Olympiacos Piraeus finished a perfect double-round week by defeating Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv 89-85 on Thursday at Arena 8888 Sofia, clinching a top-four finish and home-court advantage for the 2025-26 EuroLeague Playoffs. It was the Reds’ fifth win in six games, even with Evan Fournier, Tyrique Jones, Monte Morris and Frank Ntilikina sidelined.
Hapoel opened fast with an 11-0 run, but Olympiacos answered with a 15-0 burst to take control of the first half. The visitors led 41-38 at halftime, then kept their composure after a high-scoring second quarter turned the game into a tight playoff-style battle.
Sasha Vezenkov struggled early in his native country and was held scoreless in the first half, but he changed the game after the break. The Olympiacos forward scored 10 of his team’s 22 third-quarter points to help his side carry a 73-67 lead into the fourth.
Moustapha Fall also delivered in a big way in his return from a 10-month injury absence. The center did not just provide a highlight-reel block on Vasilije Micic in the second quarter; he also made his biggest impact late by protecting the paint and creating second chances on the glass.
Tyler Dorsey led the way offensively with 23 points and five assists, coming less than 48 hours after a career-high 37-point outing that earned him Round 36 MVP honors. He was backed by a balanced effort, with eight Olympiacos players scoring at least six points.
Olympiacos won the rebounding battle 40-32 and collected 15 second-chance points, including five offensive boards in the fourth quarter. Alec Peters added 11 points and a season-high eight rebounds, and his putback with 49 seconds left pushed the Reds ahead 88-84.
After allowing 30 points in the second quarter, Olympiacos tightened up defensively and held Hapoel under 20 in each of the last two periods.
The result lifts Olympiacos to 25-12 in the standings and guarantees home-court advantage in the upcoming playoff series. Bartzokas’s team will close the regular season at home against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan on April 16.
Hapoel, now 22-14, continues its late-season schedule with a postponed Round 30 game against Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv on April 12 before traveling to face AS Monaco on April 17.
