With Valencia controlling the match from the very first minute, Bojan Dubljevic safely leading his team to the win, the Spanish side got the win in Piraeus, 85-96, on Wednesday night (16/12). Olympiacos was missing Kostas Papanikolaou due to an illness but the players of coach Bartzokas tried their best against Valencia.
Bojan Dubljevic was the top scorer for the guest with 20 points with Derrick Williams adding 16. For Olympiacos, Kostas Sloukas was the leading scorer with 18 points while Shaquielle McKissic added 16.
The Match
With the “reds” playing great defense from the very first minutes of the game and controlling the rebounds, Olympiacos opened the score against Valencia (2-0) with Livio Jean-Charles. Valencia replied with a triple from San Emeterio but Livio Jean-Charles again, scored for three and registered all 5 points of Olympiacos (5-3). San Emeterio with the basket and the extra free throw, put his team by one point with all ten points in the game coming from two players (5-6). Dubljevic scored for Valencia (5-8) with Labeyrie rejecting Ellis’ offensive effort. Charalampopoulos with the jumper took the difference down to a single point but Valencia extended their lead to four points with a triple from Labeyrie (7-11). Tobey with the triple, gave Valencia their largest lead of the match (9-15) with Prepelic extending it to eight points after registering his first 2 points of the match (9-17). Labeyrie took Valencia’s lead to double digits, with Olympiacos struggling on the offensive end (9-19). Sloukas with two free throws took the difference down to eight points (11-19) but Kalinic restored the double digit lead for his team. The two teams ended the first quarter with Valencia leading by 9 points (16-25).
Spanoulis opened the second quarter with his first field goal of the night, but Tobey completed the 3-point play. With the difference going from 11 points to 9 and back, Williams grabbed the opportunity and extended his team’s lead to 13 points (22-35). Vezenkov with a terrific play took the difference down to 11 points with Valencia committing their first turnover of the match with Van Rossom. Back-to-back baskets from Vezenkov got his to 7 points and Olympiacos trailing by 9 (26-35). Hassan Martin registered two more free throws bringing Olympiacos closer to the score (28-35). Spanoulis drained the triple (31-37), Harrison forced Kalinic to the turnover and McKissic scored one point from the free throw line. Dubljevic ended Olympiacos run, Harrison missed the triple and Kalinic grabbed the opportunity and scored (32-41). Valencia got back to double digits with two more points from Kalinic forcing coach Bartzokas to a time out (32-43). Prepelic punished Olympiacos with a triple giving Valencia the largest lead of the game (14 points). Harrison got the three point play and both teams headed to the locker rooms with Olympiacos trailing by 13 points (39-52).
Sloukas opened the score in the second half with a big triple, bringing Olympiacos closer to the score (42-52). Livio Jean-Charles added two more points for Olympiacos with the deposit down to 8 points and the Greeks starting the second half strong (44-52). Valencia reacted and seemed to have the control of the game. The Spanish club extended their lead (44-60) but Shaquielle McKissic was trying to keep Olympiacos alive (46-60). Dubljevic was dominant and with seven points in a row was safely leading Valencia. Sloukas on the other hand with his triples was also trying to help his team offensively with Livio-Jean Charles adding another triple and McKissic two more points (54-65). Dubljevic seemed unstoppable firing from all different angles, with Derrick Williams supporting his teammate with another triple (54-71). Big bucket from Sloukas, kept Olympiacos alive (59-71) with McKissic adding two more points leading his team to a comeback (61-71). Shaquielle McKissic with the highlight of the match and the reverse dunk, brought Olympiacos closer to the score, (65-74) and the difference to single digits. Valencia had the last possession of the quarter, scored two points and ended the third quarter leading by 11 points (65-76).
In the fourth quarter, Olympiacos had one last chance to return and get the most out of the match. A triple from McKissic was a great start for the Greeks but Tobey and Kalinic were safely leading Valencia to the win (68-80). Jean-Charles scored for two, Larentzakis missed the triple but Jean-Charles again stole the ball from Van Rossom. Back-to-back turnovers from both teams led Williams with a spectacular two point play (72-82). Turnover by Martin Hermannsson gave Olympiacos the possession. The “reds” missed the shot but Vezenkov was there with a big offensive foul. Vezenkov made one out of two free throws and Olympiacos was trailing by 8 (74-82). Mike Tobey scored for two for Valencia, Jean Charles replied but Williams registered another basket for the guests. (76-86). Sloukas fired the triple and got the difference down to 9 points with more that one minute remaining (81-90). Dubljevic scored two free throws (81-92) with Shaqielle McKissic adding two more for Olympiacos (83-92).
