Dragons visit unbeaten Aris in Thessaloniki

Cedevita Olimpija will face Aris Thessaloniki on Wednesday at 18.30 Slovenian time at Nick Galis Hall in Thessaloniki. In Round 5 of the BKT EuroCup regular season, the Dragons take on the Group A leaders, who are still unbeaten in the new European campaign. The game will be broadcast live on Šport TV 1.

The Ljubljana side head into their third European road trip of the season after two consecutive home defeats at Stožice. Last Wednesday they lost 84:66 to Le Mans in the BKT EuroCup, and on Saturday they fell 81:95 to Budućnost VOLI in Round 5 of the first phase of the AdmiralBet ABA League. After four rounds they are still without a win in Group A, so the main goal in Thessaloniki will be to end their European losing streak.

Aris come into the game in excellent form. The Greek club has won all four of its BKT EuroCup games and has won six in a row across all competitions. Cedevita Olimpija, however, won all four meetings between the two teams over the last two seasons, including two in Thessaloniki.

Cedevita Olimpija travelled without head coach Zvezdan Mitrović, who suffered a calf injury during the regional league game against Igokea. His assistant, Đorđe Adžić, will therefore lead the team from the bench. Adžić will be without Miha Cerkvenik through illness, Jayce Johnson with an ankle injury, Cameron Houindo, who is still recovering from a blow to the head sustained against Hapoel, and Brandon Murray, who is sidelined with a shoulder injury.

TV BROADCAST:

The game will be broadcast live on Šport TV 1. The studio coverage will begin at 17.45.

PRE-GAME STATEMENTS:

“Aris are considered one of the main favourites in our group and one of the contenders to win the EuroCup. Their team underwent significant changes ahead of this season. Once again, we expect a loud atmosphere created by their fans. We hope that will give us an extra push to raise our level of play at both ends of the court. It is important that we bring the competitive spirit back into our game and improve our focus throughout the full 40 minutes,” said Cedevita Olimpija assistant coach Đorđe Adžić ahead of the game.

“We have to play tough, stay true to our game and be physical. We know we’re not at full strength, but we’ll give everything we have and try to get the win. We showed some good things in our last two home games. We’ve improved our one-on-one defense, we’re doing a better job of containing ball handlers and we’re tougher defending screens. Now we need to take all of that to a higher level, because a demanding game against Aris awaits us on Wednesday,” said Matthew Hurt before the trip to Thessaloniki.

GAME PREVIEW:

Cedevita Olimpija opened the European season with a narrow loss in Burgos (81:85), then lost at Stožice to Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem (64:75), in Riga to Rīga Zeļļi (79:89) and last Wednesday to Le Mans (66:84). The French side led by five at halftime at Stožice and by 19 heading into the fourth quarter. Matthew Hurt led the Dragons with 12 points, while Jordan Gainey added 11. Cedevita Olimpija’s top scorer in the BKT EuroCup so far is Anthony Cowan Jr. with 14.5 points per game, including a season-high 23 in Riga.

In the AdmiralBet ABA League, the Dragons are 2–2 after four games. They opened the regional season with a win over Cibona at Tivoli (89:76), lost 69:70 to Široki TT Kabeli in Široki Brijeg, and beat Igokea m:tel 93:81 in Laktaši. On Saturday, in a pink-themed Stožice, Budućnost VOLI were the better team, leading from the opening minutes to the final buzzer. Rihards Lomažs led the Dragons with 18 points, Matthew Hurt scored 15 and Urban Kroflič added 10.

Aris Thessaloniki are coached by Vassilis Spanoulis, the former elite Greek point guard and three-time EuroLeague champion. Over the summer, the club built a roster that is openly aiming for the top of the competition, and the early signs are more than promising. Aris opened the European season with a win in Le Mans (87:74), then beat Burgos (93:80) and Baglietto Derthona Tortona (88:68) at home, before winning 110:79 at Rostock Seawolves in Round 4. In Rostock, they hit 10 of 17 three-point attempts in the first half and at one point led by 36. In the Greek league, they opened the season with a 74:68 loss in Karditsa, then beat AEK 88:58 and Maroussi 74:57, before winning 88:72 in Mykonos on Saturday.

The Greek side is scoring 94.5 points per game in the BKT EuroCup while allowing 75.3. Their leading scorer is power forward/center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who averages 16 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. He had 21 points and 10 rebounds in Rostock. He is followed by guards Matthew Morgan (15.8 points) and Neno Dimitrijević (15.3 points, 4.5 assists).

The Dragons have a perfect record against Aris over the last two seasons. In 2024/25, they came from behind to win 82:75 in Thessaloniki, with Jaka Blažič scoring 19 points, and then won 98:79 in Ljubljana. Last season, they first beat the Greeks 80:59 at Stožice, then won the return game in Thessaloniki 89:60, with Aleksej Nikolić scoring 23 points.

BKT EUROCUP – REGULAR SEASON, GROUP A, ROUND 5

Nick Galis Hall (Thessaloniki, Greece), Wednesday, October 28, 19.30 (18.30 Slovenian time):
ARIS THESSALONIKI – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA (live on Šport TV 1)

GROUP A STANDINGS

LOOKING AHEAD:

After returning from Greece, the Dragons will host FMP in the AdmiralBet ABA League at Arena Stožice on Saturday at 5pm. On Wednesday, November 4, they will host Baglietto Derthona Tortona at Stožice in Round 6 of the BKT EuroCup regular season. Tickets are available at vstopnice.olimpija.com.