Due to the split of January 31 and February 1 games in Round 22 next week, the last games being considered for the MVP of January award are on Thursday and Friday of Round 21. All teams will have played five games this month by the end of this week. As always, the winner will be named by Euroleague Basketball based on his and his team's performance during the month. In alphabetical order, here are some of the top candidates – all from teams with no more than one defeat so far – heading into the last eligible games of the month.

January MVP ladder: The top candidates

### Xavi Lopez-Arostegui, Valencia Basket (3-1)

Valencia Basket heads into Round 21 on a three-game winning streak despite a bevy of injuries that saw four of the team's top five scorers miss time this month. [Lopez-Arostegui](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/xabi-lopez-arostegui/005356/) rose to the challenge to lift Valencia when most needed. After producing 12 points and 2 steals in a victory over defending champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul, he went for 13 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals at LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. That came after averaging 6.2 points, 1.0 assist and 0.5 steals in the first 17 rounds of the season. Lopez-Arostegui, a EuroLeague rookie, has been at the heart of Valencia's winning run and continues to get better. 

Xabi Lopez-Arostegui Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Xabi Lopez-Arostegui's top January plays

### Johnathan Motley, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (3-1)

After missing time in December due to injury, [Motley ](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/johnathan-motley/011157/)has been a beast in the paint for Fenerbahce in January. His best game of the month came against Bayern as Motley won the Round 19 MVP honor by posting 22 points and 17 rebounds for a PIR of 38. It was the highest rebounding total and second-highest PIR of the month. In total, Motley has led Fenerbahce to a 3-1 record in January with 15.3 points and a league-high 9.8 rebounds per game. His PIR of 19.5 this month is tied for fourth. Those numbers soar to 17.7 points, 11.3 boards and a PIR of 24.0 in Fenerbahce's three January victories.

Johnathan Motley Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Johnathan Motley's top January plays

### Augustine Rubit, FC Bayern Munich (3-1)

[Rubit](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/augustine-rubit/006477/) has been playing his best basketball in January, leading Bayern to a pair of home wins and a heroic comeback at Anadolu Efes Istanbul. Having started the month with 23 points and a career-high PIR of 34 to beat Panathinaikos Athens, Rubit never slowed down. Now in his fifth EuroLeague season – and second with Bayern – Rubit is the fourth-highest EuroLeague scorer in January with 17.8 points per game and third in PIR (21.0). He has made 66.7% of his two-pointers (24 of 36) and 80% of his threes (4 of 5). 

Augustine Rubit Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Augustine Rubit's top January plays

Going into his team's *El Clásico* rivalry with FC Barcelona to open Round 21 on Thursday, [Tavares](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/walter-tavares/005791/) has been Real Madrid's defensive anchor all month. Los Blancos held its three January victims to an average of 67.0 points per game as Tavares averaged 7.0 points, 9.3 rebounds and a remarkable 4.3 blocks per game. Needless ot say, he leads all EuroLeague players in January with 3.5 blocks and is second with 7.5 rebounds while ranking third with an average PIR of 19.3. 

Walter Tavares Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Walter Tavares's top January plays

### Edgaras Ulanovas, Zalgiris Kaunas (4-0)

Team captain [Ulanovas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/edgaras-ulanovas/002329/) has been at the epicenter of success for the only unbeaten team until now in January. He scored in double-digits in all four Zalgiris victories this month and had as many as 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals along the way. His 8 points in a late 13-0 comeback run to beat Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in Round 21 preserved Zalgiris's perfect record so far in January. His 14.8 PIR ranks fourth on this list of candidates and his 12.8 points per game third.

Edgaras Ulanovas Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Edgaras Ulanovas's top January plays

### Sasha Vezenkov, Olympiacos Piraeus (3-1)

Although he may have cooled off his torrid numbers from the 2022 portion of the season, [Vezenkov ](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/sasha-vezenkov/003469/)remained essential to the Reds doing enough to share first place going into January's final games. He has led Olympiacos with averages of 12.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 14.0 PIR. Vezenkov came on particularly strong at the end of the month, with game highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds in a close win at Virtus Segafredo Bologna and then 15 points and 14 PIR in a successful first-place showdown with Real Madrid.

