By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
Two days before the beginning of the new year, Euroleague’s top 16 is set to start, with the first round being a preview of what we are about to see in the future!
On the one hand, there is a group that is considered the toughest in the last four years under the current format. On the other hand, there is a group that includes three Turkish clubs and some teams that want to go all the way to the end in this year’s competition. Three games are set to take place on Tuesday (29 December) and the remaining five will be played on Wednesday (30 December). In the preview, we will choose one match from each group, as the game of the week!
Group F
Match of the week: Olympiacos vs Barcelona (December 29, 20.00 CET Time)
It’s the first match between these two traditional forces, after their battle in last year’s top-8. The hosts will play without Matt Lojeski and want to play great defence in order to control the game’s tempo and come closer to the win. In the meantime, Vassilis Spanoulis and Giorgos Printezis are expected to be the Reds’ leaders offensively. On the other hand, Xavi Pascual’s team, which is coming from a big derby against rivals Real Madrid (with Alex Abrines in doubt), wants to earn a big victory on the road in its effort to claim one of the first two spots in the group and, consequently, the home-court advantage. Barcelona will try to take advantage of its up-tempo playing style, although the squad is very effective in 5 on 5 situations.
Khimki vs CSKA Moscow (Decemebr 29, 18.00 CET Time)
Zalgiris Kaunas vs Laboral Kutxa (Decemeber 30, 18.45 CET Time)
Real Madrid vs Brose Baskets (December 30, 20.45 Cet Time)
Group E
Match of the week: Fenerbahce vs Panathinaikos (December 30, 20.00 CET Time)
This is a battle between two clubs that have Zeljco Obradovic in common! Fenerbahce wants to take advantage of its home court and extend its great presence in the competition until now, while Panathinaikos tries to stabilise its performance on the road in order to become more competitive. Can the road wins over Karsiyaka and Zalgiris Kaunas be enough, though, to give the Greens the winning mentality they need to earn crucial road victories? The match against the Turks will be the perfect chance for the visitors to show their improvement.
Unicaja Malaga vs Darussafaka (December 29, 20.45 CET Time)
Anadolu Efes vs Crvena Zvezda (December 30, 18.00 CET Time)
Cedevita vs Lokomotiv Kuban (December 30, 19.00 CET Time)
Things you need to know
- Giorgos Printezis has been in double figures in 13 straight games in the Euroleague.
- In the match between Olympiacos and Barcelona, the two best scorers in the competition’s history will collide, namely Juan Carlos Navarro (3.745 points) and Vassilis Spanoulis (2.816 points).
- Unicaja Malaga is the league’s best team in offensive rebounds, averaging 12.7 per game.
- Thomas Heurtel dishes out the most assists in the competition, averaging an impressive 7.7 per game.
- Anadolu Efes has hit the most three-pointers in the competition (108), while the Turks also have the best shooting percentage in the Euroleague (46,6%).
- Giannis Bourousis is Euroleague’s best player in the ranking system (23,6 points) and rebounds (9.6).
- Lokomotiv Kuban has the best defence in the entire competition (68.3 points), while is also the most effective team in steals, averaging 8.7 per game.
- Dimitris Diamantidis needs nine points to tie J.R Holden (2.388) for seventh in the all-time scoring list and 10 points to overtake him!