In the 14th round of the EuroCup, Besiktas visited Venice in a duel that was only resolved after overtime. The triumph went to the Italian team with a score of 106:96.
This was one of the most interesting games in today’s schedule of the second-tier competition on the Old Continent.
In the first quarter, we witnessed several lead changes, but Venezia managed to take the lead, gaining a six-point advantage. The Turkish team responded, and after ten minutes of play, the score was only 20:18.
In the second quarter, the home team displayed a shooting spectacle. They hit an impressive five three-pointers out of six attempts, with Kyle Wiltjer shining from all angles. Venezia built an 18-point lead (46:28). Dusan AlimpijevicΒ tried to motivate his team. Three minutes before the end of the first half, during a timeout, he delivered an inspiring speech, hinting at a comeback, which later materialized:
“We discussed it in the video analysis. All the games they lost, they lost in the second half. We need to get closer.” The team responded to the motivational talk as much as they could at that moment, trailing 52:38 at halftime.
This was Dusan Alimpijevic's time-out when Besiktas was losing by 46:30 to Venezia in the first half.
— Basketball Sphere (@BSphere_) January 10, 2024
"They lost all the games, like I said on the meeting, in second half"
Besiktas indeed made a comeback, had a six-point lead with 75 seconds left, but lost in overtime.
WOW! π± pic.twitter.com/S2rQiCh8oM
In the second half, a completely different picture unfolded on the court. Derek Needham unleashed his skills, Jonah Matthews played excellently, and Angel Delgado established rebounding dominance on both ends of the court. By the end of the third quarter, the deficit was in single digits (67:59), and in the decisive quarter, Besiktas completely turned the game around.
They led 89:83 with one minute and 17 seconds left, but Venezia managed to equalize. Derek Needham then missed two shots for the win, leading to overtime. Wiltjer scored an impressive nine points in overtime, making it clear that with much more concentration and better shooting performance, Venezia would ultimately secure the win.