BELGRADE, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Double former champions Barcelona and high-flying underdogs Red Star Belgrade boosted their hopes of reaching the Euroleague knockout stages after impressive wins on Friday.
Barcelona romped to an 82-66 home win over Greeks Olympiakos Piraeus, who have three titles, while Red Star were unfazed by a venue switch in their 91-82 defeat of Anadolu Efes Istanbul.
Under pressure to deliver, Barcelona produced their best performance of the season, improving their record to 4-4 as Olympiakos slipped to 3-5.
A fired-up Barca outscored Olympiakos 52-28 in the second and third quarter before the visitors salvaged some pride with a late rally.