EuroLeague Matchday 8: Spanish Sweep Minus Baskonia as Valencia Climbs Podium

Matchday 8 of the EuroLeague, the first half of a new double-week, leaves Panathinaikos alone atop the standings with four teams at 6-2, including Valencia Basket. Real Madrid and Barcelona consolidate their positions in the upper tier, while Baskonia continues to struggle.

Valencia Basket 86-78 Fenerbahçe

The marquee matchup of the day stayed at the Roig Arena. Valencia dominated for three quarters, with leads as high as 16 points, and entered the final period up 14 (60-46). Fenerbahçe mounted a comeback to take the lead (75-76), but Xavi Albert's squad knew how to close out the game, with a decisive three-pointer from Armoni Brooks. TJ Shorts led the way with 23 points as his team improved to 6-2, matching the Turkish side.

Baskonia 86-104 Real Madrid

Real Madrid controlled from the opening quarter (19-30) at a Buesa Arena where fans greeted their team with whistles toward the box and white handkerchiefs. Baskonia closed the gap before halftime (46-52), but three-pointers from Theo Maledon, who finished with 19 points, and a strong third-quarter finish from Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot broke the game open. The Whites extend their winning streak to five after starting 0-3; Baskonia falls to 1-7.

Bayern Munich 84-88 Barcelona

Barcelona won in Munich on a night filled with setbacks. Without Joel Parra, the team lost Umoja Gibson at halftime to a knee injury, Justin Robinson to fouls, and Juan Núñez to an ankle sprain late in the game. Kevin Punter, with 23 points, again decided matters in the final minutes, and Josh Nebo contributed 12 points and 9 rebounds. It's Barcelona's third straight victory.

See also:

• Real Madrid leaves no room for Baskonia in Vitoria (86-104)
• Valencia Basket survives another nail-biter and downs Fenerbahçe (86-78)
• Punter carries struggling Barcelona in Munich (84-88)

Panathinaikos 80-75 Olympia Milano

The leader had a tough time against Milano, who arrived with five straight losses. The Italians entered the final quarter ahead (60-61) and the score was tied at 71 with three minutes remaining. Kendrick Nunn, with 20 points, hit the decisive layup with 6.7 seconds left. Mathias Lessort posted a double-double (13 and 11) and Juancho Hernangómez added 11. Panathinaikos stands alone atop the standings (7-1).

Hapoel Tel Aviv 118-88 Anadolu Efes

Hapoel put on a show in Botevgrad, where they play their home games. Dimitris Itoudis' team broke the game open before halftime and entered the final quarter up 31 (90-59). Antonio Blakeney scored 35 points, the best mark of the day, and Elijah Bryant dished out 12 assists. Santi Yusta, with 15 points, was among the few bright spots for a severely depleted Efes.

Besiktas 73-81 Olympiacos

Olympiacos won in Istanbul without Milutinov, Fournier, or Montero. Besiktas took the lead in the final quarter (68-66), but two straight turnovers opened the door for a 5-15 run to close it out. Sasha Vezenkov led the way with 16 points and Georgios Bartzokas' team dished out 26 assists.

Crvena Zvezda 100-78 Maccabi Tel Aviv

Ibon Navarro's Crvena Zvezda bounced back from a derby loss with a dominant first quarter (34-15) that settled the game. They led by as much as 28 and surpassed 100 points. Tyson Carter posted his EuroLeague high with 24 points and six three-pointers, and Christian Koloko made his debut by scoring the team's opening points.

ASVEL 82-75 Partizan

Partizan had the game in hand in Villeurbanne, up 11 in the final quarter (58-69), but stalled down the stretch as ASVEL went on a 22-4 run. A technical foul on the Serbian bench with 45 seconds remaining sealed the deal. Robert Franks and Antonio Reeves made their Partizan debuts.

Virtus Bologna 74-91 Žalgiris

Àlex Mumbrú's Virtus dominated the opening quarter (22-14), but Žalgiris turned it around before halftime and broke the game open in the second half with a 2-15 close. Valančiūnas, with 17 points and strong work on the offensive glass, led the Lithuanians.

Dubai 93-99 Paris Basketball

Paris snapped a four-game losing streak with a win in Dubai. Nadir Hifi, recently recovered from an ankle injury, scored 12 of his 20 points in the final five minutes, going 10 of 10 from the free-throw line. Xavi Pascual's Dubai, who arrived with six straight wins across all competitions, falls to 5-3.

Standings after Matchday 8

Matchday 9

• Thursday 29: Crvena Zvezda-Bayern Munich, Maccabi-Paris, and Real Madrid-Fenerbahçe
• Friday 30: Dubai-Hapoel, Efes-Panathinaikos, Žalgiris-Partizan, ASVEL-Baskonia, Olympiacos-Milano, Virtus-Besiktas, and Barcelona-Valencia