Winterthur FC Barcelona survived a tough test in Group B by edging Efes Pilsen 79-74 at home on Thursday after trailing much of the game. With the victory, Barcelona lifted its record to 4-5, tied for fifth place with Olympiacos. Efes Pilsen dropped to 6-3 and out of first place to now share second with Maccabi. Michalis Kakiouzis led the winners with 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting and 9 rebounds. Shammond Williams added 18 points and 6 assists, Juan Carlos Navarro scored 16 points and Gianluca Basile 10 for Barcelona. Nikola Prkacin led Efes with 25 points on 11-for-17 shooting and 9 rebounds. Henry Domercant had 17 points and Antonio Granger 10 for the guests, who held a 36-42 halftime edge. A 12-0 run in which Navarro, Kakiouzis and Williams made three-pointers vaulted Barcelona ahead 75-68, but the home fans could not celebrate until Kakiouzis and Williams made 4 free throws in the final 17 seconds.

Barcelona tried to speed up the tempo in the early going with short possessions, but a stop-and-pop three by Popovic gave Efes a 1-3 lead. Williams answered from the right corner and Granger also hit from downtown for Efes while Peker added a layup to push Efes' lead to 5-8 after 4 minutes. Efes dominated the boards, as Peker scored a second-chance basket on his fifth rebound already. Domercant fired in a three which capped a 1-10 run and gave Efes a 5-13 lead. Williams beat the shot clock with a jumper but Domercant immediately matched that in the other end. Michalis Kakiouzis joined the three-point festival and Fucka scored inside for a 12-16 Barcelona deficit after 8 minutes. Domercant stepped up with a basket-plus-foul which Basile erased with his first triple. Prkacin made a layup but free throws by Basile fixed the score at 17-21 after 10 minutes.

Prkacin stayed active with another close basket but Kakiouzis answered with a corner three to get Winterthur FCB within 20-23 early in this quarter. Prkacin - who else? - scored in the paint and Granger nailed his second triple to keep Efes in charge at 22-28. Kakiouzis found another layup but Granger copied him in the other end. Navarro stepped up with a floating jumper and Fucka canned a reverse layup, but Efes kept controlling the boards while Domercant slashed for a 28-34 Efes margin. A red hot Kakiouzis singlehandedly kept Barcelona into the game but Efes kept full control of the game with its aggressive frontcourt highlighted by Prkacin's post moves. He had 4 quick points to make it an eight-point game, 30-38. Kakiouzis followed an easy basket with a put-back layup, but Peker made a third-chance layup and Popovic beat the buzzer with a layup which gave Efes a 37-42 lead at halftime.

Navarro slashed for a quick basket right after the break and Williams added free throws to get the hosts back into the game at 41-42. Barcelona was a different team in defense, while Navarro capped a 6-0 run which a mid-range jumper to give the hosts a 43-42 lead. Prkacin came to the rescue with a fast break layup and Domercant fired in a long jumper to force a Barcelona timeout at 43-46. Popovic kept Efes going with an uncontested layup, but Barcelona soon fired back. Fucka, Bootsy Thornton and Basile combined for 7 quick points to put the hosts in charge, 50-48. Prkacin gave Efes some air with a jump hook and Domercant slashed for a layup to tie it at 52-52. Granger hit a four-meter jumper but Basile answered with an off-balanced shot. Another close basket by Prkacin gave Efes a 54-56 at the end of an outstanding third quarter.

Prkacin kept rolling with a reverse layup but Navarro answered from downtown to keep the hosts within 57-58. Kakiouzis made a short jumper, forcing an Efes timeout at 59-58. Popovic buried a tough jumper which Gonlum followed with a tip-in for a 59-62 Efes lead. Williams fed Fucka for a layup but Prkacin scored again in the low post. Kakiouzis and Domercant exchanged baskets, but Prkacin took over with a reverse layup to give Efes a 63-68 edge. Navarro shined with a fast break triple, igniting a 12-0 run in which Kakiouzis and Williams buried respective bombs from downtown to give Barcelona a 75-68 lead with 2:21 to go. Erden Arslan buried a three which Prkacin followed with a free throw for a 75-72 deficit with 1:27 remaining. Domercant fed Gonlum for a layup to make it a one-point game at 75-74. Navarro missed a seven-meter three, but Kakiouzis grabbed the offensive rebound, drew a foul and hit free throws for a 77-74 Barcelona lead with 16.4 seconds remaining. Popovic was next to the line, but missed both attempts, while Williams sealed the win with foul shots with 5.4 seconds to go.