BC Donetsk sent a message that echoed all around the Eurocup Last 16 by downing Asvel Basket 75-86 on the road in Group J on Tuesday. Donetsk registered its fifth consecutive win in the competition and ties with BC Khimki atop the Group J standings. Ramel Curry led the winners with 18 points and 6 assists. Ivan Radenovic added 16 points, Michael Lee had 13 while Vyacheslav Kravtsov had 12 for Donetsk. Hilton Armstrong led Asvel with 21 points on 8-of-9 two-pointers. Dijon Thompson added 16 while Phil Goss got 10 for Asvel, that used a 13-0 run to get a 20-15 margin midway late in the first quarter. A 2-12 run that Curry capped with a three-pointer made Donetsk gave the lead for good, 22-27. Goss and Thompson brought Asvel within 41-43 at halftime. Donetsk opened the third quarter with a 2-10 run and an outstanding Radenovic have his team a 49-61 margin. Nothing changed from that moment, as Donetsk managed to keep a safe lead all the way until the final buzzer.

Edwin Jackson got Asvel going with an easy basket off a steal but Radenovic took over with 6 unanswered points to give Donetsk a 2-6 margin. Kravtsov capped a 0-8 run with a dunk and Lee matched Thompson's jumper with a layup for a 4-10 score. Thompson and Vule Avdalovic traded triples and free throws by Lee boosted the guests' lead to 7-15. It didn't last long, however, as Armstrong shined with a three-point play in an 13-0 run in which Leo Westermann and Goss struck from downtown for a 20-15 Asvel margin. Back-to-back layups by Maksym Pustozvonov and Curry brought Donetsk within 20-19 after 10 minutes. Asvel struggled to score early in the second quarter. Meanwhile, an unstoppable Kravtsov and a three-pointer by Curry allowed Donetsk to regain the lead, 22-27, after a 2-12 run. Armstrong shined with a dunk but Radenovic bettered it with a triple and Darnell Jackson slammed it for a 26-32 Donetsk lead. Jackson tried to change things with a put-back basket and a layup by Thompson brought Asvel within 30-33. Dmytro Gliebov struck from downtown and a three-point play by Lee kept the guests out of trouble at 32-39. Goss and Thompson shined late in the first half to bring Asvel within 41-43 at the break.

Radenovic shined with a three-point play right after halftime and Curry bettered Kim Tillie's layup with a triple, good for a 43-49 Donetsk lead. Lee followed a jumper with a put-back layup to make it a double-digit game, 43-53. Thompson sank a jumper and Goss added a layup by Kravtsov followed free throws with a dunk for a 47-57 score. Donetsk kept running its offense through Radenovic, who singlehandedly gave his team a 49-61 margin. Armstrong and Curry traded baskets but a jumper by Thompson and a dunk by Paul Lacombe gave Asvel some hope at 55-63. A jumper by Curry and a layup by Westermann fixed the score at 57-65 after 30 minutes. Curry downed a triple early in the fourth quarter and a dunk by Gliebov broke the game open, 57-70. Armstrong and Thompson tried to change things for Asvel and free throws by Tillie got the hosts as close as 64-72. Armstrong followed a jumper with a layup but an easy basket by Kravtsov and three-pointers by Curry and Avdalovic kept Donetsk out of trouble, 68-80, with under 6 minutes to go. Donetsk improved its defense right when it mattered and Pustozvonov buried a triple that sealed the outcome, 70-84, as Asvel did not recover in the final 2 minutes.