By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Four teams are still perfect, Panathinaikos, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Maccabi Tel Aviv, however the 3rd week of Top16 will be remembered for the win of Partizan over CSKA Moscow. In a true Goliath versus David fight, the Serbs prevailed and got their first win in the second phase of the competition.
To be exact in Group E the Greens and the Catalans lead (3-0), followed by EA7 Milano and Unicaja Malaga (2-1). Olympiacos and Laboral Kutxa are a step behind (1-2), while Fenerbahce/ Ulker and Anadolu Efes are still searching their first win (0-3). The situation is similar in Group F where Real Madrid and Maccabi are the leaders (3-0), Bayern and CSKA Moscow are behind them (2-1), followed by Partizan and Lokomotiv Kuban (1-2). Zalgiris Kaunas and Galatasaray are left at 0-3.
It was hard to pick the best performances of the week, but we did our best and we hope you agree.
MVP
In a miracle win he was the miracle worker. He scored 27 points on 4/8 three pointers, however his most important shots of the game were his 2/3 free throws, 24 seconds before the end of the game which decided the final 73-72 score. CSKA Moscow had the chance to win the game, but Sonny Weems missed the chance to be the hero, leaving the win to Belgrade and that honor to Bogdanovic who more than deserved it.
Best five
- Bogdan Bogdanovic: He is been made by need a point guard, after the injury of Westermann and we also need him today at this position…
- Juan Carlos Navarro: In 21 minutes he scored 21 points in a vintage performance, just with 7/11 shots. He is still “La Bomba” and Olympiacos paid the price in the 81-72 road win of Barcelona.
- Zoran Dragic: In a Navar-esque game he had 24 points on 24 minutes, was clutch down the stretch and killed Fenerbahce, giving Unicaja real hopes for the play offs with the 89-75 win.
- Nikola Mirotic: One more great game by one of the main candidates for the MVP award of the season with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals in the 111-87 win of Real Madrid over Bayern Munich.
- Stephan Lasme: The center of Panathinaikos was once again a beast with 16 points on 5/6 shots and 8 rebounds in just 21 minutes of action as the Greens beat Anadolu Efes 78-64.
Best losing performance: Justin Dentmon
Justin Dentmon had one more monster game with 21 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds, but he doesn’t have enough help in Zalgiris, as it was proven in the 78-87 road win of Maccabi Tel Aviv in Kaunas. Also, what else could Krstic do? He scored a personal best in Euroleague (27 points), he added also 7 rebounds, but Partizan prevailed.
Biggest win: Barcelona
On the road, against the defending champions, Barcelona remained perfect and got a win that could count even in the race for the home court advantage in the play offs. The 81-72 win over Olympiacos was a product of a great game from Navarro but also a great defensive performance in one of the hardest gyms to play in Europe. After all it was just the first home win of the season for Olympiacos in any competitions and that says a lot about the focus of the Catalans.
The upset: Partizan
As coach Vujocevic said: “Despite all our problems, we are still producing miracles”. Partizan beat CSKA Moscow by a point (73-72) and proved once again that no one will have an easy night at Belgrade. Can Partizan do more? At this point the real answer is still no, but after what happened on Friday night, you can never say never…
The survivor: Lokomotiv Kuban
Thanks to a three by Mantas Kalnietis, Lokomotiv Kuban registered its first win in style, on the road and by a point over Galatasaray (63-62). Both teams were searching for their first win, both have the talent to fight for the play offs, but the Russians have more solutions, a talented coach and an iron will. This was their third win this season in Euroleague which was decided in the last shot and once more they prevailed, even if Arroyo had the chance to win the game for Galata and missed it.
The rise: EA7 Milano
The Italians wanted to build after last week’s win over Olympiacos and they did just that. They beat Siena for their domestic league and also beat Laboral Kutxa (83-76) under their new team identity. That means defense, control of the tempo and team effort. It will be interesting to watch the growth of Milano during Top16 as the team will fight by tooth and claw to be at the play offs.
The disappointment: Fenerbahce/ Ulker
After an impressive regular season, Fener seems to be on a slump in the worst possible timing. We were expecting after a mediocre finish of 2013 – while the team had easily secured a spot in Top16 – a new and even better start at the second phase of the competition. There is still time to react, but nobody expected a 0-3 record and a 89-75 defeat by Unicaja after an unanswered 15-0 run in the closing minutes.
Last word: A rivalry is relocated
It was not the first time Real Madrid and Bayern Munich played against each other. However, they usually do it on the football pitch and it was a first in basketball. The end result will be remembered, as after a balanced first half in which Real had just one point lead, the hosts exploded, scored 41 points in the third quarter and got the 111-87 win. We are hoping that it’s just the start of a beautiful rivalry.