Benetton Bwin improved its chances to reach the Eurocup Quarterfinals in competitive Last 16 Group L by downing Panellinios BC 75-83 in Lamia, Greece on Tuesday. Benetton improved to 2-1 in Group K the day it was announced that Treviso will host the Eurocup Finals in mid-April. Panellinios dropped to 0-3 and is already in a do-or-die situation. Devin Smith led the winners with 22 points against his former team, which he helped to reach the Eurocup Finals last season. Massimo Bulleri added 12, Hrvoje Peric had 11 while Donatas Motiejunas got 10 for Benetton. Torin Francis led Panellinios with 29 points on 11-of-11 two-pointers and 10 rebounds. Steven Smith added 16 points for the hosts. Benetton downed 9 three-pointers in the first half to get a 40-54 halftime margin. Francis and Smith brought Panellinios within 63-66 late in the third quarter but Smith had 5 points in a 0-9 run that sealed the outcome minutes before the final buzzer.

Motiejunas got Benetton going with a layup and Smith struck from downtown for a 0-5 lead. Francis rescued Panellinios with 4 points in a quick 6-0 run. Peric buried a three-pointer and a jumper by Brian Skinner quickly restored a 6-10 Benetton margin. Francis followed foul shots with a layup but Smith sank his second triple for a 10-13 score. An unstoppable Francis took over with a dunk but Smith had 5 points in a 0-6 that kept the guests out of trouble, 12-19. A three-pointer by Bulleri and free throws by Alessandro Gentile gave Benetton a 17-24 edge after 10 minutes. Greg Brunner scored twice down low and soon added a dunk to make it a double-digit game, 19-30, early in the second quarter. Ostojic hit free throws and Smith added a layup-plus-foul but Skinner and another triple by Smith kept the guests out of trouble, 24-35. Ryan Toolson and Joseph Krabbenhoft joined the three-point shootout but Motiejunas and an unstoppable Smith soon boosted Benetton's lead to 31-45. Another triple by Bulleri forced Panellinios to call timeout at 31-48. Krabbenhoft struck again from downtown but a jumper by Bulleri and a triple by Stefan Markovic made it a 19-point game, 34-53. Back-to-back baskets by Francis and free throws by Georgios Kalaitzis got Panelliios within 40-54 at halftime.

Samo Udrih sank a jumper right after the break and a layup by Smith gave Panellinios some hope at 44-54. Peric followed a layup with a jumper but Smith struck from downtown and Francis got the hosts within single digits, 49-58. Bulleri and Skinner shined in a 0-5 run that gave Benetton some fresh air at 49-63. Francis stepped up with another layup, Francis and Kalatizis added free throws and a layup by Manolis Papamakarios brought Panellinios back to life, 58-64. Peric scored again but Francis shined with a put-back basket and fed Smith for a triple that brought Panellinios within 63-66. A dunk by Peric fixed the score at 63-68 after 30 minutes. Brunner scored down low early in the fourth quarter while Smith followed a jumper with a bomb from downtown that made Benetton regain a double-digit lead, 63-75, after a 0-9 run. Ostojic tried to change things with a layup but he didn't much help around. Meanwhile, a jumper by Toolson and a layup by Bulleri sealed the outcome, 65-79, with 4 minutes left. Nothing changed since that moment, as Benetton kept excelling in defense and used long possessions to run the game clock down to return back home with a quality road win.