Matchday 4 of the EuroCup delivers a positive balance for Spanish teams: two victories in three games, with comebacks going in opposite directions. La Laguna Tenerife overcame a 12-point deficit in Germany, while San Pablo Burgos squandered a 13-point lead in Italy. Manresa, meanwhile, found its best form of the season.
Manresa with 108 points
Kids&Us Manresa needed a night like this and got it against Roma Basketball (108-88). A first quarter of 32 points, with 6 of 12 from three-point range, set the tone, and a final quarter of 26-18 shut down Italian comeback attempts. Hugo Benítez led the way with 24 points and 7 assists, well supported by Nick Ongenda (20) and Pierre Oriola (19). Nico Mannion, with 21 points and 7 assists, was Roma's only consistent scorer. Manresa evens its record at two wins and two losses.
Tenerife Rallies in Frankfurt
La Laguna Tenerife pulled off the matchday's biggest comeback on the road against Skyliners Frankfurt (94-104). The Germans dominated the first half and went into halftime up 12 (43-31), with Tenerife struggling from three-point range. After the break, Jaka Lakovic's team went on a 14-38 run in the third quarter that flipped the game, and never relinquished control. Kyle Guy scored 26 points and Vince Hunter surpassed the 20-point mark. Tenerife improves to three wins in four matchdays.
Also read:
- Manresa Breathes Easy in Europe: 108-88 over Roma Basketball
- A Third Quarter of 38-14 Gives La Laguna Tenerife Victory in Germany (94-104)
- San Pablo Burgos Collapses in Tortona (89-79)
Burgos Lets Lead Slip Away
San Pablo Burgos led for thirty minutes in Tortona and built a 13-point advantage (36-49), but fell apart in the final quarter, which Derthona won 31-17. Giordano Bortolani gave the Italians their first lead with eight minutes remaining, and a three-pointer with 2:30 left sealed the decisive 7-0 run (89-79). DJ Steward led all scorers with 22 points. Burgos drops to one win in four matchdays.
Napoli Defeats Unbeaten Tofas
The week's most anticipated matchup lived up to expectations. Napoli and Tofas both arrived undefeated at 3-0 and needed overtime to settle it. The Italians prevailed (105-101), with an inspired Zach Seljaas: 28 points and seven three-pointers. Jeff Dowtin added 18. For Tofas, Bryce Jones scored 32 points in a losing effort.
Napoli shares the unbeaten status with Aris and Hapoel Jerusalem. Aris dominated Rostock (79-110) and set several EuroCup club records: 56 points in the first half, 83 at the end of the third quarter, and their highest-scoring game without overtime. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl posted a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Matt Morgan added 20. Hapoel Jerusalem rolled past Riga Zelli (100-64), with 18 points from Kenny Lofton and 17 from Dušan Miletić.
Bahcesehir Loses Unbeaten Record in Sarajevo
The biggest surprise came from Sarajevo. BOSNA, which hadn't won a game, defeated Bahcesehir College, one of the title favorites (86-77). Shawn Pipes Jr. (18 points) and Deandre Gholston (17) led the Bosnians, while Mateusz Ponitka, with 20, couldn't prevent the Turks' first loss.
Rest of the Matchday
JL Bourg, the defending champion, finally secured their first win against Trento (90-79), with 20 points from Lionel Gaudoux. PAOK regained momentum against Ulm (87-78) thanks to 21 points from Cedi Osman, and Chemnitz dominated Slask Wroclaw (95-67) with 21 from Cobe Williams. In the Italian derby, Maxima Roma defeated Reyer Venezia (90-79) with 22 points from Miro Bilan and another 22 with 10 assists from Xavier Moon.
Siauliai pulled off an upset in Ankara, defeating Turk Telekom (84-94) after winning the final quarter 17-27. Buducnost topped Neptunas (104-89), with 21 points from Yogi Ferrell, and London Lions won in Cluj (72-89) with 16 from Thomas Kennedy. Le Mans dominated on the road against Cedevita Olimpija (66-84), which remains winless, as does Balkan Botevgrad, defeated by Lietkabelis (57-64).