By Lefteris Moutis / moutis@eurohoops.net
Surprises are constantly lurking in the Euroleague, but Fenerbahce have a considerable advantage to beat Bayern in Munich and gain the lead for the first place of the group.
Bayern have four consecutive defeats, but Group A is so tangled that the favorites of the group have no margin for losses. Fenerbahce have 4-1 wins and want to gain the lead for the first place as soon as possible. The Turks have an advantage for the win and since the handicap is so small, betting on the win seems worth it.
In the same game, Fenerbahce are going to try to expose Bayern’s defensive weaknesses and they can definitely score a lot. The limit of 79,5 points is rather low considering the Germans’ defense, which usually allows a fast pace and many baskets on the open court.
Zalgiris have the second worst offensive production in the Euroleague and Zielona Gora the third worst with an average of 68,4 and 69,2 points respectively. Also, the rhythm is very slow in their games. The limit of 142,5 points is quite low, but the two of them probably won’t go over it.
In their last four games (two in the Euroleague and two in the French championship) Limoges have been scoring 58,8 points on average. Efes have an extremely athletic team that is trying to improve their defense and who can definitely keep the French team below 70 points.
Sassari are the only team that hasn’t celebrated a win yet in the Euroleague and they know that if they loose to Darussafaka, they won’t have any luck in trying to get the qualification to the next phase. By contrast, the Turkish team are on the rise and they can win relatively easily in Italy.
The betting tips
Zalgiris – Zielona Gora Under 143 points
@William Hill 1,91
Bayern (+2,5) – Fenerbahce 2
@Coral 1,87
Bayern – Fenerbahce Fenerbahce Over 79,5 points
@Stoiximan 1,80
Efes – Limoges Limoges Under 69,5 points
@Sportingbet 1,85
Sassari (+3) – Darussafaka 2
@Bet365 1,90