MIES (Switzerland) - Most of the time, January feels infinitely long. But don't worry: we have now become used to figuring out how time passes at the beginning of the year.
We know we're entering the latest stage of the month as the Round of 16 in the Basketball Champions League, powered by Ameresco SUNEL, begins. Tuesday night was another remarkable one.
Dreamland Gran Canaria 71-77 Pallacanestro Trieste
Only one team has ever won their first seven games played in the BCL: Virtus Bologna, back in 2018-19.
On Tuesday, Dreamland Gran Canaria had the opportunity to join them, but another Italian team prevented that from happening.
After an eventful Play-Ins, Pallacanestro Trieste started the Round of 16 with a shocking 77-71 road win.
In a game where defenses shone, featuring 13 different lead changes, Trieste won it by slight details. Despite being outrebounded 46-35 by the hosts, Israel Gonzalez's team emerged victorious.
Jahmi'us Ramsey had 21 points to propel the guests in their first-ever Sweet 16 game; Juan Toscano-Anderson had an all-around night at 11 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds.
One week after achieving Trieste's qualification with the decisive tip-in against NHSZ-Szolnoki Olajbanyasz in Hungary, Jeff Brooks had 10 points and 6 rebounds in Gran Canaria.
"Gran Canaria is a great team, they have a lot of size, a lotta experience. For us to come in tonight and for us to win in a spot like this is huge for us. I think every night in the BCL you need to prove that you deserve to be in one of these spots and I think we did that tonight," Brooks said.
Pierre Pelos (19 points over 7-of-7 from the field) and Mike Tobey (8 points and 12 rebounds) were the best ones for Jaka Lakovic's team.
Finally, Kassius Robertson marked their debut with the Spanish side, but struggled from the field (3-of-11) for only 11 points.
Tofas Bursa 90-94 ALBA Berlin
Before Tuesday night, Tofas Bursa had won six of their last seven home games in the Round of 16. In front of the green-and-blue fans, the Turkish team are playing on another level.
It was the same to start this season's Sweet 16 for 29:40 minutes against ALBA BERLIN, but there's a reason why Pedro Calles' team entered this stage on a five-game winning streak in the competition. Make it six now.
First by erasing a 13-point deficit and then completing a 12-0 run after being down 68-60 at the end of the third, the German team escaped with the 94-90 victory in Group J from Tofas Spor Salonu.
This was another great showing for the 19-year-old German point guard Jack Kayil, who's emerging as ALBA's head of the snake. He had 16 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds among clutch plays in the second half.
Overall, five players concluded in double-digits for ALBA, led by Malte Delow at 18 points. They were joined by J'Wan Roberts (13), Martin Hermannsson (12 with 8 assists), and Moses Wood (10).
Jordan Floyd came up with a 21-point losing effort, which included four three-pointers scored in less than five minutes in the third quarter. Keep in mind that he joined the Turkish team during the season.
Alex Perez flirted once again with a double-double at 23 points and 8 assists, while Marek Blazevic was successful in doing so by adding 12 points and 11 rebounds. Hugo Besson posted 15 points too.
We came out not unprepared, but maybe a bit shocked. It was a different kind of opponent from what we faced so far.
Two more teams in Group J are waiting for their first victory in this season's Round of 16; on Wednesday night at 18:00 CET, one between AEK BC and Karditsa Iaponiki will come out on top in the Greek derby.
Rytas Vilnius 106-81 Hapoel Netanel Holon
From a balanced and well-battled clash in Bursa to a no-contest in Lithuania.
Hapoel Netanel Holon survived Rytas Vilnius' motion-flowing offense up until the end of the first quarter, and then suffered the red-and-black side's overwhelming force, losing 106-81 on the road.
Rytas completely dominated the encounter, especially at the glass. They outrebounded Holon 51-31, grabbing 21 offensive rebounds and converting as many as 28 second-chance points.
Jordan Walker had 20 points and 7 assists in the win, but five more players finished in double-digits.
One of the newest faces in town, Jordan Caroline, went close to a double-double with 13 points and 9 rebounds. Arturas Gudaitis (14), Jerrick Harding (13), Kay Bruhnke (11), and Simonas Lukosius (11) followed.
Xavier Munford's 23 points weren't enough for the Israeli side, which still managed to finish the night on a high note from beyond the arc. Overall, Holon shot 10-of-22 from three-point range.
Galatasaray MCT Technic and Le Mans Sarthe Basket will sum up the action in Group I, facing off on Wednesday night at 18:00 CET in Istanbul for their first game of the Round of 16 in Season X.
La Laguna Tenerife 104-80 ERA Nymburk
The last time La Laguna Tenerife played at home in the BCL, Trapani Shark turned the impossible into reality: beating the two-time competition's champions on the road on the Island.
Heading to the Round of 16, ERA Nymburk were on a four-game winning streak away from home, and thought about repeating the Italian team's feat. Their dream lasted only for the first half.
Returning to the court from halftime with a 30-13 run, Txus Vidorreta's team perfectly bounced back, beating ERA Nymburk 104-80. After two straight losses, the Spanish side returned to victory.
It wasn't the sole return of the night, as Marcelinho Huertas marked his appearance once again on the BCL court for the first time since November 11. He finished with 17 points and 5 assists.
Rokas Giedraitis did it all on Tuesday night, finishing with 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 steals; Aaron Doornekamp, moreover, had a stellar night from deep (6-of-8), helping Tenerife with an 18-point effort.
On the losing side, Vojtech Hruban had a team-high 16 points, while Ondrej Sehnal concluded with 11 points and 7 assists.
Returning to action after missing Game 2 of the Play-Ins, Sir' Jabari Rice only posted 9 points.
Tenerife will play at home once again in their second game in the Round of 16, hosting Trieste on January 28 at 21:00 CET. Nymburk, instead, will return to Czechia to welcome Gran Canaria on January 27 at 18:30 CET.