An 18-2 partial, when the blizzard hit the hardest, earned Barcelona a victory in Piraeus. It was a game full of alternatives against Olympiacos, where Nico Laprovittola (17 points) and Alex Abrines (16), with eight triples between them, commanded the operations for Roger Grimau's team, very much in need of a victory for this entity to give momentum to your new project. [Narrative and statistics (68-77)]

With just four minutes remaining, the Blaugrana saw victory very far away, with a 64-59 victory against the current runner-up of the tournament, driven by the usual electricity in the Palace of Peace and Friendship. After seven consecutive points from Thomas Walkup, the locals seemed to have dealt the final blow to a game where they lost by 15 points (20-35) midway through the second quarter.

At that moment, three consecutive good actions by Barça in defense, led by Jan Vesely, turned the situation around.. Added to the Czech's aggressiveness was the offensive success of Tomas Satoransky, plus the aforementioned Abrines and Laprovittola. Barça, who had defeated Efes in the Palau on the opening day, had Georgios Bartzokas' team on the ropes.

Too many injuries

Grimau's group did not let go, driven by a superb triple from Abrines and the cold blood of Laprovittola, who closed the score to the helplessness of the 12,168 attendees.. Despite recovering Moustapha Fall in the paint, the swollen Helena missed three other important pieces. Because the muscle injuries of Nigel Williams-Goss and Luke Sikma had to be added to the knee injury of Shaquielle McKissic.

Walkup's 14 points, supported by Alec Peters (11) and Nikola Milutinov (10), were of no use because Olympiacos once again showed the nerves of their debut, when they stumbled in extra time in the derby against the hated Panathinaikos. With no time to rest, Barça will visit Partizan on Tuesday at the Stark Arena in Belgrade, where another more than hostile reception awaits.