Hall and Jones Power Short-Handed Olympiacos Past Besiktas 81-73

By Taki Panos

Short benches usually make for long nights on the road, but Olympiacos found a way to make this one feel almost routine. The reigning EuroLeague champions beat Besiktas 81-73 in Istanbul on Wednesday, October 28, in round eight of the EuroLeague, and they did it without Nikola Milutinov, Evan Fournier, Jean Montero and Tyler Dorsey. The win lifts Georgios Bartzokas's side to 6-2, as Gazzetta and Eurohoops reported, and it ends a short wobble after last week's home defeat.

That defeat still stings a little. Olympiacos had led by 16 at the Sunel Arena last Friday before Fenerbahce came back to win 64-61, and the injury list has only grown since. Fournier and Montero were already sidelined, as we covered when Olympiacos lost Fournier for 20 days, and Milutinov did not even travel to Turkey because of a swollen toe, according to Ethnos, with Eurohoops confirming his absence. Bartzokas called it a game of "special circumstances" before departure, per Ethnos (translated from Greek).

Besiktas started brightly. Jaylen Nowell scored the first six points of the night, but Olympiacos answered with a 15-0 run to lead 15-6, with Tyson Ward and Donta Hall doing the damage around the rim, per Gazzetta and Ajansspor. The hosts clawed back to trail only 25-23 after the first quarter. In the second, the lead changed hands a few times before a strong finish from Tyrique Jones sent Olympiacos into the break up 42-36, as both outlets described.

The third quarter brought the first double-digit cushion. An 8-0 burst made it 50-39, per Gazzetta, and Ajansspor timed that gap at the 24th minute. Besiktas, coached by Dusan Alimpijevic, refused to go away. Conor Morgan led a push that cut the lead to five, and the hosts trailed only 61-58 heading into the final ten minutes. On a night like this, with so few guards available, you could feel the tension rising with every possession.

Then came the scare. With about six minutes left, Besiktas went ahead 68-66 behind Nowell and David DeJulius, as Gazzetta and Ajansspor reported. A tired, short-handed team could easily have folded there. Instead Olympiacos tightened up on defense and forced two quick Besiktas turnovers, Ajansspor noted, then reeled off the points that decided the game. Gazzetta had Olympiacos ten clear at 78-68 with around two and a half minutes to play, while Eurohoops and Agones counted the decisive spurt as an 11-0 run.

The big men made the difference. Sasha Vezenkov led Olympiacos with 16 points, Jones added 15 and Hall had 14, with Ward chipping in 13, per Eurohoops and the box score published by Gazzetta. Gazzetta named Hall its MVP after he went 6 of 7 inside the arc with five rebounds in 20 minutes, and called it Jones's best performance of the season, with 15 points on 7 of 9 two-point shooting, also in 20 minutes. With Milutinov out, that center pairing was exactly what Bartzokas needed.

The ball movement deserves its own line. Olympiacos finished with 26 assists, Gazzetta noted, and Codi Miller-McIntyre ran the offense with nine points and seven assists, per the box score. To Vima praised his organization of the game, and Ta Nea singled out Ward as the standout of the night. On the other side, Nowell scored 15, DeJulius had 12, Morgan 11 and Metecan Birsen 10, according to Eurohoops and Ajansspor. Besiktas are now 3-5.

There was a nice Greek footnote too. Nikos Plotas made his EuroLeague debut and played 11 minutes, as Gazzetta highlighted, and Ta Nea called him the revelation of the night. He did not score, but To Vima pointed out that Bartzokas trusted him even in the closing stretch for his defensive work. For a young Greek forward, there are easier places to start than a loud arena in Istanbul with the game on the line. He held his own, and that matters.

Bartzokas was happy, and honest about the details. "We are very happy. It was another difficult away game. We play a lot of games away from home. Tonight, of course, both teams had significant absences. However, our defense was solid, apart from some details and some communication problems," he said, as ERT Sports and Eurohoops reported (translated from Greek). He added that the creation was excellent, with "26 assists", and that "we just need to be a little smarter to finish games earlier."

He also refused to lean on the injury list. "Right now we do not have players like Fournier, Montero, Milutinov, Dorsey, but we still have team spirit, we came to win, without looking for excuses," Bartzokas said, per Eurohoops (translated from Greek). Gazzetta carried the same message, with the coach saying the team cannot dwell on excuses. The new signing John Konchar, whose arrival we reported when Olympiacos signed Konchar, did not feature in the box score.

The wider picture looks healthy. Panathinaikos lead the standings at 7-1 after their 80-75 home win over Olimpia Milan on Tuesday, and Olympiacos sit in a pack at 6-2 with Valencia and Fenerbahce, per Eurohoops. Gazzetta noted the result put the champions back on the winning track. Turkey national team coach Ergin Ataman watched the game from courtside, Ajansspor reported, a familiar face for Greek basketball fans from his time on the Panathinaikos bench.

My take: this was the kind of win that tells you more about a team than a blowout at home ever could. Olympiacos were missing three guards and their starting center, they lost the lead late, and they still answered with defense and ball movement. Hall and Jones were outstanding, and Vezenkov delivered when it counted. Bartzokas is right that they should have closed it sooner, but I will happily take a road win built on 26 assists.

There is no rest in a double-round week. Olympiacos host Olimpia Milan at the Sunel Arena on Friday, October 30, per ERT Sports, the same Milan side Panathinaikos edged on Tuesday. If you are planning a trip to see a game in Piraeus, our Athens guide has plenty for the rest of your stay. For more on Olympiacos and every Greek team this season, keep an eye on our Greek Sports section. Half a roster, full marks.

Sources: Gazzetta, Eurohoops, Ajansspor, ERT Sports, Ta Nea, To Vima, Agones, Ethnos.

Image: Olympiacos crest, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0).