Union Olimpija Ljubljana started its Eurocup season in style by downing Cimberio Varese 67-59 in Group C. A 14-6 clsing run and 53 rebounds pulled down against 32 made the difference for the hosts, who were led by 15 points and 6 rebounds from Sasu Salin and 14 points and 11 rebounds amassed by Deividas Gailius. Alex Stephenson pulled down 12 rebounds for the winners. Keydren Clark scored 12 for the guests, Aubrey Coleman and Marko Scekic added 10 each and Frank Hassell grabbed 9 boards.

Union Olimpija started with the game’s first 5 points, but a an Ebi Ere slam soon tied the score at 12-12. Dusan Sakota’s trademark three-point shot gave Varese a 16-18 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Andrea De Nicolao scored 5 points in a row for a 19-27 advantage for the visitors. Clark from mid-range made it 23-32, before Salin cut the difference to 30-32. Marko Scekic fixed the difference at 30-34 for Varese at halftime. Alen Omic gave a 41-36 margin to Olimpjia with a dunk, but the guests reacted with 8 unanswered points to take the lead, 41-44, on a Sakota long-distance bomb. An Aubrey Coleman jumper put Varese ahead on 46-48 at the end of the third quarter. The score was tied three times in the first four minutes of the last game, the last at 53-53. Gailius pushed the home team to 59-53 with an easy layup in the open court. Ere tried to push his side closer on 59-57 with a jam, but a three-point-play by Kodi Augustus and a dunk by Stephenson raised the margin for the home team to 66-59 and sealed Olimpija’s win.