The game between Paris and Fenerbahce has been suspended, meaning there are two games on Thursday and six on Friday
At a glance: The double-round fun continues!
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The final round of the first half of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season will also complete the last double round week of the season. Here’s your overview to Thursday and Friday’s games in Round 17.
Thursday, December 19
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (18:45 CET)
Two of Tuesday’s winners will attempt to complete a perfect week as Panathinaikos (9-7) welcomes Baskonia (7-9), who both teams looking for consistency. Get ready for a long-range shootout as Greens scoring star Kendrick Nunn tries to stay hot after netting an all-time competition record seven first quarter three-pointers in the rout against Milan, while Baskonia also offers an in-form deep threat after Markus Howard netted 28 points – including 6-of-9 from long-range – to inspire a Round 15 victory at Maccabi. That game also saw dynamic power forward Chima Moneke continue his excellent season with 17 points and 8 rebounds, and his personal battle with the always-electric Mathias Lessort – averaging 13.6 points and 7.1 boards per game – will be a bone-crunching highlight.
Real Madrid vs. AS Monaco (20:45 CET)
After gaining good wins in Round 16, Real (7-9) and co-leader Monaco (11-5) go head-to-head in the Spanish capital. The Roca Team has won four of five games since Vassilis Spanoulis was appointed head coach, scoring at least 91 points in each of those victories. Most recently, Monaco’s collective passing ability shined as seven players dished multiple assists – including five apiece for Terry Tarpey and Matthew Strazel – in a team total of 28 to deliver victory over Bayern. Real ended a three-game losing run by triumphing at Paris on Tuesday, as Walter Tavares controlled the paint with his third double-double of the season. Monaco forces more turnovers than any other team in the league (14 per game), putting pressure on Real leader Facu Campazzo (7.6 assists, 2.0 turnovers per game).
Friday, December 20
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (18:30 CET)
Efes (9-7) will look for a second victory this week against a Partizan (7-9) looking to kickstart another winning run. The Serbian team saw a five-game winning streak ended by a home loss to ASVEL earlier on Tuesday, and will hope that Brandon Davies and Frank Ntilikina can recover from illness to make the trip to Turkiye. Visiting big man Tyrique Jones will attempt to damage his former club by continuing his strong form after averaging 15.8 points and 8 boards over the last four games. But he faces a tough task against his replacement in the paint for Efes, Dan Oturu, who paired 17 points with 6 rebounds to power his team’s impressive comeback win over Zvezda earlier in the week.
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (19:00 CET)
Two teams heading in the right direction meet in Kaunas with Zalgiris (10-6) welcoming in-form ASVEL (7-9). Zalgiris has climbed into a share of third place by winning three straight, most recently easing past ALBA on Tuesday behind 16 points from Sylvain Francisco. ASVEL gained its first road win of the season by edging out Partizan earlier this week, led by 17 points and 9 boards from big man Joffrey Lauvergne, meaning the French team has won four of its last five. The game will feature an exciting backcourt duel between two of the competition’s most spectacular young players, with Zalgiris star Lonnie Walker (16.4 points per game) aiming to outgun Theo Maledon (18.8 ppg), who has passed 20 points in seven of the last eight games.
Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. FC Barcelona (20:00 CET)
After returning to top form by crushing Fenerbahce on Tuesday, Barcelona (9-7) will look to stay strong with a road trip to Virtus (3-13). Kevin Punter inspired the Spanish team earlier this week with 25 points, but coach Joan Penarroya will be more interested in seeing a repeat of Barca’s defensive efforts which limited Fener to just 63 points. Virtus succumbed at Olympiacos on Wednesday despite sharpshooting veteran Marco Belinelli returning to action with 20 points. The Italian team, which will hope to welcome back Toko Shengelia after injury, allows more offensive rebounds than any other team, so Barca will look to crash the glass through the in-form Justin Anderson, who has scored 15, 16 and 17 points in the last three games.
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. ALBA Berlin (20:15 CET)
Olympiacos (10-6) will look to cement its position in the top six with a visit from last-placed ALBA (3-13). The German team has only ever won once in Piraeus, and needs to somehow stop the unstoppable Sasha Vezenkov, who drained 27 points as the Reds overcame Virtus two days ago – the former EuroLeague MVP has recorded two straight double-doubles and averages 18.8 points per game. And if Vezenkov doesn’t get ALBA, Alec Peters is ready to step in after netting 12 points on 3-of-3 triples plus 8 rebounds last time out. To counter that duo, the visitor could use another strong game from Yanni Wetzell, who combined 15 points with 8 boards and 5 assists in the home loss to Zalgiris in Round 16.
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (20:30 CET)
Zvezda (8-8) and Maccabi (4-12) will meet in a familiar Belgrade environment for both teams as they look to rebound from losses earlier this week. Zvezda, which has won three of its last four at home, needs to cut out the mistakes which led to 21 turnovers in Wednesday’s loss at Efes, while hoping that top scorer Filip Petrusev stays hot after he netted 15 points in that game. Maccabi, on a four-game losing run, will be led from the backcourt by Rokas Jokubaitis, who had an impressive 22 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists in Tuesday’s loss to Baskonia, but desperately needs to improve a leaky defense which has allowed at least 84 points in seven consecutive games.
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. FC Bayern Munich (21:00 CET)
After suffering heavy road losses earlier this week, direct rivals Milan (9-7) and Bayern (10-6) will look for an instant reaction to get back on track. The German team has a 2-6 record on the road this season, while Milan has been victorious in five straight at home. Both teams will be seeking defensive improvement after respectively allowing 103 and 93 points in Tuesday defeats. Competition scoring leader Carsen Edwards again led Bayern with 17 points in the loss at Monaco, while Milan’s equally free-scoring Nikola Mirotic maintained his outstanding form with 16 points in his team’s defeat in Athens. These are the top two scoring teams in the league, with Milan’s 87.4 points per game only bettered by Bayern’s 88.7, so it should be a high-scoring thriller.