By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Although Olympiacos didn’t see captain Vassilis Spanoulis returning, as was the initial plan, they put some rock-solid defensive effort on the floor thanks to which they defeated Valencia 72 – 64 on the road.
CHECK THE FULL STATISTICS OF THE GAME HERE
This victory keeps the Reds at the top spot of the standings with a 8 – 2 record while Valencia suffered its sixth consecutive EuroLeague loss and dropped to 3 – 7, despite the feats of former Olympiacos player Erick Green (a game-high 26 points, 10/17 from the field)
Olympiacos held the lead from start, preserving an advantage thanks to Kostas Papanikolaou’s all-around efforts (13 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) but pretty much secured the victory after Janis Strelnieks (12 points) hit five consecutive points that made a double-digit affair, 68 – 58 for his team with less than three minutes remaining.
Valencia went scoreless for the next two minutes and then Giorgos Printezis sealed the deal for his team with a basket for the 58 – 70, capping a double-double performance of 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds (including career-best 7 offensive boards).
Tibor Pleiss inflicted some damage to the Greek team’s defenses after the pick n’ roll, finishing with 14 points plus 8 rebounds and was responsible for Valencia approaching 58 – 63 in the mid of the fourth period. But that was as close as the Spanish League champions went.