By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
The countdown to end of Top16 has started and Euroleague fans can rejoice! The new format can already be considered a success and the last Top16 weeks are full of excitement and thrills. The win of Unicaja in Madrid turned upside down group E and everything is still open not only for the two top spots, but also for the qualification to the play offs.
The games Malaga – CSKA and Real Madrid – Panathinaikos can define the team that stays out, while Anadolu Efes is travelling to Kaunas. In group F, Barcelona is safe while five other teams (Siena, Olympiacos, Khimki, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Caja Laboral) are fighting for three spots. It’s going to be a hell of a week. Enjoy the games and specially the clash of the titans in Spain and Piraeus.
Eurohoops game of the week: Unicaja Malaga – CSKA Moscow
It’s been a long time since Malaga was a team to watch but this changed. The Spanish team has passion and delivered under pressure in the last two games against Panathinaikos and on the road against Real Madrid. Still, Unicaja has to continue surprising everyone in order to qualify to the play offs. Its home game against CSKA Moscow is the biggest this week. The team of coach Messina needs to win in order to seal its play offs spot, however its goal is to also get the home court advantage. At this point, nothing can be taken for granted.
If CSKA wins, Unicaja will be in trouble and also Panathinaikos will welcome the result. On the contrary, if Unicaja wins, CSKA and the Greeks will be in trouble. The Russians want to take revenge for their home defeat by the Spaniards thanks to 28 points by Marcus Williams. That will be CSKA’s extra motive for the game that’s expected to be played in a sold out gym with whole Europe watching.
Honorable mention: Olympiacos – Maccabi Tel Aviv
One more big game! After winning in Siena, Olympiacos will not be content only by qualify, but also by getting the home court advantage in the play offs. That could be the case if the Reds beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in Piraeus, a team with four straight wins which can at least miss the play offs with style.
The difference between the two opponents is just one win and if Maccabi manages to get the job done in Greece, then it will probably also get the tie breaker advantage, since the Reds have won in Israel just by a point (78-77). It will be a big clash between two traditional powerhouses. What would be the key? Clearly the backcourt defense of Olympiacos. The hosts have to stop Maccabi’s guards and control the tempo, or else the guests are capable of anything. Giorgos Printezis after a week out of action is expected to return and Doron Perkins will face his former team for the first time since he left Maccabi.
Tightrope walking: Real Madrid – Panathinaikos
Those two teams have already played between them three times this season and all the games were decided in the last five minutes. Real has two wins, one on the road, and Panathinaikos has won the home game of the regular season. However, the Spaniards are coming from two straight wins in Madrid, something highly unusual specially this season. Rudy Fernandez is expected to return, but the team of coach Laso seems to be losing a step in the most crucial stage of the season.
Still, after the upset by Canarias and the danger of missing the home court advantage in Euroleague, Real is expected to react. On the other hand, Panathinaikos needs a big win in order to get to the play offs and in 120 game minutes against Real the Greens have managed to be more than competitive. The key once more will be the tempo, with the host team trying to run and Greeks trying to slow down the pace, as they effectively did for the most parts of the first three games.
For honor: Zalgiris Kaunas – Anadolu Efes
Zalgiris is out of the play offs race, in the middle of an ownership crises, but as it was proven last week in Moscow, the Lithuanians will go down fighting for their honor, their home crowd, they pride and of course themselves.
It’s strange, but the Lithuanians have a better total ranking in the stats than Efes, but Zalgiris has a 4-7 record, while the Turks are at 9-2! And after the win of Unicaja in Madrid last week, Efes can finish on the top of the standings of group E. The second place is also good enough, since it also gives home court advantage in the play offs. We are expecting a close game, something that will depend in the mood of Zalgiris. We still don’t know yet if Marko Popovic for the hosts and Sasa Vujacic for the guests will be ready to play.
One more time: Barcelona – Caja Laboral
Two opponents that love to play! This season they have met in Liga Endesa, in the “Copa Del Rey” semifinal and in Euroleague’s Top16. Barcelona has won on the road in the first Top16 game, has the best record (10-1) and nine straight wins, but Caja Laboral is the last team that managed to beat Barca in “Palau Blaugrana” in a Liga Endesa’s game.
In the game, Juan Carlos Navarro was absent, but now he is expected to play. The Basques have a 6-5 record and the need the win in order to stay in play offs course, while Barcelona is the only “safe” team of the group, having already qualify to the play offs. It’s difficult to predict the outcome, even if the hosts are clearly the better team.
German date: Brose Baskets – Alba Berlin
Eurohoops studied the past of German teams and there is only one win in their Top16 history, the one of Alba Berlin against Brose Baskets in the first Top16 round. The team of coach Fleming still search for its maiden triumph, being the unluckiest team of this season’s Euroleague, losing almost every close game.
So, is it time for Brose Baskets to get its first Top16 win? Probably, since this time its roster is better after the additions of Massey and Walsh. However, you have to remember that Euroleague games between teams from the same countries have always their own characteristics and rules.
A formality: Khimki – Fenerbahce/ Ulker
After missing the game in Tel Aviv, Khimki has to beat Fenerbahce/ Ulker, something not that difficult this Euroleague season. The Russians have been defeated at home in every European competitions just once since 2010, they have a bigger motive and they are the better team. We can only expect from Fener to try being more competitive than usual, but without injured Bogdanovic, that will not be easy.
They want to, but can they: Besiktas – Siena
Besiktas has zero wins in Top16 and hosts Siena. After losing to Olympiacos the Italians will have to fight in the last three gamedays in order to keep the second place of the group and the home court advantage in the play offs. Simply put, they have to win. Besiktas is already trying to salvage its season in TBL, but they would like to get a Top16 win before the end of their run. They want to, but can they? That is the question.