MUNICH (Germany) - Two games in Group L went down to the wire on Tuesday night as another undefeated record went tumbling.
Bilbao Basket kept their perfect start in tact at the expense of Cholet Basket's, while Banco di Sardegna Sassari have gone from being perfect in the Regular Season to an early 0-2 hole.
There are five more games on Wednesday, with another on Thursday as the action heats up to close out the calendar year.
Key Storylines
Bilbao remains perfect after winning another unbeaten battle;
Le Portel pile pressure on Sassari;
Unbeaten Tofas head to Portugal in Wednesday's slate.
Weekly Highs
Efficiency: Thijs De Ridder (Bilbao Basket) - 27 Points: Thijs De Ridder (Bilbao Basket) - 22 Rebounds: Bastien Vautier (Cholet Basket) - 10 Assists: Justin Bibbins (Banco di Sardegna Sassari) - 7 Steals: Lahaou Konate (ESSM Le Portel) - 4 Blocks: Brian Fobbs (Banco di Sardegna Sassari) - 3
Bilbao remains perfect, Le Portel keep Sassari winless
Bilbao Basket improved to 2-0 in Group L thanks to a hard-fought 95-88 win over Cholet Basket, who suffered their first loss of the FIBA Europe Cup season.
Holding a slender 49-48 lead at the break, Bilbao managed to keep their advantage for most of the second half and just had enough to keep a stubborn Cholet side at bay.
Thijs De Ridder shot a solid 10-for-15 from the field, leading the Spanish side with 22 points and 8 rebounds, while Chris-Ebou Ndow led Cholet with 21 points - shooting a perfect 7-of-7 from the field.
ESSM Le Portel grabbed their first win of the Second Round with an 83-76 success over Banco di Sardegna Sassari, who suffered their second loss in Group L after going unbeaten in the Regular Season
In a first half with 10 lead changes, the French side used a 22-16 fourth-quarter surge to secure the win in a closely contested battle throughout. John Nunge and Digue Diawara both had 19 points to lead Le Portel with Lahaou Konate adding 18.
Brian Fobbs led Sassari with 12 points in a balanced scoring effort from the Italians that ultimately proved futile.
FIBA