Olympiacos Piraeus (5-2) defeated Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2-5) 67-65 (19-14, 26-20, 10-19, 12-12) to hand another nail-biting loss for the Turkish powerhouse.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
21
|
| Moustapha Fall | |
| Points | 10 |
| Accuracy | 5-6 |
| Rebounds | 9 |
| Assists | 1 |
Both teams struggled to convert their shots and remained scoreless for 3 minutes but Kostas Sloukas broke the silence with 1:40 to go.
He hit a crucial three to put his team in front (65-62). Nevertheless, Achille Polonara answered with a two-pointer and a foul (65-65), as 39 seconds were left on the game clock.
Olympiacos turned the ball over, while Pierria Henry missed the shot. On the other end, Kostas Sloukas made the game-winning jumper with 2 seconds to play (67-65). Marko Guduric's long 3-pointer was off the mark and Olympiacos celebrated a very tough victory.
The hosts were holding the lead for the most part of the game. However, Bartzokas's men fell into a dark hole once they managed to get a 13-point advantage (55-42) three minutes before the end of the third quarter.
Fenerbahce stormed back thanks to a formidable 0-16 run in the course of seven minutes and took the lead by 58-55. That's when Sloukas came up big, scoring 8 of Olympiacos's 12 points in the fourth period, including all of his team's field goals (two) in that span.
For the winners, the Greek guard was also the top scorer, posting 14 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 2 turnovers, 6 drawn fouls and 20 PIR.
"We are feeling great. It was a hell of a game. It was a really tough match, with a lot of tension. I would like to give huge credit to the fans, they gave us fantastic support, and to our players, that managed to win this game, although we stopped shooting well in the second half," Giorgos Bartzokas said post-game.
Jan Vesely led the way for Fenerbahce, accumulating 14 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 drawn fouls, and 16 PIR.
"First of all, I have to congratulate Olympiacos. It’s a great win for them and it’s a bad loss for us. It’s a matter of keeping some things we did like people fighting, and I’m still proud of what we showed on the floor.
We fought but we have to be smarter and understand the game when it comes to the line. Great shot of Sloukas, good defense, good offense, they did it, so congratulations," commented Sasa Djordjevic.
Olympiacos: Kostas Sloukas 14 (2/8 2PT, 3/4 3PT, 20 PIR), Tyler Dorsey 10, Moustapha Fall 10 (5/6 2PT, 9 REB, 21 PIR), Giannoulis Larentzakis 10.
Fenerbahce: Jan Vesely 14 (5/12 2PT, 9 REB), Marko Guduric 10 (2/7 3PT), Nando De Colo 10 (5/8 2PT).
Highlights
