real Madrid