Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv showed resilience and composure on Friday night, rallying from a double-digit second-half deficit to defeat LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 81-73 at LDLC Arena and retain first place in the EuroLeague.
The road win lifted the Israeli side to 15-6, keeping it ahead of AS Monaco in the standings, while ASVEL dropped to 6-16 despite controlling long stretches of the contest.
The hosts dictated the tempo early, using physical defense and strong rebounding to take a 38-31 lead into halftime.
ASVEL extended its advantage to 45-33 early in the third quarter as Hapoel missed its first eight three-point attempts and struggled to generate clean looks.
The French side briefly threatened to pull away with a 15-2 run, but its offense stalled as the game wore on and the visitors gradually found their rhythm.
Hapoel leaned heavily on interior efficiency, finishing the night shooting 66.7 percent on two-point attempts while remaining patient despite a difficult night from long range.
Elijah Bryant delivered a standout performance, scoring 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting inside the arc while adding six assists to steady the offense.
Dan Oturu complemented him with a game-high 18 points and seven rebounds, converting 7-of-8 from the field and drawing fouls consistently in the paint.
The visitors finally broke through from deep at a critical moment, hitting two three-pointers in quick succession during the decisive stretch of the fourth quarter.
That surge helped Hapoel turn a narrow deficit into a 77-70 lead, effectively swinging control of the game.
ASVEL received a strong scoring effort from Glynn Watson, who led the home team with 17 points and five assists.
Shaquille Harrison added 14 points, while Melvin Ajinca chipped in 12 off the bench, but the French side ran out of offensive options late.
ASVEL committed 19 turnovers and managed just 73 points despite shooting 60 percent on two-point attempts.
Hapoel now returns home to face Anadolu Efes Istanbul on Tuesday before visiting Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade on Friday.
ASVEL will look to regroup with consecutive home games against Zalgiris Kaunas and FC Barcelona next week.
