Valencia Basket squandered a historic opportunity against Olympiacos at the Roig Arena. After an extraordinary first half, in which they enjoyed a 28-point lead, the orange squad collapsed after halftime and ultimately fell in overtime to the reigning EuroLeague champions. The defeat ended Valencia's unbeaten European record under Xavi Albert, who failed to manage a lead that seemed insurmountable.
Valencia Basket Starting Five: TJ Shorts, Armony Brooks, Kameron Taylor, Osetkowski and Sako.
Olympiacos Piraeus Starting Five: Montero, Fournier, Ward, Vezenkov and Milutinov.
Bench: Corbalán, Mo Gueye and Sima.
The orange squad started strong. Kameron Taylor opened the scoring with a three-pointer and Osetkowski extended the lead with another outside shot. Olympiacos found their first points with a 2+1 from Ward, but Valencia maintained control and found in Nikola Mirotic one of their main offensive weapons. The Montenegrin scored nine points in his first minutes and the hosts closed the first quarter with a comfortable lead. (31-17)
Valencia's superiority continued throughout the second quarter. Xavi Albert's team reached a 21-point advantage and the Roig Arena enjoyed a memorable first half. Brooks and Cárdenas also joined the scoring spree, but the highlight of the night came with TJ Shorts: the American point guard nailed a massive three-pointer at the buzzer to leave the scoreboard at a commanding (59-34). Mirotic led the hosts at halftime with 11 points.
Greece's Comeback Changes Everything
After the restart, Brooks extended the lead with another three-pointer, but Olympiacos began chipping away. The Greeks took advantage of Valencia's offensive and defensive struggles to progressively cut into the deficit. Xavi Albert had to call timeout twice, while Vezenkov and Montero took on more responsibility. The lead was reduced to twelve points and the game entered a completely different dynamic from the first half. (71-59)
The fourth quarter began with another visiting basket that brought Olympiacos within ten points. Reuvers responded with a 2+1, but the Greeks kept pressing. A three-pointer from Fournier and Montero's plays brought tension to the stands, while Puerto tried to give the hosts some breathing room from beyond the arc. Valencia's advantage evaporated to just one point and, after Brooks answered with a three-pointer, Montero struck again to put the visitors ahead.
Valencia Basket found no solutions and Olympiacos completed a comeback that seemed impossible. With 88-90 and 25.3 seconds remaining, TJ Shorts scored to tie at 90. Montero had the last Greek possession, but missed, and the game went to overtime. (90-90)
An Overtime to Forget
Olympiacos struck first in the extra period, though Taylor put the hosts back ahead from the free-throw line. A technical foul on Papanikolau allowed Mirotic to tie the game, but Valencia mismanaged its final possessions and paid dearly for the second-half collapse. What had begun as a historic night ended in a defeat difficult to explain. (97-102)
Valencia Basket lost its unbeaten status in the EuroLeague after squandering a 28-point lead against the reigning champions. Montero delivered a remarkable return to the Roig Arena with 26 points and led a comeback that dealt a harsh blow to the orange squad, who had a victory of enormous value within their grasp.
The game had, moreover, a special protagonist: Jean Montero. The Dominican returned to the Roig Arena wearing an Olympiacos jersey and proved decisive, with 26 points, leading a comeback that left Valencia's fans stunned. Nikola Mirotic, with 19 points, was the leading scorer for the hosts.
The schedule offers no respite. The Valencia squad will play at home again this Thursday against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the sixth matchday of the EuroLeague. Then, on Sunday at 5:00 p.m., they will host UCAM Murcia in the Liga Endesa, with the goal of bouncing back quickly and putting behind them a night that Valencia's fans will hardly forget.