EuroLeague Round 3: Hapoel shocks Real Madrid as four results open the round

Hapoel Tel Aviv upset Real Madrid 102-98, Virtus, Zvezda and Paris also win tight games on day one of Round 3.

Hapoel Tel Aviv upset Real Madrid 102-98 on October 1, 2026, in the marquee result of EuroLeague Round 3, with Elijah Bryant and Vasilije Micic each scoring 22 points for the home team. Three other games tipped off the same day, all decided by five points or fewer: Crvena Zvezda Belgrade over Anadolu Efes Istanbul, Virtus Bologna over Olympiacos Piraeus, and Paris Basketball over Zalgiris Kaunas.

Hapoel stuns Real Madrid despite Maledon's 40-PIR masterclass

Nobody circled Hapoel-Real Madrid as a nail-biter on paper, but that's exactly what Tel Aviv delivered. Real Madrid came in as the visiting team, and for long stretches Théo Maledon looked like he might single-handedly carry the Spanish giants to a road win.

Maledon was sensational, pouring in 26 points and dishing 7 assists for a PIR of 40, matching the best mark of the entire game. Real Madrid also got a thunderous double-double from Walter Tavares, who controlled the glass with 13 rebounds to go with 14 points, and 21 points from Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot off the wing. None of it was enough. Hapoel answered blow for blow, led by Elijah Bryant's all-around night of 22 points, 13 boards and 7 assists, and Vasilije Micic's 22-point outburst running the offense. Zach LeDay chipped in 15 points inside, and Bruno Caboclo matched that total, giving Hapoel just enough firepower to close out the 102-98 win at home.

Zvezda holds off Efes behind Moneke's inside presence

Crvena Zvezda needed every bit of its home-court advantage to get past Anadolu Efes Istanbul, grinding out a 77-72 win in Belgrade that never got comfortable. Chima Moneke set the tone down low, bullying his way to 18 points and 7 rebounds and giving Zvezda a physical identity the visitors could never quite match.

Ognjen Dobric added a steady 10 points and 7 boards, while Tyson Carter and Jordan Nwora each found their footing with 11 and 12 points respectively, spreading the scoring load just enough to keep Efes at arm's length. Anadolu Efes refused to go away quietly. Jordan Loyd led the Efes effort, finishing with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists for a team-high PIR of 28, and Dario Saric bulldozed his way to a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double of his own. Matthew Strazel and Mike James each scored in double figures too, but Efes couldn't find the one extra possession it needed, and Zvezda walked away with a hard-fought five-point win to open its round.

Carr and Diarra power Virtus past Olympiacos in a 96-94 thriller

Virtus Bologna and Olympiacos Piraeus traded haymakers for 40 minutes, and in the end it was Marcus Carr who made sure his team was still standing. The point guard orchestrated the win with 22 points and 10 assists, good for a PIR of 30, picking apart Olympiacos's defense possession after possession.

He wasn't alone. Aliou Diarra matched Carr's PIR with an 18-point, 14-rebound outing that controlled the paint on both ends, and Derrick Alston added 17 points to keep the scoring balanced. Olympiacos countered with a scoring explosion of its own. Mbaye Ndiaye was the game's leading scorer with 23 points, Sasha Vezenkov added 20 to go with 6 rebounds, and Tyler Dorsey poured in 22 more, while Codi Miller-McIntyre quietly ran the show with 8 assists and no points. It still wasn't enough. Bologna's home crowd got to see its team survive a two-point margin, 96-94, in what stood as the tightest finish of the day.

Hifi leads Paris past Zalgiris as Tubelis falls just short

Paris Basketball closed out the day's slate with its own escape act, beating Zalgiris Kaunas 82-78 in a game that stayed within reach for the Lithuanian club until the final buzzer. Nadir Hifi was the catalyst for the home win, scoring 21 points and setting the tempo for a Paris offense that leaned on him whenever possessions got tight.

T.J. Warren added 14 points, and Allan Dokossi did the dirty work underneath, grabbing 8 rebounds to go with 8 points. Zalgiris countered with Azuolas Tubelis, who posted a game-high PIR of 25 on the strength of 18 points and 7 rebounds, and Carsen Edwards added 19 points trying to keep the visitors within striking distance.

Sterling Brown chipped in a well-rounded 13 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, and Jonas Valanciunas added a 12-point, 6-rebound effort inside, but Zalgiris never found the stop it needed down the stretch. Paris held on for the four-point win, completing a day where all four results were decided by five points or fewer.