Sasha Vezenkov Top Plays from 12/26/2022 to 01/25/2023

Sasha Vezenkov's top January plays

FC Bayern Munich v Virtus Segafredo Bologna (2023-01-27T19:45:00.000Z)

Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2023-01-27T19:30:00.000Z)

Olympiacos Piraeus v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2023-01-27T19:30:00.000Z)

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade v Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (2023-01-27T18:00:00.000Z)

AS Monaco v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2023-01-26T20:00:00.000Z)

Real Madrid v FC Barcelona (2023-01-26T18:00:00.000Z)

Panathinaikos Athens v Zalgiris Kaunas (2023-01-26T20:00:00.000Z)

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne v Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2023-01-26T20:00:00.000Z)

ALBA Berlin v Valencia Basket (2023-01-26T19:00:00.000Z)

 Real Madrid's Walter Tavares, making history and taking names 

One measure of how Real Madrid center [Walter Tavares](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/walter-tavares/005791/) is dominating this Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season like few defenders before him is to realize how quickly he is setting and challenging single-season and all-time records.

Before the season opened, Tavares ranked third in career blocks, 25 behind the all-time leader, Bryant Dunston, and 2 behind Kyle Hines, both of whom are still active, of course. After 20 games, Tavares now leads Dunston by 21 blocks, 339 to 318. That amounts to a 55 to 9 difference in this season alone over the competition's previous best-ever shot-blocker! He now leads Hines by 41 blocks, 339 to 298. Mind you, Hines has 377 career games and Dunston 285. Tavares is up to just 182.

Superlatives come easy in any discussion of Tavares's shot-blocking.

- He leads the next-best shot-blocker, Georgios Papagiannis of Panathinaikos Athens, last season's league leader, 55 to 27.
- His average of 2.8 blocks is the highest since 2001-02, when the late specialist Grigorij Khizhnyak averaged 3.2 for his second season in a row with Zalgiris Kaunas. Khizhnyak played only 12 and 14 games in those two seasons, against a limited group of opponents, while Tavares has been doing it for 20 games this season against all the best teams in Europe.
- At the rate he's going, Tavares will need just five more games, 14 more blocks in 25 total games, to break the single-season record of 68 blocks set by Ekpe Udoh over 31 total games in the 2016-17 season.
- With his single block in Round 20, Tavares broke the EuroLeague record for rejecting at least one shot in consecutive games with 25 dating back to last season. Khizhnyak had the previous record with 24.

Walter Tavares Top Blocks of the 2022-23 Regular Season

Another measure of the Tavares Effect is to listen to a couple of players talk about it. Jake Cohen of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv and his former teammate Michael Roll did a pilot episode for an upcoming EuroLeague TV feature for subscribers in which they commented live while watching the EuroLeague between Olympiacos Piraeus and Real Madrid last week. They had this pre-game conversation about Tavares:

**Cohen**: "Is there a guy that you've played against that has been more disruptive defensively than Walter Tavares?"

**Roll**: "Absolutely not. The guy is just - he takes up the whole paint. It's like as soon as you even sniff the paint out there, he's close. He's in the back of your head if you're going to shoot or anything like that. Everyone who's been out there knows, he's just the anchor. They send everything to him, so he's a problem for everybody."

**Cohen**: "Yeah, he's so annoying to play against. First of all, any time I step inside the three-point line, I think he's going to block my shot. And even outside the three-point line. You know, I've played some pick-and-pop and stuff against him, and I think, 'I've got a ton of space to shoot this.' And he still almost gets it or contests it really well, but man, what a game-changer he is defensively. Offensively, he's a very good player, too, but defensively, he just changes how you need to approach the game."

**Roll**: "A lot of the times I felt before that most teams didn't play in a drop coverage, and I felt he was the first drop big I played against in the EuroLeague. He was different. He's not out there hedging ball screens or doubling for that matter. So him in a drop, you think you're going to be able to get the pull-up jumper, but like you said, that contest, he can seem to bet eight feet or two meets away, it doesn't matter. He's going to get his hand on it, his fingertips, or maybe make you change your shot. It's a problem."

