In their debut in the Champions League, Pool C, Gas Sales Daiko Piacenza faced a tough defeat against Halkbank Ankara at PalabancaSport. The visiting team dominated the first two sets, faced resistance in the third, but ultimately clinched victory in a closely contested fourth set.
Piacenza started positively but lost momentum, allowing Halkbank to take control. However, Piacenza showed resilience, winning the third set and narrowly losing the fourth after leading for most of it. Standout performances from Earvin Ngapeth and Nimir Abdel-Aziz were too much for Piacenza, despite Leal scoring 20 points.
The final score was Gas Sales Daiko Piacenza 1, Halkbank Ankara 3, with set scores of 19-25, 18-25, 25-19, 21-25.
Top scorers:
- Gas Sales Daiko Piacenza: Leal (20 points), Lucarelli (13), Recine (8).
- Halkbank Ankara: Abdel-Aziz (21 points), Ngapeth (18), Perrin (15).