Allianz Swans Gmunden took a very important step forwards to stay in the fight for a elimination rounds spot in Group E by edging Hapoel Galil Elyon 90-83 in Austria on Tuesday. Swans improved to 3-3 in Group E while Galil Elyon dropped to 1-5 and needs a major turnaround to keep its options alive. Deteri Mayes paced the winners with 29 points on 8-for-13 two-pointers. He had 9 points in the final 3 minutes to make Gmunden seal the outcome. Peter Hutter added 25 points, Kevin Johnson had 13, Ian Boylan 11 and Matthias Mayer 10 for Swans. Doron Sheffer had 28 points for Hapoel Galil Elyon. He was just one point shy from his ULEB Cup career-high record. Gil Mossinson added 19 points for the guests, that led 22-28 after 10 minutes and boosted its margin to 35-47 late in the second quarter. Hutter and Mayer brought Gmunden back to life, 33-36, at halftime. Mayes allowed the hosts to complete their comeback, 52-50, midway through the third quarter, and the game turned into a thriller from that moment. Sheffer gave Galil Elyon its last lead, 78-80. Mayes stepped up with 4 free throws, a put-back layup and a triple in the final 3 minutes to make Gmunden win the game.

As usual, Mayes paced Swans in the early going but Jai Lewis and a three-pointer by Sheffer allowed Galil Elyon to get a 4-7 edge. Johnson scored inside while Hutter added a three-point play to put Gmunden back ahead, 10-9. Mayes and Johnson kept Gmunden in the game, as five lead changes took place before Cliff Brown's consecutive three-point plays gave Galil Elyon a 17-22 edge. Sheffer and Mossinson allowed the guests to stay ahead, 22-28, after 10 minutes. Galil Elyon kept controlling the game, as back-to-back baskets by Yogev Ohayon made it an eight-point game, 26-34. Ian Boylan and Mayes got Swans within 33-36 but the guests did not panic. Aaron Nixon was the key factor in a 0-8 run that gave the guests a 35-47 margin. Mayes and Matthias Mayer combined for 9 points in a 11-2 run that brought Gmunden back to life, 46-49, at halftime. Hutter and Mayes helped Swans to complete its comeback, 52-50, early in the third quarter. Galil Elyon found a go-to guy in Sheffer, who buried 3 consecutive triples to give his team a 56-61 lead. Sheffer kept pacing Galil Elyon with another basket but Hutter scored from downtown and Boylan added a basket that put Gmunden back ahead, 65-64. Hutter stayed on fire to extend the hosts' lead to 72-68 after 30 minutes. Lewis stepped up for Galil Elyon in the fourth quarter to get the guests within 75-73. Mayes stroke from downtown but Sheffer had 5 points in a 0-7 run that gave the guests a 78-80 edge. Mayes followed free throws with a triple for a 83-80 Gmunden lead with 3 minutes to go. Hutter and Mossinson traded three-pointers but Galil Elyon went scoreless right when it mattered. Meanwhile, Mayes followed a put-back basket with free throws to make all Gmunden fans carry on dreaming on seeing their team reach the elimination rounds.