There are several mouth-watering clashes to feast your eyes on between Thursday and Friday
At a glance: The double-round fun continues in Round 22
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The action keeps on coming as the latest double-round week concludes with Round 22, including a rematch of last season’s semifinal. This is what we can enjoy on Thursday and Friday.
Thursday, January 16
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. ALBA Berlin (20:00 CET)
Two teams who suffered heavy losses in Round 21 will look to restore confidence as ASVEL (9-12) hosts ALBA (3-18). The German team has the worst defense in the league with 91.9 points per game allowed, which could be just the tonic for the home team after putting just 62 points on the board in Tuesday’s home defeat to Partizan. That game saw key man Theo Maledon suffer a rare bad night with 0-of-6 field goals converted, and the only ASVEL player to reach double digits was Melvin Ajinca (14 points), who poses a long-range threat with 40.4% of triples converted this season. ALBA has lost eight in a row and confidence will be fragile following Tuesday’s 31-point battering at Milan, when only Yanni Wetzell (13 points and 7 rebounds) emerged with much credit.
Paris Basketball vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (20:30 CET)
Having ended a long losing run on Tuesday, Paris (12-8) is aiming for a second win of the week against struggling Maccabi (5-16). The Israeli team’s porous defense led to another loss despite pouring in 113 points – led by 20 points from Rokas Jokubaitis – at Real Madrid two days ago, and now faces the task of slowing down TJ Shorts after the Paris playmaker posted 17 points and 8 assists to help overcome Efes last time out. That game also saw Mikael Jantunen find form with a pair of triples in his total of 10 points, after previously missing 22 consecutive three-point attempts over a seven-game span, and the Finnish forward will look to further build his confidence against a Maccabi team which has allowed an average of 107 points over the last three games.
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (20:30 CET)
After gaining big wins on Tuesday, Milan (12-9) and Partizan (10-11) will look to maintain momentum and complete a perfect week. Milan enjoyed more magic from Nikola Mirotic to thrash ALBA last time out, with the relentlessly consistent forward maintaining his MVP candidacy with 21 points on 7-of-9 field goal shooting. Leandro Bolmaro also excelled with 11 points and 8 assists, and he faces a great backcourt matchup with Carlik Jones after the Partizan playmaker dished 9 assists without a turnover in Tuesday’s thrashing of ASVEL. His namesake Tyrique Jones also enjoyed a great game inside the paint, netting 22 points on 9-of-10 two-pointers and snaring 4 steals, and the visiting big man’s bruising encounter with Milan dynamo Zach LeDay (15.5 points and 4.5 boards per game) could be crucial.
Real Madrid vs. Olympiacos Piraeus (20:45 CET)
A heavyweight battle will see one long unbeaten run ended as Real Madrid (12-9) hosts league leader Olympiacos (15-6). The Spanish side has won six in a row following Tuesday’s remarkable shootout against Maccabi, which saw key offensive talents Facu Campazzo (31 points, 8 assists), Mario Hezonja (25 points) and Dzanan Musa (20 points) all make big contributions. Campazzo faces a battle against former Real guard Nigel Williams-Goss, who will continue to lead Olympiacos’s backcourt in the absence of the injured Thomas Walkup. Willams-Goss had a career night with personal bests of 8 assists and 28 PIR in Tuesday’s overtime win at Baskonia – the Reds’ fifth consecutive triumph – and will look to provide more ammunition for the unstoppable Sasha Vezenkov (20.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game).
Friday, January 17
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul vs. Zalgiris Kaunas (18:45 CET)
High-flying Fenerbahce (13-7) will aim for a fourth straight victory with a visit from a Zalgiris team (11-10) targeting a second win of the week. The Turkish team is firing on all cylinders offensively, averaging 90 points during its current winning streak with the inevitable Nigel Hayes-Davis making 8 of his 13 three-point attempts in the last two games. Marko Guduric has also found form with four straight games of double-digit scoring, and he will try to control the tempo against Zalgiris team which rediscovered its best defense in Wednesday’s win over Virtus. That triumph ended a four-game losing streak for Andrea Trinchieri’s team, which will again rely heavily on Sylvain Francisco after his 20-points contribution on 5-of-8 three-point shooting earlier this week.
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. AS Monaco (20:00 CET)
Two of Wednesday’s beaten teams will seek instant redemption as Zvezda (12-9) hosts Monaco (13-8) for a meeting of two of the nine teams separated by just one win between second and tenth place. Visiting coach Vassilis Spanoulis will demand a defensive improvement after seeing his team allow 98 and 95 points in the last two games, while counting on Mike James to continue his offensive leadership after netting 20 points in Wednesday’s late loss at Bayern. Zvezda will also look to tighten up, having allowed 96 points to Fenerbahce two days ago. That game saw Codi Miller-McIntyre’s best performance of the season with 23 points, so he will be determined to exploit any ongoing weakness in the Monaco defense.
FC Bayern Munich vs. Virtus Segafredo Bologna (20:30 CET)
Boosted by Wednesday’s dramatic win over Monaco on the back of Shabazz Napier’s game-winning three, Bayern (12-9) will look to complete a perfect week by downing Virtus (6-15). The German team’s backcourt trio of Napier, Carsen Edwards and fit-again Nick Weiler-Babb combined for 60 points on 12-of-18 three-point shooting, so Virtus will need all the defensive nous of Daniel Hackett to limit the host’s offense. The Italian team was happy to welcome back leader Toko Shengelia after injury for Wednesday’s trip to Zalgiris, but the power forward’s 12 points and 7 rebounds were not enough to prevent defeat – partly thanks to a poor long-range shooting night, with Virtus making just 4 triples. Isaia Cordinier and Marco Belinelli went a combined 0-of-7 from deep, and must improve to grab a road win in Munich.
Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (20:30 CET)
Two teams aiming to avoid a pair of double round defeats go head-to-head, with Baskonia (8-13) welcoming Panathinaikos (13-8). The Greens suffered Spain elsewhere in Spain by losing at Barcelona on Wednesday, and will look to regain their usual offensive fluency after being restricted to 73 points, with scoring star Kendrick Nunn making just 3 of his 15 field goals for 7 points. Baskonia has lost three in a row and fatigue could be a factor for Pablo Laso’s men after going down in overtime against Olympiacos on Tuesday, when Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot produced by far his best game of the season with 25 points. Panathinaikos cruised home, 104-69, when the teams met in Round 17 on a night marred by serious injury to Mathias Lessort, so Baskonia knows just how hard its task is.
FC Barcelona vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul (20:45 CET)
Surging Barcelona (12-9) will look to secure a fourth straight win against struggling Efes (10-11). The Spanish team found its defensive identity to down reigning champ Panathinaikos two days ago, with the offensive spark provided by 25 points from Jabari Parker, while Dario Brizuela maintained his good form with 15 points. Efes, in contrast, is looking to bounce back after a run of four consecutive losses, most recently going down at Paris on Tuesday night despite 21 points from consistent swingman Elijah Bryant. The Turkish team has not won on the road for more than two months, and will need big man Vincent Poirier – a familiar face at Palau Blaugrana following his spell with Real Madrid – to deliver another strong performance after his double-double of 14 points and 11 boards against Paris.