**Cohen**: "What's sick is he's contesting the pull-up on the pick-and-roll but you can't throw the lob over him, either. He defends both. Normally you have to pick one. Or I'm not going to let the guy catch the lob at the rim or I'm not going to let the guard shoot a pull-up. He takes away both."

**Roll**: "One thing I really do like, too, is that if he's getting his hands on the ball, he's smacking that thing. He's not giving it a tap. He's letting you know, 'I'm gonna smack it off the board or smack it out of your hands, with authority, so you're going to remember this next time you come down to my area.' That's what he's telling you."

**Cohen**: "You're going to have some PTSD afterwards."

**Roll**: "That's smart though. If I'm remembering this from four years ago when he beat my shot off the glass, I mean everybody's thinking about it for multiple years."

**Cohen**: "I can remember when he blocked my shot a few times, so yeah, it' working."

What their comments confirm is that the Tavares Effect goes way beyond his already mind-boggling number of blocks and records to all the shots that are altered, physically and psychologically, when Real Madrid's superman is patrolling the paint.

Jake Cohen, Michael Roll discuss Walter Tavares

Real Madrid's Walter Tavares, making history and taking names

 Zalgiris's Tyler Cavanaugh out more three months 

Zalgiris Kaunas forward [Tyler Cavanaugh](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/tyler-cavanaugh/009601/) is set to miss extended time after undergoing back surgery, the club announced on Tuesday. Cavanaugh has been out since Round 15, when he missed his first game due to back soreness. After conservative treatment did not improve his condition, Cavanaugh underwent a surgery that is expected to sideline him for three months. In the first 14 games of the season, his second for Zalgiris and third in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, Cavanaugh posted 5.9 points and 4.3 rebounds in a role off the bench. Zalgiris, holding 11-9 record heading into Round 21 road game against Panathinaikos Athens, has already [lost star point guard Keenan Evans for the season after an Achilles tendon rupture](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/news/zalgiris-evans-suffers-torn-achilles/), and will miss his replacement[ Isaiah Taylor for few more weeks with a hamstring injury](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/news/zalgiriss-isaiah-taylor-suffers-hamstring-injury/).

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tyler Cavanaugh successfully underwent back surgery and will miss at least 3 months of basketball. Get well soon, <a href="https://twitter.com/tycav34?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@tycav34</a>! 🙏<br><br>📰: <a href="https://t.co/C0Knj2yWzi">https://t.co/C0Knj2yWzi</a> <a href="https://t.co/w32pVOUpRP">pic.twitter.com/w32pVOUpRP</a></p>&mdash; BC Zalgiris Kaunas (@bczalgiris) <a href="https://twitter.com/bczalgiris/status/1617884475723218946?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 24, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Zalgiris's Tyler Cavanaugh out three more months

•	OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS has been sanctioned with a fine of €1,000 for the use of laser pointers directed towards the people involved in a game, on occasion of its home game against Real Madrid under Article 29.2.f of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code. 

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary sanction pertaining to incidents that occurred in Round 20 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular season.


Round 20 disciplinary sanctions

More than 40% of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season is still to be played, so at the same time that there's plenty of room for surprises in the standings, so there is plenty of time to make progress for EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge managers. Round 21 brings a mixed-bad of possibilities as some veterans are stepping up at the right time while injuries create opportunities for others. Here are some suggestions to consider for your three trades in Fantasy Challenge this week.

[Wade Baldwin, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/wade-baldwin-iv/009863/) (12.2 credits). Baldwin was the MVP of Round 20 after taking over in the absence of Lorenzo Brown, who will miss more time with a sprained ankle. After a lull around his own injury, Baldwin is averaging 17.0 points over the last two games and feeling very confident going into this week's road trip to face Olympiacos Piraeus.

[Toko Shengelia, Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/tornike-shengelia/001133/) (11.6 credits). It's crunch time in the EuroLeague season and Shengelia, a born competitor, is looking like his old self, averaging 13.5 points, 6.0 assists and a PIR of 14.5 over the last two games. He hasn't been a road warrior this season yet, but that's only a matter of time for Shengelia as Virtus visits FC Bayern Munich in Round 12.

