By Panos Katsiroubas/ info@eurohoops.net
Huge 3rd week in the top 16 with thrilling games. In this version of Magnifying Glass we have analysis of the games of Maccabi against Barcelona and Fenerbahce and Olympiakos and the most important facts in the remaining games! To read about the battle of Israel just click here and for the huge game of Istanbul here.
Alba Berlin vs Real Madrid
Real Madrid starts to improve in defense in the top 16 especially in the away games. In Belgrade and in Berlin they played better in defense and they didn’t allow their opponents score more than 72 points. Sergio Rodriguez was the leader in transition end and in the scoring explosion of the 2nd half in Berlin.
His numbers 12 points and 7 assists in 22 minutes. Alba played great defense in the 1st half. If they are focused for 40 minutes they will be a very difficult opponent for any team.
If Aaron Jackson plays like that in both offense and defense no team in Europe can beat CSKA. Despite the absence of Weems the Russian team used for a long period in the game the trio of Teodosic, De Colo and Jackson at the same time. The result was 54 of the 78 points from the backcourt.
We have said it in previous versions of Magnifying Glass and we are writing also in this version. Vorontsevich is the key player for CSKA. He is used like Khryapa the previous years and he is very effective in both ends. The defense of the 1st period from Efes is one of the best defensive performances in Euroleague this year. Still improvement in the offensive end is obligatory for the Turkish team.
Laboral Kutxa vs Nizhny Novgorod
The offensive game and the transition of Mike James where critical for Baskonia. Offensive rebounds and defense led in a 16-2 scoring run in the end of the game to give the win to the team from Basque Country. +12 offensive rebounds and -7 of turnovers gave Baskonia almost 20 possessions more in the game. Even though they struggled offensively in the biggest part of the game, these aspects were winning aspects.
Taylor Rochestie was huge once again. You cannot give him any space at all if you want to limit his influence in the game. 24 points, 5 assists and 6/7 3pt field goals his numbers.
Panathinaikos vs Zalgiris Kaunas
The Greens played excellent defense in the beginning of both halfs. They started the game with a 16-3 lead in the 1st quarter and continued with a 17-2 partial in the 3rd quarter. Adding these 2 periods of a total time of 12 minutes the partial score was 33-5. Huge advantage for the Greens
Panathinaikos distributed the ball well in set offense and had good transition. Very important aspects for success for the Greek team. Panathinaikos finished the game with almost 50% in field goals and 19 assists.
This was the worst performance of Zalgiris in this year’s Euroleague. They had poor performance in almost every aspect of the game in both ends.
Unicaja Malaga vs Olympia Milano
Malaga faced huge problems in their creation. With Granger playing with an injury and Markovic absent they couldn’t create easily plays to score and they didn’t have the usual transition game in their home ground.
We have criticized many times the performances of Gentile and Kleiza but in this game they were critical factors for their team. Gentile was a threat all night long and Kleiza scored 4 3ponters in the last 12 minutes of the game to secure the win of his team.
The zone defense Malaga used in the last 8 minutes could have turned the game. Milano stayed scoreless for 5:30, and Malaga came back. Kleiza answered with 2 big time shots from the perimeter (wings) to punish the zone.
Malaga is counting 7 straight losses and 9 losses in the last 10 games in Euroleague. In contrast they lead the way in the Spanish Liga Endesa. Unbelievable transformation in each competition.
The team from Serbia seems totally out of shape in both ends. Especially in offense they cannot find rhythm, and they don’t take the points of transition that they were used to score in the 1st round.
Galatasaray punished their opponents from the perimeter. The strong backcourt defense of Red Star was absent. Arroyo, Carter, Arslan, Micov and Pocius scored a total of 52 points.
Even though Marjanovic scored enough, he didn’t have the impact of previous games in the offensive production of Red Star.
The game was played in a full arena with great atmosphere and this was great reaction from the Serbian fans. Despite their loss they didn’t create any trouble and they respected totally the memory of Marko Ivkovic and also their team. So, Congratulations to them!