Olympiacos Piraeus finally broke a nine-year road curse in Istanbul by defeating Anadolu Efes Istanbul 74-68 on Thursday night, extending the Turkish side’s losing streak to eight games in the 2025-26 EuroLeague season.
The victory, Olympiacos’ first away against Efes since 2017, came in front of a sold-out crowd at the Turkcell Basketball Development Center and reinforced the Greek club’s strong recent form in continental play.
Only Kostas Papanikolaou and Nikola Milutinov remain from the last Olympiacos team to win in Istanbul, with Milutinov sidelined this time due to concussion protocols.
The visitors set the tone early, opening the game with an 0-8 run as Tyler Dorsey knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to quiet the crowd.
Olympiacos continued to dictate the tempo in the first quarter, with Sasha Vezenkov scoring 12 points to push the lead to 25-13 after 10 minutes.
The Reds maintained control in the second quarter through disciplined defense and ball movement, stretching the margin to 48-31 at halftime behind efficient bench production from Donta Hall and Tyson Ward.
Efes responded after the break, tightening its defense and limiting one of the league’s most productive offenses to just 10 points in the third quarter.
Saben Lee sparked the hosts midway through the fourth, scoring five quick points to cut the deficit to 63-61 and bring the building back to life.
A timely timeout by head coach Georgios Bartzokas steadied Olympiacos, which answered with a decisive 0-8 run to regain control.
Thomas Walkup delivered the pivotal blow with a contested three-pointer, followed by baskets from Vezenkov and Dorsey to make it 71-61 with under two minutes remaining.
Walkup logged more than 33 minutes due to injuries to Frank Ntilikina and Monte Morris and finished with six points, nine assists, four rebounds, and a steal.
The guard has now hit 8 of his last 11 attempts from beyond the arc over the past three games after struggling from deep earlier in the season.
Vezenkov led all scorers with 19 points, while Dorsey and Evan Fournier added 11 apiece as Olympiacos improved to 15-8 and stayed fourth in the standings.
Efes, now 6-18 and last in the table, was led by PJ Dozier’s 16 points and continues to search for answers under head coach Pablo Laso.
Olympiacos next hosts FC Barcelona, while Efes prepares for a Turkish derby against Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul.