Tornike Shengelia, Bojan Dubljevic, Achille Polonara, Wade Baldwin Iv, Othello Hunter Top Plays from 12/25/2022 to 01/24/2023

Euroleague Fantasy Challenge tips for Round 21

[Othello Hunter, FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/othello-hunter/005160/) (9.3 credits). Even with a pair negative games factored in, Hunter is averaging a PIR of 15.4 over the last eight games. He has made 16 of 32 three-pointers in that span, showing  a new facet of his game, while also pulling 6.1 rebounds, including a career-high 14 against Partizan. The 36-year-old center is in a sweet moment as Bayern welcomes Virtus on Friday.

[Achille Polonara, Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/achille-polonara/002084/) (7.8 credits). He hasn't gotten big minutes since transferring to Zalgiris earlier this month, but Polonara is making the most of his playing time, especially with 10 points, perfect 2-for-2 three-point shooting and 3 blocks for a PIR of 13 in as many minutes in Round 11. Zalgiris is 3-0 since Polonara joined them and looking to make it four in a row on a visit to Panathinaikos Athens.

[Bojan Dubljevic, Valencia Basket](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/bojan-dubljevic/002742/) (12.4 credits). In little over a month coinciding with Valencia's spate of injuries, Dubljevic has been good as gold, averaging 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 18.3 PIR while shooting 78.0% on two-pointers in a span of eight games. There's no reason to expect him to stop as Valencia takes its three-game winning streak to ALBA Berlin's court this week.

Fantasy Challenge tips: Looking to some veterans

Bonzie Colson, Maccabi: 'When the lights are bright, you perform'

Long before he was playing under the bright lights in the NBA or the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, [Bonzie Colson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/bonzie-colson/009783/) got used to performing in the spotlight. During high school, Colson took part in a play or a musical every year along with several of his teammates.

"My high school coach, Coach Michael Hart, wanted us to not only be basketball players, but to be involved in different things. So, a lot of the basketball players who came through Saint Andrews School in Barrington, Rhode Island, we were in plays," Colson recalled.

He had a small role as a freshman in Aladdin, with future NBA Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams playing the lead role. As a sophomore, they performed Seussical the Musical. Colson really broke out in the role of Benny Southstreet in Guys and Dolls when he was in 11th grade and Sonny LaTierri in Grease as a senior.

"It was fun to dress up. I think I wore a black suit with a purple shirt and a hat. And I was wearing glasses. It was fun getting into character and doing something new," he said of his role as Benny Southstreet. "I remember when I did Grease, I was Sonny… He's a little bit of a smart ass, a little bit of a goofy guy; that's kind of who I am. I related to it, but I was really practicing a lot just because I didn't want to embarrass myself.

"It was a big event. I think we did Thursday to Sunday. so that opening night is important just to get that rhythm just like on the basketball court. It was fun."

For Colson, the theme of community came up often when talking about performing on stage, just like on a basketball court. By spending time each year performing, he made new friends and learned to work with people in different ways.  

"I like doing new things and that was a good opportunity for me just to be expressive. Being on stage is just like being on the court. When the lights are bright, you perform," he stated. "We had to trust each other, we had to get each other's back… Just like on the court, it’s a team and you've got to work together. It’s just like that on the stage. You've got to work with people you never knew, practicing hard, understanding that making mistakes is okay. It was really fun. I enjoyed it."

All of that preparation for a show is what Colson sees as the biggest similarity between performing on stage and playing basketball. 

"Going into a game, you prepare for your opponent, you prepare for a player. And that's what I did on stage. I was preparing, I was constantly practicing. On the basketball courts, constantly getting shots up, constantly going over your plays. So, it's the same exact thing I was doing when I was entertaining, when I was acting," he explained.

"When the lights are bright on stage, you've got to breathe and be ready to play; \[it's the\] same thing on the court. When the lights are bright, the crowd is cheering for you, you've gotta be ready, you've gotta feed off the crowd's energy, and that’s what I was doing on stage. Feeding off the crowd’s energy, feeding off my teammates on the court, feeding off the other actors within the show, it was really similar and it was something new. I enjoyed it." 

