An impressive, epic comeback from 15 points down, allowed Olimpia to win its ninth road game, 83-77 in Istanbul against the defending champions of Efes Istanbul. Olimpia went down in the first half by 15 because Efes was incredibly sharp, shooting the ball from the arc, 10-for-15. But the rest of the game was a completely different story. Olimpia won 47-26, had zero turnovers, c0mpleted the comeback moving ahead at the end of third. The fourth quarter was a battle, but the defense eventually doomed Efes’ resiliency. It was a collective effort: Sergio Rodrigue had a 8-assist game to add to his 12 points, Melli added six rebounds to his 10 points including the probably decisive jumper toward the end. He was the one leading the rally early in the third when twice forced Larkin and Micic to two improbable prayers and scored back to back. It was a clear signal. Olimpia followed the lead. Gigi Datome, who started tonight, scored 14 points and made himself a couple of clutch late field goals. “It was a fantastic second half – Coach Ettore Messina said – We had zero turnovers, we held them to 26 points, give all the credit to the players. Coaching can do just so much, players win the games, and they did tonight. I didn’t have to say much at the half, this group of guys has a great sense of responsibility. They knew what they had to do.” It was a collective effort, everybody gave a lot. Shavon Shields for example added five assist to his 12-point effort.