VENICE (Basketball Champions League) - Austin Daye didn't cross a finish line on Wednesday night after leading Umana Reyer Venezia to their latest drama-filled victory in the Basketball Champions League, yet it sure felt like he'd been in a very long race.

The sight of players bending over to catch their breath, and dragging their weary bodies to the bench during timeouts in the Italian side's 111-104 triumph over UNET Holon, a game that needed two overtimes, was reminiscent of the game played against Banvit almost exactly one year before, a 108-101 triple overtime win for Venezia .

"I was dead tired after regulation," Daye said of Wednesday's win, "and then to add another 10 minutes to the game, it was a marathon."

The game was enthralling. Several players were exceptional.

For Holon, Khalif Wyatt poured in 35 points, hitting 8 3-pointers. Darion Atkins had 16 rebounds to go with his 13 points and had a couple of rim-rattling dunks that shook the Palasport Taliercio and probably dumped some gondoliers into the nearby canals. Guy Pnini, the 35-year-old Israeli veteran, made the sort of plays that he's famous for, drilling big shots or delivering nifty passes. DeQuan Jones had 16 points, scoring most on an assortment of daring drives to the basket.

For Venezia, Mitchell Watt, who had 25 points in the opening win over PAOK, was at it again pouring in 24 before fouling out. MarQuez Haynes pulled the strings as usual, scoring 17 points and dishing out 7 assists.

It was one of those nights when spectators could just sit back and be glad they had tickets.

“YOU'VE GOT TO TAKE CARE OF HOME AND DO YOUR BEST TO STAY IN GAMES ON THE ROAD, ESPECIALLY WITH THE CROWD HERE (IN ITALY) AND IN EUROPE IN GENERAL.”- Austin Daye

"Wyatt was hitting some Steph Curry-range type shots," he said. "He was catching fire from the first leg of the game and then the end. Jones did a great job of just attacking the rim.

"They had a balanced team and they have a good coach (Dan Shamir). He knows what he's doing, getting guys in the right spots.

"We were just able to use our size, our ability, inside and out, with Gasper (Vidmar), Mitch (Watt) and myself to really just get them in foul trouble and wear them down. And that's what happened. We wore them down by the end of the game and were able to prevail."

Daye was pretty good himself. He had 30 points on 11 of 20 shooting from the floor, including 2 of 3 from deep. He made 6 of 7 free-throws, including some late that helped seal the victory, and also corralled 11 rebounds, came up with a steal and swatted a shot.

He finished with a game-best +33 efficiency rating and has been named as the Basketball Champions League's Gameday 2 MVP.

Daye, who joined the club in late January, says Venezia is one big family. He loves playing for Walter De Raffaele.

"Walter is a great coach, he really understands me as a player and as a person," he said. "By far, he's the favorite coach that I've had in my career."

“WE'RE JUST TRYING TO FIND OUR STRIDE. WE HAD A LOT OF INJURIES IN THE PRE-SEASON BUT WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OURSELVES. IT'S GOOD TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH THESE TYPES OF GAMES (AGAINST HOLON). ”- Daye

Daye has played for a lot of good coaches, including San Antonio Spurs boss Gregg Popovich.

"Gregg Popovich is probably the greatest but as far as personal preference, (Walter) he's just a great guy," Daye said. "He's so enthusiastic, he cares about all of his guys. I can't say enough good things about him."

De Raffaele is also a winner.

In his first Basketball Champions League season, he steered the club to an unlikely Final Four appearance. Last year, when Venezia didn't advance from the Group Phase after losing a tie-breaker, they dropped into the FIBA Europe Cup and won that competition. The current Venezia team is deep, and especially on the frontline.

"If you can assert your dominance inside and we have two great bodies in Mitch and Gasper," Daye said, "those are probably two of the best bigs in Europe in terms of exerting their dominance in there. Mitch is really skilled and has great touch with his left hand and reminds me a lot of (former Memphis Grizzlies teammate)  Zach Randolph.

"Gasper is just a big bruiser down there that can take up a lot of space and open up a lot of areas. He's still coming into his own with us. He hasn't really learned the system, yet, but he's making the right plays."

Vidmar joined at the start of the season from Banvit.

Daye is glad to have Gasper Vidmar as a teammate at Umana Reyer

The fact that Venezia, who needed three overtimes to win on the opening night last season against Banvit, have struggled at home against Holon reinforces the idea that the Basketball Champions League is as strong as ever.

"We're just trying to find our stride," Daye said. "We had a lot of injuries in the pre-season but we're trying to find ourselves. It's good to have to deal with these types of games (against Holon). Our first game went to overtime (Umana Reyer beat Torino on October 7, 76-75) and now our fourth game went to overtime."

"For sure the Champions League has gotten better. And every home game is important, the lead at the end of the game is important. I remember in (Wednesday's) game, they didn't want to foul me and Walter was telling me to attack the rim for an and 1 because points differential means something.

"You've got to take care of home and do your best to stay in games on the road, especially with the crowd here (in Italy) and in Europe in general. It's hard to win on the road when your back is against the wall."

Daye says he is really enjoying playing in Italy and the Basketball Champions League. The atmospheres are terrific.

"It reminds me so much of college, the Kennel (Gonzaga)," he said, "where I used to play and also on the road so I'm kind of used to it. The noise doesn't really get to me. It just amps me up to play with a little more energy and helps you to focus in a little more."

There is also the joy of living in Venice.

"I can't complain at all," Daye said. "Venice is a great city. It's not like a party city like a Milan, or a place where you can always go out and do things. But I'm a slow-down guy, a home body so for me it's very regular living. I go to practice, I go home, I rest up, I prepare so I'm game ready."

What would really make this season special is to make it to the Basketball Champions League's showpiece event.

"The Final Four is such a great thing to have," he said. "Did you see AEK last year? I couldn't imagine playing in that type of atmosphere. And anything can happen at a Final Four."