However, there are some key differences. One that stood out for Colson was the lighting: "I think the stage, I would insist, is scarier but different because you’ve got to remember the stage is dark, so when you look out you can't see anything. You just see the bright spotlight traveling with you as you're walking on the stage. On the stage, you can't see out in the audience, whereas on the basketball court you can see everybody."

Looking back, even though Colson could not recall all the lyrics he sang as Benny Southstreet or his dance moves as Sonny, the fond memories of those performances will stick with him forever.

"I did it with two of my best friends, my really close friends to this day, so we talk about that to this day and it was fun."

Fenerbahce, Motley are rising again together

Of all the streaky teams in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague this season, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul might be the streakiest.

Fener stormed into the season with runs of five and four wins interrupted only by a single-point road loss to FC Barcelona. After Round 9, in late November, Fener held first place by two victories and looked like a season-long frontrunner.

Out of the blue, then, came six losses in seven games, a slide that included three home defeats, five in succession, and blowouts of 27 and 20 points. Injuries to top scorers [Johnathan Motley](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/johnathan-motley/011157/) and [Scottie Wilbekin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/scottie-wilbekin/006661/), who missed three and four games, respectively, played a role. By the new year, Fener had toppled to sixth place at 10-7, its stellar start a fading memory.

Now, again, with both those players back, Fener has reversed course for three straight victories, two in overtime, the last of which was a microcosm of its season so far.

At home against AS Monaco last Thursday, Fener lead by 9 points after 6 minutes, only to fall behind by 13 before halftime then come back and lead by 8 with 2 minutes left in the fourth quarter. But even that wasn't enough because Monaco's 0-8 finishing run forced overtime. There, big plays from [Nigel Hayes-Davis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/nigel-hayes-davis/008962/) and free throw perfection from [Marko Guduric](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/marko-guduric/004004/) finally sealed a [98-94](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/fenerbahce-beko-istanbul-as-monaco/E2022/172/) victory. 

Fener was two different teams in that game, one with Motley and one without. While he watched much of the first two quarters with foul trouble, Monaco led in rebounds 15 to 23 and was up on the scoreboard by 39-50 on the first shot after halftime. But Motley would compile 13 points, 9 rebounds and 12 fouls drawn in the final 25 minutes as Fener won the rebounding battled 45-42 and, with it, the game.

Johnathan Motely's third-quarter highlights vs. Monaco

However, when it ended, Motley was the most subdued of winners. Having missed 6 of his 9 free throws in the second half, he blamed himself for the game reaching overtime.

"From a personal standpoint, I think I was horrible: I missed too many free throws," he said coming off the court. "If I make them, the game is not as close. So I'm a little disappointed, but I'm glad we won. I tend to draw a lot of fouls. I think I draw the most on the team, but I think we become a different team if I become a better free throw shooter."

His coach, Dimitris Itoudis, knew that Motley's rebounding and 12 fouls drawn were key to Fener coming back and ultimately beating another top contender. But he also knew the Motley's dissatisfaction was a good sign.

"He's our point of emphasis. He knows that, all of Europe knows that, and we're happy," Itoudis said. "But he has a lot of space for improvement. He knows that, but he cannot sit down on what he has achieved so far. These 12 fouls drawn can be 22. And then the free throws can be better, the shooting has got to be better, the defense has got to be better."

With three wins in a row and a trip to LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (7-13) on Thursday, Fener (13-7) is once again sharing first place with three other teams amid a roller-coaster season that nonetheless has given Itoudis optimism for the stretch run.

"We know that we have not yet met our potential yet," Itoudis concluded. "And this is important."

Double derbies headline Round 21 drama

Round 21 of the regular season features a pair of European basketball classics, with FC Barcelona visiting Real Madrid in a clasico between two of the four teams tied for first place before Crvena Zvezda and Partizan clash in the Belgrade derby. Here's your guide to those and seven more showdowns this week.

