Aykon TED Ankara Kolejliler stayed in the race to reach the Last 32 in Group F and grabbed its third consecutive win by downing PAOK Thessaloniki 84-65 at home on Wednesday. Ankara improved to 4-4 in Group F and is one win behind PAOK and Khimik Yuzhne, which tie for second place at 5-3 apiece. Clay Tucker paced the winners with 24 points. Kristaps Valters added 15, Vladimir Golubovic got 12 and 13 rebounds for yet another double-double Vanja Plisnic had 11 points for Ankara. Giorgos Bogris led PAOK with 19 points. Mark Payne added 16 and DJ Cooper got 15 and 13 assists - tying with Dusan Djordjevic of Telenet Ostend and Travis Diener of Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari for a 2013-14 Eurocup season-high - for PAOK. Valters and Plisnic led a 17-2 run which put Ankara ahead for good. Ankara boosted its margin to 28-7 after 10 minutes and then again to 48-18 at halftime behind an outstanding Tucker. PAOK tried to change things in the second half but it was already too little, too late for the guests.

Valters struck twice from downtown in a 12-0 opening run which Caner Erdeniz capped with a jumper. Payne hit a jumper but Plasnic forced the guests to call a second timeout at 17-2. Georgios Dedas struck from downtown but Valters and Golubovic soon made it a 21-point game, 26-5. A layup by Michalis Tsairelis and a put-back basket by Golubovic fixed the score at 28-7 after 10 minutes. Tucker downed a triple early in the second quarter and Golubovic scored again to break the game open, 34-7. Bogris tried to ignite PAOK's comeback with a layup-plus-foul but Tucker kept Ankara way ahead, 39-13. A buzzer-beating three-pointer by an unstoppable Tucker boosted the hosts' lead to 48-18 at halftime. Goran Vucicevic hit a triple after the break and an outstanding Bogris brought PAOK a bit closer, 51-29. Valters hit a jumper and Golubovic scored again but Bogris got help from Payne for a 58-37 PAOK deficit. A three-pointer by Cooper made it a 16-point game, 58-42, late in the third quarter. Tucker stepped up for the hosts and a layup by Davud Kamer gave Ankara a 66-44 lead after 30 minutes. Tucker kept scoring fluidly early in the fourth quarter and even when Bogris and Cooper tried to get PAOK back in the game, it was already too late. Ankara cruised to what could be a pivotal win, but PAOK left the Turkish capital knowing that its chances to advance still depend on its own results.