EUROLEAGUE – El-Amin daggers lift Lietuvos Rytas past Caja Laboral

VITORIA (Euroleague) - Khalid El-Amin capped a frenetic night in the Euroleague Top 16 on Wednesday with a game-winning, buzzer-beating, long three-pointer for Lietuvos Rytas at Caja Laboral.

On a night when rising Spanish star Nikola Mirotic made all four of his three-balls and scored 16 points to lead Real Madrid to victory at Montespaschi Siena, a night when Efes Pilsen travelled to Serbia and got 23 points from Igor Rakocevic to beat Partizan in a packed Belgrade Arena, it was Lietuvos Rytas and El-Amin that provided the biggest stunner.

El-Amin hit four of five shots from long range, the biggest at the death after Mirza Teletovic's bomb with 6.6 seconds to go had tied the game at 86-86.

The American guard finished with 22 points while Bosnia and Herzegovina international Kenan Bajramovic poured in 19.

Aleksandar Trifunovic's team won despite being out-rebounded, 42-25.

The result has left both sides with 1-1 records in Group E.

The new signing of Lietuvos Rytas, DJ Strawberry, was two of four from long range and finished with 12 points and three assists.

Young center Jonas Valanciunas also weighed in with eight points and seven boards in just 16 minutes for the winners.

Lithuania's other giants, BC Zalgiris, put up a brave fight at home to Olympiacos but lost, 71-64.

A pair of national team stars made the headlines in this one, with Greece's Vassilis Spanoulis scoring 17 points for the winners and Lithuania's Martynas Pocius pouring in the same amount for Zalgiris.

Pocius, a bronze-medal winner at last year's FIBA World Championship in Turkey, added six rebounds and four assists.

Olympiacos are 1-1 in Group H and Zalgiris 0-2.

In Group G, Real Madrid and Efes Pilsen are 2-0 following Wednesday wins.

Montepaschi Siena hardly put a foot wrong in the Regular Season with nine victories in 10 games, but they are now 0-2 in the Top 16 after collapsing in the fourth quarter at home to Madrid.

Leading 62-52 heading into the last frame, Montepaschi were outscored 26-6 the rest of the way.

Mirotic was sensational for Ettore Messina's club in the final period, scoring 13 of his team-high 16 points.

The 19-year-old looks to have every chance of making Spain's national team for this summer's EuroBasket when they will try to reach the Final and qualify for the London 2012 Olympics.

Partizan, meanwhile, were roared on by almost 18,000 fans at the Belgrade Arena but came up just short against Efes Pilsen, falling 79-76.

The hosts cut an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to just one but never got over the hump.

They trailed by three after two made free-throws by Turkey international Kerem Tunceri with a little more than eight seconds to go.

Partizan's Curtis Jerrells and Dusan Kecman attempted potential game-tying shots at the end but missed as Partizan fell to 0-2 in the Top 16 and Efes improved to 2-0.

Serbian Rakocevic thrived in the hot atmosphere of his hometown, hitting seven of his 12 shots from the floor. He was three of five from the arc.

FIBA