By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Epic games in Madrid and Vitoria, upset in Poland, big clubs demonstrating their might and just three of them, Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar in Group C and the duo of CSKA Moscow and Unicaja Malaga in Group D still perfect at 4-0.
On the other hand, only Dinamo Bando Di Sardegna Sassari is still in search for its first win, while teams like Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv, Panathinaikos Athens and EA7 Emporio Armani Milano have already ground to cover. It doesn’t get much better than that, specially when you see that the defending champions are back to their real self…
MVP
He had 20 points on just 6/9 shots – and 7/7 FT – to go along with 11 rebounds. The captain still is the most solid option of Real in the paint and our MVP, even if the game against Bayern was won by Jaycee Carroll’s three in an epic ending. That been said, Reyes, despite being 35 years old, still is on the peak of his abilities and you would never guessed his age by seeing what he does on the floor. Let’s see if he gets to win more trophies, after the “poker” of last season.
Best Five
- Milos Teodosic: He and Nando De Colo have started the season with the most impressive way and this time Milos was a little bit better than his French teammate. That translates to 22 points on 7/10 field goals, 9 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal and 5 turnovers.
- Mateuz Ponitka: He had a double double (13 p., 10 r.) and above everything else his team, Zielona Gora beat Panathinaikos! This how you get to the best five!
- James White: He had a key role in Cedevita’s win at Milan with 15 points on 7/12 shots, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 2 turnovers. He is known mainly as a dunker, but his game is much more than that.
- Felipe Reyes: A real captain!
- Giannis Bourousis: He is back with 18 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assists and 2 blocks on the way to the overtime win of Laboral Kutxa vs Anadolu Efes. He also had an extra motive for that.
Best losing performance: Thomas Heurtel
The win of Laboral Kutxa overshadowed a great game by the French guard on his return to his old home. Heurtel finished the game with 26 points (5/12 2p., 3/5 3p., 7/8 FT), 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal and just one turnovers in 33 minutes. He was amazing but not good enough.
Coach of the week: Andrea Trinchieri
Brose Baskets Bamberg got the 77-66 win over Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv by having most of the game and specially the last quarter – which had a 26-9 partial score – under total control. Once again the Germans champs are a very solid team, they don’t have a big name star to carry the main load and they win as a unit. That’s why a lot of credit must go to the architect of this project, the Italian coach Andrea Trinchieri.
Biggest win
They have been many great games this week, but nothing was bigger than the overtime win of Laboral Kutxa over Anadolu Efes. Nobody really expected the Basques to be quite strong, but they play inspired basketball and they are making Vitoria once again proud. This result was the proof that they are ready for the Top16 and then nothing can be excluded.
The darkhorse
Strasbourg is not one of the strongest teams in the league, but the way Khimki Moscow Region got the 88-62 win was just impressive. So far the Russian are proving that they are one of the teams which are going to play a major role at the end of the season. Can they get to the Final Four? It’s just too early to tell, but nobody can underestimate them now.
The upset
Zielona Gora finally got its first win with Panathinaikos being the victim and now the two of them are tied with Pinar Karsiyaka at 1-3. Yes, the Greeks have the advantage and the fourth place, Zielona Gora is still the biggest outsider of the group, but no one can underestimate them after that.
The record
Olympiacos wants to be a defensive oriented team and did exactly that against Limoges. The 49 points is the second best defensive performance of the Reds in the Euroleague and that’s how they want to get to the top. The second half against the French champs was a clinic on how to suffocate an opponent.
The dissapointment
After four weeks, Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv has just one win and the Israelis are in trouble. Coach Guy Goodes is living under constant scrutiny and the names of his possible replacements are parading in the news. The roster, which on paper should have made Maccabi even a Final Four contender, is not clicking and changes are expected to be made.
Last word: The favorites getting their groove back
CSKA Moscow, Olympiacos Piraeus, FC Barcelona Lassa, Lokomotiv Kuban and Fenerbahce Istanbul. What they have in common? They are teams which want to get to the play offs and after the first month of action they seem to get back on track and meeting expectations…