By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
The regular season ends and four last tickets are still waiting for their owners. In Group A and D there are games which are more than important and also some key match ups which will decide the final standings and the Top16 groups, like the games Real Madrid – Anadolu Efes, Crvena Zvezda – Laboral Kutxa and the games of Unicaja and Alba. We expect a thrilling end and here you can see all the remaining posibilities.
Eurohoops game of the week: Nizhny Novgorod – Unics Kazan
Without a doubt this is the most important game. Both teams deserve to be in Top16, but only the winner will get to the second phase. Nizhny (4-5) proved to be a real team, fought with pride and despite losing by a point to Real Madrid and losing its best player, Rochestie, due to injury, got a road win over Efes in order to still have a fighting chance. Unics Kazan (5-4) after a coaching change, prevailed in Madrid, has four straight wins and would have been already in Top16, if Efes has beaten Nizhny.
We expect mind games, low tempo and a game that in the end will be decided on details. The Americans of Unics are playing great, the two Greeks are giving stability, while the team of coach Bagatskis depends on Kinsey, Parakhouski and Thompkins. However in the game against Efes, Kvostov emerged as a key player and that’s needed again. One more important note is that Nizhny have beaten two times Unics in just four days – on the road and at home for VTB league – and after that we had the coaching change with Pashutin getting the place of Pedoulakis. On the same group, Zalgiris (4-5) needs a win over already disqualified Sassari in order to get to Top16.
Honorable mention: Real Madrid – Anadolu Efes
Real Madrid (7-2) is in crisis, struggling on defense and being unstable in the offense. The result was two straight defeats in Liga Endesa, something more than rare. Efes (6-3) will be a new team in Top16, having a complete roster, but this is the game which will decide the top of the standings with the winner taking the top spot. Under normal conditions Real would have been the big favorite, but now anything seems possible, considering the low tempo, defensive oriented game of Anadolu Efes.
Do or Die: Galatasaray – Olympiacos
Galatasaray (3-6) remains in a very tight spot, Aradori, Vouyoukas and Jawai are not longer in the team and they need a team against Olympiacos (8-1) which traveled to Istanbul without Printezis, Mantzaris and a real motive. The resilience and the quality – or the lack of – which Galatasaray will present on the court will decide the outcome. Two weeks ago in a similar situation, Laboral Kutxa managed to take advantage of Olympiacos‘ position in the standings, as the Reds have secured long time ago their Top16 spot and now they have locked the top spot. If Galatasaray gets the win, then in order to advance to Top16, Valencia will also have to beat Neptunas.
On the microscope: Crvena Zvezda – Laboral Kutxa
Both teams have a 5-4 record, a Top16 spot and they are more than content, since at the start of the season, this achievement was not considered a given for either one. However, they are fighting for the second spot of the final standings, with the loser finishing third. Thanks to defense, Crvena Zvezda even without fans can still get the advantage, if we can judge by the Serbs’ road win in Vitoria.
Always a big game: Panathinaikos – Barcelona
It’s one of the few occasions that this game doesn’t mean much and has lost some of its glamor. Barcelona has already secured the top spot and travels to Athens without Navarro, Oleson and Abrines, while Panathinaikos in any case will finish third.
Still this is a classic Euroleague match up and it’s also an important game personally for coach Pascual, his 500th on the bench of Barcelona, after agreeing with the club an a contract extension.
Euroleague 2014-2015 – 10th Day
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Limoges |
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Panathinaikos |
F.C. Barcelona |
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Crvena Zvezda T. |
Laboral Kutxa |
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Unicaja Malaga |
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PGE Turow |
EA7 Milano |
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Galatasaray MP |
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Real Madrid |
Anadolu Efes |
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Neptunas |
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Dinamo Sassari |
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Alba Berlin |
Cedevita Zagreb |
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FC Bayern |
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Nizhny Novgorod |
UNICS Kazan |