Play offs: One down, three to go

By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net

Barcelona on Sunday became the first team to clinch a spot in the Euroleague Final Four. Three more series are at 2-1 at this point with Maccabi Tel Aviv having a match ball at home, while Panathinaikos and Olympiacos will try to stay alive. We will know on Wednesday which teams will force a Game 5, or which will start preparing for Milan.

MVP

Bryant Dunston

He was the driving force behind Olympiacos’ win over Real Madrid, just the fourth defeat of Madrid for the season. The American forward/center was just great, having 21 points and 9 rebounds against one of the best front lines in Europe. If he continues to play like this, then Olympiacos, now down 2-1, may even have the chance to travel back to Madrid.

Best Five

1. Marcelo Huertas: Navarro was missing and he did what he had to do against Galatasaray. That means 16 points on 7/14 shots, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. No the flashiest of numbers, but Barcelona got the 3-0 sweep over Galatasaray.
2. Ricky Hickman: He continues to deliver in the play offs. This time it was 15 points on 5/9 shots, 6 assists and three rebounds as the Israelis have a 2-1 advantage over EA7 Milan and the next game at home.
3. David Blu: In the same game he had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 3/9 three pointers. They were enough in order to reach 278 threes in his Euroleague career and enter the top10 all time list over Igor Rakocevic (277) and Drew Nicolas (276).
4. Bryant Dunston: It doesn’t get much better than this…
5. Stephan Lasme: 13 points on 4/10 shots and 4 rebounds doesn’t mean much. However his defensive presence was the key for the 65-59 win of Panathinaikos which kept alive the Greens against CSKA Moscow (2-1)

The round up

Carlos Arroyo returned and Galatasaray managed to stay close to Barcelona, but the Catalans found the way to close the series on the road and get a rare week of rest. Maccabi Tel Aviv build on the road win of Game 1 and now has a 2-1 advantage over EA7 Milano and the chance to punch the ticket for the final four at home. In Greece the defending back to back champion Olympiacos refused to lose against Real Madrid which still has a 2-1 lead and Panathinaikos did the same against CSKA Moscow, as the Russians are still up with 2-1 wins.