DKV Joventut registered its first road win in Last 16 Group I by edging Le Mans Sarthe Basket 62-70 in France on Tuesday. Joventut improved to 2-1 and ties with Alba Berlin for first place in Group I. Meanwhile, Le Mans went down to 1-2 and ties for third place with Aris BSA 2003. Luka Bogdanovic paced the winners with 13 points against his former team. Clay Tucker and Pere Tomas each added 11 while Kristaps Valters and Edu-Hernandez Sonseca had 10 apiece for Joventut. Dee Spencer led Le Mans with 17 points. Antoine Diot added 8 assists for the hosts. Back-to-back baskets by JP Batista allowed Le Mans to get a 16-11 edge after 10 minutes. Spencer and Zack Wright helped Le Mans to lead 34-31 at halftime and then again 53-48 after 30 minutes. Joventut improved its defense and Bogdanovic, Tucker and Pere Tomas fueled a 0-13 run that put Joventut ahead for good, 53-61. Le Mans managed to get within 62-66 but Bogdanovic and Valters sealed the outcome from the foul line.

Maleye Ndoye got Le Mans going with a close jumper, as Joventut struggled to score in the opening 2 minutes. Antonio Bueno stepped up with a jump hook that Wright matched with a driving layup. Tucker and Spencer traded jumpers and a coast-to-coast basket by David Jelinek gave Joventut its first lead, 6-7. A foul shot by Charles Kahudi and a triple by Spencer put the hosts back ahead, 10-7. Josep Franch took over with a driving layup that Spencer matched with foul shots. Batista scored down low and soon scored over Hernandez-Sonseca to give Le Mans a 16-11 edge after 10 minutes. Hernandez-Sonseca shined with a power layup early in the second quarter but Ndoye matched it with free throws. Christian Eyenga silenced the crowd with a high-flying put-back dunk and soon added foul throws for a 19-17 Joventut deficit. Thierry Rupert and Wright rescued Le Mans with consecutive layups but an easy basket by Bogdanovic and a dunk by Alain Koffi kept the guests within 25-21. Wright dunked it off a Le Mans timeout but Tucker struck from downtown and added a mid-range jumper to bring Joventut within 28-26. Marc Salyers downed a triple but a put-back layup by Tomas and Valters joined the three-point shootout for a 32-31 score. Spencer beat the buzzer with a six-meter jumper to set the crowd on fire, 34-31, at halftime.

Joventut tried its trademark 3-2 zone defense with Koffi on the top the key immediately after the break. Meanwhile, Valters followed a jumper with a three-pointer to put the guests back ahead, 34-36. Batista stepped up with a jumper, igniting a 7-0 run highlighted by Spencer's triple for a 41-36 Le Mans lead. Hernandez-Sonseca downed a three-pointer and soon added a layup to bring Joventut as close as 43-41. Le Mans improved its defense while Rupert and Spencer made it a six-point game, 50-44. Bogdanovic tried to change things for the guests but free throws by Diot and Rupert gave Le Mans a 53-48 edge after 10 minutes. Le Mans tried a zone defense early in the fourth quarter but Bogdanovic and Tomas punished it with consecutive triples for a 53-55 Joventut edge. Tucker provided a highlight with a nine-meter triple and Bogdanovic struck again from downtown to break the game open, 53-61, after a 0-13 run. Rupert and Tomas traded jumpers and a layup-plus-foul by Hernandez-Sonseca sealed the outcome, 55-66, with 4 minutes left. Free throws by Guillaume Yango and a triple by Diot gave Le Mans some hope, 60-66. Free throws by Spencer capped a 7-0 run but it was too little, too late for the hosts. Free throws by Bogdanovic and Valters allowed Joventut to seal an important road win.