Vezenkov and Sloukas' Olympiacos complete a clutch 10-0 run to overcome Milan / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Panagiotis Moschandreou/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Panagiotis Moschandreou/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

In a matchup between two of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague juggernauts, Olympiacos Piraeus (15-9) edged out AX Armani Exchange Milan (17-8) in Greece 67-58 (7-15, 18-12, 14-16, 28-15).

Player of the Game EFF 20 Aleksandr Vezenkov Points 16 Accuracy 6-11 Rebounds 5 Assists 1

After trailing for most of the game, Shaquielle McKissic finally managed to put Olympiacos up in the fourth quarter (48-47). Kostas Sloukas caught fire, draining two consecutive 3-pointer to give the hosts their largest lead (56-50).

Sasha Vezenkov added four straight points, completing a 10-0 Olympiacos run (66-53) and helping the hosts to a nine-point victory.

Vezenkov led Olympiacos with 16 points (5/6 2PT, 1/5 3PT, 3/5 FT), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, and 20 PIR. Sloukas added 16 points as well (1/3 2PT, 2/5 3PT, 8/9 FT), 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers, and 18 PIR. He had nine points in the fourth quarter alone.

"I am very happy," Vezenkov admitted post-game. "We played great on defense and I think it is one of our best games on defense this year. Honestly, we were a little bit empty the first two days [after winning the Greek Cup] and we saw that in the first half. So in the second half, we played better, we showed more energy and won this game."

Devon Hall was the leading scorer for Milan, finishing with 15 points (4/5 2PT, 2/3 3PT, 1/1 FT), 2 rebounds, 2 turnovers, and 14 PIR.

Konstantinos Mitoglou returned to action after a three-month absence. He contributed 8 points (4/6 2PT, 0/1 3PT), 2 rebounds, 1 block, 2 turnovers, and 5 PIR.

It was an abysmal first quarter for Olympiacos, as they only managed seven points, scoring just a single point during the last four minutes of the period. Milan had an eight-point advantage after one (15-7).

The visitors increased their lead to double digits in the second (21-9), but Olympiacos mustered an 8-0 run towards the end of the period, cutting their deficit to two in a low-scoring first half (25-27).

Kyle Hines helped Milan regain an eight-point advantage in the third (37-29), but the hosts didn't allow them to run away, coming within four going into the fourth period (39-43).

"It was one of the worst games of the season, but even in these games, you need to finally manage to win," coach Bartzokas said. "Both teams were coming from a difficult week, having a lot of pressure to win cup titles. It looked like we were without energy, without motivation. But finally, we found our rhythm in passing, and defended well."

Olympiacos: Sasha Vezenkov 16 (5 REB), Kostas Sloukas 16, Shaquielle McKissic 14, Moustapha Fall 12 (7 REB), Tyler Dorsey 6, Thomas Walkup 2.

Milan: Devon Hall 15, Nicolo Melli 9 (11 REB), Malcolm Delaney 8 (5 AST), Konstantinos Mitoglou 8, Kyle Hines 7, Luigi Datome 5.

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