Lost at Kaunas after a 50-minute battle
After a grueling 50-minute battle, Olympiacos lost to Zalgiris 99–94 in Lithuania, seeing their EuroLeague record drop to 18–10.
Playing without the injured Sasha Vezenkov and Nikola Milutinov, Olympiacos was led by Evan Fournier, who delivered a stellar performance with 32 points and 9 rebounds, setting two personal EuroLeague career highs. Tyrique Jones was outstanding until fouling out, finishing with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Head coach Giorgos Bartzokas started the game with Walkup, Dorsey, Ward, Peters, and Jones, clearly aiming to make the American big man the main scoring threat. Jones carried over his strong form from the Cup Final second half, scoring 4 quick points and dominating the boards to give Olympiacos a 4–9 lead after 3 minutes. Tyler Dorsey added 7 points from the perimeter, while former Olympiacos player Moses Wright helped Zalgiris balance the game. The first quarter ended tied at 18–18, with Bartzokas rotating his lineup and Thomas Walkup heading to the bench with two fouls.
In the second quarter, it was Fournier’s time to shine. The French star became Olympiacos’ first double-digit scorer, attacking the rim fearlessly and either finishing plays or drawing fouls. Donta Hall stepped up in the frontcourt in Jones’ absence, while Frank Ntilikina provided valuable hustle plays as Olympiacos built a 9-point lead (20–29).
However, Sylvain Francisco and Moses Wright began causing problems for Olympiacos, and Maodo Lo knocked down two threes to help Zalgiris come back before halftime. Jones was once again excellent, closing the half with 9 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Olympiacos went into the break with a narrow 37–39 advantage.
At the start of the second half, everything Jones touched turned to gold. He scored, drew fouls, and dished out assists, remaining the game’s dominant figure until picking up his third foul. Tyson Ward was also impactful, reaching 9 points on 4/5 shooting from the 2-point range. A bucket by Dorsey gave Olympiacos a double-digit lead (43–53) with 5' left in the third quarter.
However, defensive lapses and poor offensive decisions allowed the Lithuanians to cut the deficit to four (51–55 at the 28-minute mark). A triple by Ntilikina helped Olympiacos close the third quarter ahead 51–59.
Early in the fourth quarter, Olympiacos looked ready to seal the game, extending the lead to +11 after free throws by Fournier. However, a series of turnovers brought Zalgiris back into contention. Led by Lo and Williams-Goss, the hosts tied the game at 69–69, while Olympiacos, aside from Fournier, struggled offensively.
The final 3' turned into a thriller, with both teams trading mistakes and tightening their defenses. Bartzokas opted for a small-ball lineup with four guards and Jones, as Peters was off target. Zalgiris took a 73–71 lead from the free-throw line in the final minute, but Jones answered to force overtime. On the final possession, Olympiacos defended Francisco well, but Fournier couldn’t find a shot in the last five seconds, sending the game to overtime.
Both teams maintained the same intensity in the extra period, relying heavily on their perimeter players. Dorsey and Francisco took charge offensively. Zalgiris built a 4-point lead with one minute remaining, but Olympiacos responded to force a second overtime.
During that final stretch, Olympiacos initially went up by five (82–87), but then conceded an 11–2 run to fall behind 93–89. Fournier hit another big shot to reach 32 points, but Zalgiris, powered by a superb long-range performance from Williams-Goss (4/7 from beyond 6.75m), secured a crucial 99–94 victory.
The quarters: 18–18, 37–39, 51–59, 73–73, 82–82, 99–94.