### [ALBA Berlin vs. Valencia Basket](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/alba-berlin-valencia-basket/E2022/181/)

Valencia (10-10) will look to make it four wins in a row as it visits ALBA Berlin (6-14) for a rematch of the 2010 and 2019 EuroCup Finals. Valencia has been battling against injury problems recently but now has key creator Chris Jones available again and could give a debut to new signing Shannon Evans, who leads the Spanish League in scoring this season. ALBA, needing to bounce back from consecutive losses to reignite its faint playoffs hopes, will look to former Valencia forward Luka Sikma for inspiration.

### [Panathinaikos Athens vs. Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/panathinaikos-athens-zalgiris-kaunas/E2022/183/)

Red-hot Zalgiris (12-8) goes in search of a fifth straight victory as it visits struggling Panathinaikos (7-13), which has won only one of the last eight. Edgaras Ulanovas clinched last week's comeback win over Zvezda and can always be relied upon to act as Zalgiris's emotional leader. But perhaps more than any other team, the Lithuanians rely on collective work rather than individual brilliance – especially through a defense that has allowed just 76.2 points per game, second-best in the league.

Round 21 at a glance: Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona

### [Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/real-madrid-fc-barcelona/E2022/184/)

The latest instalment of *El Clásico* is a must-watch affair between co-leaders. Barca (13-7) has won three straight on the road and claimed a thrilling victory when the teams met at Palau Blaugrana in Round 2 as Sergio Llull missed an attempted game-winner on the final buzzer. Real (13-7) has the added incentive of bouncing back from a poor performance at Olympiacos last week, and will look for another dominant performance from Walter Tavares to control the paint in what will surely be a physical encounter.

### [LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/ldlc-asvel-villeurbanne-fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/E2022/182/)

Revived Fenerbahce (13-7) is looking to maintain a share of first place with victory over ASVEL (7-13), which is hoping to claim its first home win in four games. The Turkish titan's run of three straight wins has been powered by big man Johnathan Motley, who averages 17.7 points and 11.3 rebounds during that trio of games. Motley's battle for inside supremacy with ASVEL giant Youssoupha Fall – who has scored in double digits in four straight games – will be a key factor. 

### [AS Monaco vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/as-monaco-ea7-emporio-armani-milan/E2022/185/)

Playoffs-chasing but recently inconsistent Monaco (12-8) will aim to deepen the gloom for Milan (6-14), which has sunk to the foot of the standings with a run of four straight losses. The last seven games involving Monaco have all been won by the home team, including a Round 15 loss to Milan in Italy. That game saw Ettore Messina's men overturn a 17-point deficit by launching a 19-0 run in the final period, so Monaco coach Sasa Obradovic will not need to remind his players to compete for the full 40 minutes on this occasion.

Round 21 at a glance: Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade

### [Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/crvena-zvezda-meridianbet-belgrade-partizan-mozzart-bet-belgrade/E2022/186/)

All the devotion of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague will be on full display at the Aleksandar Nikolic Hall as Zvezda (10-10) and Partizan (9-11) meet for a crucial Belgrade derby. Zvezda triumphed in December's meeting with a dramatic game-winner from Nemanja Nedovic. Both teams have been on mixed form recently, but none of that will matter as they go head-to-head for a showdown where anything could happen and maximum intensity is guaranteed. Another win for Zvezda would seal a potentially lucrative tie-break advantage and effectively provide a three-game lead over its city rivals.

### [Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/olympiacos-piraeus-maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/E2022/187/)

After delivering arguably its best performance of the season to down Real Madrid last week, Olympiacos (13-7) will look to stay top of the pile by overcoming a Maccabi (11-9) team that needs a rare road victory to stay in the playoffs places. The Reds are the most accurate two-point shooting team in the competition with a 59.0% conversion rate, but could struggle to get to the basket so easily against a Maccabi team which ranks second in blocked shots at 3.7 per game.

