Rudy loves being the enemy

By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net

Things are heating up in Euroleague and Rudy Fernandez made them even hotter. However, after the 3rd Top16 gameday we have to take a look in the group standings. In group E, CSKA Moscow and Real Madrid are leading the way with a perfect 3-0 record, Anadolu Efes and Panathinaikos follow with a 2-1, Zalgiris Kaunas and Unicaja Malaga have a 1-2, while Brose Baskets and Alba Berlin are left in 0-3. In group F the undefeated leaders are Caja Laboral and Siena (3-0), Barcelona and Khimki are one step behind with a 2-1 record, Olympiacos and Maccabi Tel Aviv share a 1-2 record, while two Turkish teams, Besiktas and Fenerbahce/ Ulker are still in zero (0-3).

Eurohoops ΜVP

Viktor Khryapa

He did everything on the court as it was evident by his 19 points, his 14 rebounds and 4 steals. He also had 3 turnovers and 1 assist in the 90-83 win of CSKA Moscow against Brose Baskets. And, above all, he was the key to his team’s win, the player who made everything work. Yes, according to the numbers Ricky Hickman was better, but the key player of Maccabi on Thursday was Moran Roth.

Best five

1. Ricky Hickman: He had one of the best games in his career with 24 points on 7/11 FG, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. The point guard of Maccabi Tel Aviv had a pivotal role in the 91-73 win over Fenerbahce/ Ulker.
2. Jamon Lukas: His numbers are not flashy, but his stat line is full and his coach kept him 35 minues on the court. He had 8 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and also three turnovers in the 71-62 win of Anadolu Efes over Alba Berlin.
3. Viktor Khryapa: We even compared him with Kirilenko…
4. Tomas Ress: He is the best kept secret of Siena, a player that many times is underestimated by opponents but he had 16 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks in the 82-76 win over Khimki.
5. Ante Tomic: He was the best among equals in Barcelona’s 76-68 win over Olympiacos with 15 points and 12 rebounds. A small Catalan revenge for last season’s semifinal.

The best losing performance: Boki Nachbar

The Slovenian forward exploded in Moscow with 35 points on 12/18 shots (including 6/7 threes) and also had 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 turnover. It was not enough for Brose Baskets to upset CSKA, but it’s a good sign for the immediate future of the team and of course for Nachbar himself personally. After all, he already has in the back of his mind the upcoming Eurobasket, which will be organized in his home country. Also we have to mention Marko Popovic who had 21 points, but he missed the last shot, also the game for Zalgiris and the chance to be Eurohoops’ MVP.

The biggest win: Real Madrid

There were many big games this week, but this one will be remembered for many reasons and the biggest of them all will be what happened after the end of the game. Real got the win by 75-74  thanks to a Sergio Rodriquez’s three and a Marko Popovic’s miss and out of the blue Rudy Fernandez started to taunt Paulius Jankunas who was laying on the court. Before that Rudy send the ball into the head of Ksistof Lavrinovic, without being clear if he wanted to or not. A brawl almost broke out between Real players and Jankunas after the final buzzer sounded and the image of a star – who had a mediocre game – provoking one of his rivals is at least distasteful. Oh, and there is also the game of Real in Kaunas…

The untouchable: Caja Laboral

After firing coach Dusko Ivanovic and hiring Zan Tabak, Caja Laboral is unstoppable, Besiktas knew it and tried to get ready for a fight. Still the game ended almost after the end of the 1st quarter with a partial score27-7 in favor of the Basques. It was an encounter just out of Besiktas’ league as the final 77-51 suggests.

The underachiever: Olympiacos

The champs had a golden opportunity to beat Barcelona on the road, specially after Juan Carlos Navarro was injured, but they couldn’t do it. The Reds had an off night in offense, only Giorgos Printezis scored in double digits (14 p.) and the best they could do was trying to steal the win, before settling just to a decent point difference (76-68).

The disappointment: Fenerbahce/ Ulker

To be fair, for three quarters Fener had a good game in Tel Aviv, but as coach Pianigiani admitted: “There were two situations tonight. The first three quarters, considering we played against a team like Maccabi in front of those fans, we played good. We stayed close behind and we wanted to arrive to the last quarter this way, but then things changed. We allowed 38 points in the last quarter and that was maybe a Top16 negative record”. Τhe final score was 91-73 in favor of Maccabi and Fener has a 0-3 record.

The last word: Dimitris Diamantidis

His team beat Unicaja (78-73), but he couldn’t believe that he was injured again and that was his reaction. Nobody seen that coming, right?

Euroleague 2012-2013 – Τop16 3rd Day