Milan topples top-ranked Barcelona in Euroleague round 20
The two-round week of January began on Tuesday with the first three games of Round 20. First, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul used its depth to pull away in the second half and defeat Olympiacos Piraeus 94-80. Then FC Bayern Munich snapped its three-game losing streak by fighting off Zalgiris Kaunas 74-65 at home. In the nightcap, AX Armani Exchange Milan erased a 10-point third-quarter deficit to topple league-leading FC Barcelona 73-75. The Round 20 action continues on Wednesday with Panathinaikos OPAP Athens hosts CSKA Moscow.
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul 94-80 Olympiacos Piraeus
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul thoroughly dominated the second half to beat Olympiacos Piraeus 94-80 on Tuesday night at Ulker Sports and Event Hall. Playing its first game without injured stars Jan Vesely and Nando De Colo, Fenerbahce used its depth as a weapon with six players scoring in double figures. The result lifted Fenerbahce to 8-10 and ended Olympiacos’s three-game winning streak to send the Reds’ record to 12-6. Fenerbahce captain Melih Mahmutoglu led all scorers with 17 points on 4-of-5 three-point shooting. Achille Polonara posted 15 points and seven rebounds, DyShawn Pierre scored 14, Devin Booker tallied 12 points and five assists, Pierria Henry paired 11 points with eight assists. Marko Guduric added 11 points and five assists. Former Fenerbahce star Kostas Sloukas led Olympiacos with 14 points, seven assists, and four steals. Tyler Dorsey also scored 14, Georgios Printezis and Kostas Papanikolaou netted 12 points apiece, and Hassan Martin had 10.
FC Bayern Munich 74-65 Zalgiris Kaunas
FC Bayern Munich snapped its three-game losing streak by fighting off Zalgiris Kaunas 74-65 at home on Tuesday. Zalgiris was first to open a bit of daylight, leading by 8 points in the second quarter. Bayern started to take control and built an 11-point lead in the third quarter. The hosts held on and improved to 8-10 as Ognjen Jaramaz scored 16 points to lead the way. Vladimir Lucic added 12 points, Augustine Rubit had 11 points and seven rebounds, and Andi Obst chipped in 11 points with three three-pointers. Zalgiris saw its losing streak extend to four games to fall to 3-14, including a 0-9 record in road games. Josh Nebo collected 14 points and nine rebounds, and Tai Webster and Lukas Lekavicius both added 10 points for Zalgiris, which was playing its first game since Round 16 on December 17.
FC Barcelona 73-75 AX Armani Exchange Milan
AX Armani Exchange Milan erased a 10-point third-quarter deficit to topple league-leading FC Barcelona 73-75 on Tuesday night. In doing so, Milan completed a regular-season sweep of Barcelona and became the first team to win this season at Palau Blaugrana. Sergio Rodriguez scored 15 of his 18 points in the first half to help Milan to a 28-34 halftime lead, and Malcolm Delaney scored 14 of his 15 in the second half, including a key late triple, to lead the comeback. The result dropped Barcelona’s record to 15-4, while Milan climbed to 11-6. Kyle Kuric paced Barcelona with 22 points, Nikola Mirotic added 18, Rokas Jokubaitis tallied 11 points and six assists, and Brando Davies also scored 11 in defeat.