Round 21 at a glance: Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul

### [Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/cazoo-baskonia-vitoria-gasteiz-anadolu-efes-istanbul/E2022/188/)

Two direct rivals on the fringes of the playoffs places aim to recover that winning feeling as Baskonia (11-9) seeks to end a four-game losing streak with a visit from reigning champ Efes (10-10) which is wounded by last week's home loss to Bayern. Long-range shooting accuracy will be crucial: Baskonia leads the league in three-pointers per game, 10.8, just ahead of Efes with 10.6. Specifically, the shooting duel between Markus Howard and former Baskonia star Shane Larkin could provide the key to the outcome.

### [FC Bayern Munich vs. Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/game-center/2022-23/fc-bayern-munich-virtus-segafredo-bologna/E2022/189/)

There's a lot of work to do if Bayern (8-12) or Virtus (9-11) want to climb into the playoffs picture, but both made a good start with battling wins last week. One of them will build further momentum by winning this week's final tipoff in Munich. The first-ever EuroLeague meeting between the teams, in Round 2, was a hard-fought contest edged 66-63 by Virtus, but this could be a more offensive contest with Milos Teodosic in fine form for the visitors, while veteran big man Othello Hunter has suddenly become a three-point marksman for Bayern.

Olympiacos Piraeus v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2023-01-27T19:00:00.000Z)

Real Madrid v FC Barcelona (2023-01-26T19:45:00.000Z)

Panathinaikos Athens v Zalgiris Kaunas (2023-01-26T19:00:00.000Z)

Anyone keeping up with the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague knows that the standings look insane – and the action of the floor has the intensity to match. With so many close games and so much parity, having players who can deliver in key moments is not just valuable at this point, it's the norm across the league.

Some teams lean more heavily on certain players late in close games than others. The list above ranks the top 10 players in clutch points this season. The typical definition of clutch is being used here, so it covers possessions in the last 5 minutes of the fourth quarter and all overtimes when the score is within 5 points. Most teams have played around 200 possessions of clutch basketball to this point. Valencia leads the way with 301 possessions and FC Bayern Munich at the back of the pack with just 135 through last week's action. The modern record for clutch scoring of 87 points was set by Scottie Wilbekin during the 2020-21 season.

Clutch possessions tend to be a way less efficient than those in the first 35 minutes of EuroLeague games as free throws may be more plentiful but open shots are hard to come by. They're converted for around 0.95 points per possession which is good jumping off point into the list above. Dwayne Bacon's scoring prowess has been a bright spot for Panathinaikos Athens this season, but his clutch efficiency has been critical in several of their wins.

Bacon currently leads the EuroLeague in isolation scoring, and in that aspect, he is joined by every player in the top four on the list. While having a player who can go and create his own shot gives a team a pressure release late in games, hero ball has a complicated relationship with clutch play in the EuroLeague. 

Nando De Colo is a good example of that as he's scored only 19 points in isolation situations all season, but 10 of them have been in the clutch. In contrast, Bacon has scored more than 5 points per game in isolation situations alone this year, but just 12 of his clutch points have resulted from isolations. The rest come from a blend of designed actions, pick-and-rolls, or quick reactions off the ball. There's a high level of gamesmanship in the way coaches approach late game situations. Do they sometimes opt to ride the hot hand? Sure, but they have a lot more cards to play and they are rarely so predictable.

Will Clyburn manning the third spot reflects the value of unpredictability. When thinking of Anadolu Efes Istanbul is recent seasons, one might assume Vasilije Micic would occupy this spot, and he did finish second in clutch scoring last season. But this season, Clyburn has scored twice as many clutch points as any of his Efes teammates so far. He joins Edgaras Ulanovas and Alpha Diallo as the lone forwards on this list.

EuroLeague veterans Chris Jones, Mike James, Luca Vildoza, Nemanja Nedovic, and Elie Okobo have made no shortage of big shots over the years, and there's value in that as coaches parse through their options. James is perhaps the best example of that. He's been in every spot on these leaderboards over the years, so even when he's not making shots, his reputation proceeds him, making him valuable as either an initiator or a decoy. 

The current circumstances of the EuroLeague are pretty straightforward: the games are going to be close and the stakes are going to be high. With so many teams quickly acclimating to the pressure, how a team keeps up is irrelevant. It's only important that they do.

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