Round 31-32 roll call: Big impacts and productive weeks

Lee went for double-digit assists

Panathinaikos Athens recorded its third win in four games when it downed FC Bayern Munich 86-76 in Round 31 on Tuesday night, with Paris Lee orchestrating Greens' offense en route to a career-high 11 assists. Lee had 10 of those assists in the first three quarters as Panathinaikos built a 17-point lead, paving the way to victory. It was the first time that Lee had reached double digits for assists in his EuroLeague career, surpassing his previous best of 8, which came back in Round 23. He also had 10 points and 2 steals in the win.

Bryant's productive week

This week, Anadolu Efes Istanbul registered a pair of big home wins over the two teams from Italy – EA7 Emporio Armani Milan and Virtus Segafredo Bologna – and Elijah Bryant shined in both victories. First, he had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block in an 89-69 win over Milan. Then, he amassed 13 points, a career-high 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and another block in an 86-67 win over Virtus. Bryant averaged a PIR of 22.0 over those two games, having played an integral part in keeping the two-time defending champion's playoff hopes alive.

Butkevicius's all-round displays in rare starts

Zalgiris Kaunas pulled out an important 79-70 win against AS Monaco in Round 31 before trouncing Valencia Basket 95-74 in Round 32, with Arnas Butkevicius enjoying two of the best all-round performances in his career to date. Against Monaco, Butkevicius scored 10 points on 2-of-4 two-pointers and 2-of-3 three-pointers, in addition to having a career-high 5 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals for a PIR of 16. He followed that display up with 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field, while he also had 4 rebounds, 3 assists and matched his career best with 4 steals against Valencia. In that game, he also had a team-high and career-high PIR of 21. It was quite a week for Butkevicius, who was making just his fifth and sixth starts of the season and had not scored in double figures since Round 18 in early January.

Hanga helped Real on its way

Real Madrid secured home-court advantage in the playoffs following its 90-75 victory over Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in Round 31. Los Blancos enjoyed a balanced offensive effort in which Adam Hanga had a big role with 11 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 block and 1 steal during his 20 minutes on the floor. Hanga did most of his damage in the first three quarters, especially in the third when he had a three-pointer, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block to help Real make it a double-digit ballgame. From there, Real was able to comfortably close out the game in the fourth quarter, with Hanga getting a well-deserved rest on the bench.

Dobric shined for Zvezda

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade might have been eliminated from playoff contention after the double-round week, but it did win both games this week to keep its chances alive for as long as possible. Across those two games, Ognjen Dobric was instrumental in his team's success. He first had 16 points, making 5-of-7 two-pointers and 2-of-7 threes in a 92-73 win over Valencia. Dobric then followed that up 48 hours later with 18 points on 3-of-8 two-pointers and a joint career-best 4-of-5 from long range in a 60-76 win at LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. He reached those numbers in just over 20 minutes on the floor at the Astroballe.

Big-time impact from low-scoring Costello

Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz had a pair of big home wins this week. In a come-from-behind 92-69 triumph against Fenerbahce, Mathew Costello let the others do the scoring but still made crucial contributions. Costello made both of his shot attempts: a second-chance three-pointer to cut the margin to 45-51 midway through the third quarter, and a tip-in with under four minutes to go in the game to make it 80-66. But what made an even bigger impact were his career-high 12 rebounds and career-best-equaling 3 blocks. He also had 4 assists and 2 steals. Costello finished the game with a PIR of 24, the second-best mark on the team, which might seem unusual for someone who scored just 5 points in 21 minutes on the floor.

Nebo ruled the defensive boards

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv is on the brink of the playoffs after two convincing home wins. In the triumph over Milan, big man Josh Nebo dominated the defensive glass. In an 85-66 win, the Maccabi center finished with game-high 10 rebounds, all of which were defensive. That was the second time this season that Nebo had grabbed 10 defensive boards, a career high for him. On the offensive end, Nebo scored 8 points, helping Maccabi move into fifth place in the standings and all but mathematically clinch a playoff berth.