Barça erase 14-point deficit but fall to Olympiacos in overtime

In their previous game, Barça came close to an upset against champions Olympiacos before losing in overtime. Trailing by 14 points, the Catalans turned the momentum around in the final quarter and took their opponents to the limit. Olympiacos eventually prevailed after five additional minutes dominated by Montero and Ndiaye.

The champions had opened up a 60-74 lead with just over a minute left in the third quarter. Barça fought back with baskets from Parra, Robinson and Gibson, along with a stronger presence on the offensive glass: the team collected 20 offensive rebounds, compared with 25 defensive rebounds. Tyrese Martin scored 17 points, matching Robinson, in what was his best EuroLeague game. Barça’s improvement on the boards — the team had previously been the competition’s worst in that area — helped keep it in the contest.

At 89-92 after a Vezenkov free throw, Olympiacos allowed Robinson to take his shot. His three-pointer, with Donta Hall defending him, made it 92-92 and sent the game to overtime. Vezenkov finished as the game’s leading scorer with 25 points and a performance rating of 38. Ndiaye had 17 points and 7 rebounds; Montero added 13 points and 7 assists. For Barça, Gibson contributed 11 points and 7 assists, Brizuela scored 13, and Nebo posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

After the game, Sekulic said there were «many things still to do well», while welcoming contributions from several players despite Punter’s difficult night: he had 4 points, shooting 2-for-10 from the field. Barça leave defeated, but their comeback and work on the boards pushed the champions to the very limit.