Euroleague Preview – Round 14 – Who will show stamina?

Zalgiris Kaunas (5-8) will look to turn its valuable road in win in Istanbul on Tuesday into a streak today when it hosts Unics Kazan (4-9) at Zalgirio Arena. The teams have met only twice previously in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague competition, with a win for each side so far. Visitor’s star Keith Langford leads the competition in scoring (23.8 ppg.) to which he also adds 3.9 assists per game. However, he missed the last game due to an ankle injury, and he is in doubt for this game also. The offenses of the two teams are a couple of points apart (81.4 to 79.4 for Zalgiris) and the numbers are also practically identical in defense, so expect the little details to play a major role on Thursday night. Zalgiris has an edge crashing the offensive rebounds, so those second options in offense could prove decisive. Expect a tough duel between two teams in a similar situations playing for the very same goal at this point in the season. Not an easy one either, but we have a feeling that Unics will at least hold the handicap of +6.0, currently priced at 1.90 with bet365.

Aiming to bounce back from Tuesday’s defeat, Brose Bamberg (4-9) meets visiting Olympiacos Piraeus (9-4) at the Brose Arena. These teams have met four times in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague before and the German champs hold the positive end of a surprising 3-1 record! Georgios Printezis (12.2 ppg. and 4.4 rpg.) is sidelined due to injury for the Greeks. That’s why Olympiacos will need Matt Lojeski (11.4 ppg.) to step up as he did against Crvena Zvezda on Tuesday with his 18 points. Hackett is also out. Both teams have virtually identical numbers in offense, around 80 points per game, so it could all come down to the defense of Olympiacos, which is the best in the league allowing only 74.5 points per night, while Bamberg’s allows for 82.5. Olympiacos is also the best-rebounding team in the competition (37.5), but Bamberg can fight back with assists (17.8 against 14.9) and better shooting percentages from all ranges. The hosts have lost many games by few points and have proven that they can compete against anybody in the league, but Olympiacos is on a four-game winning streak and definitely doesn’t want it to stop in Germany. No matter what Olympiacos wants, our pick is a home win since Trinchieri’s men might have fount the magic recipe against the Reds. The home win is at 1.95 with bet365.

Friday’s matches

Friday starts with a Christmas cracker as Fenerbahce Istanbul (8-5) travels to CSKA Moscow (12-1) in the first rematch of last season’s Championship Game. Table-topping CSKA, which is first in the league in points (91) and assists (20.6), has won six games on the bounce and has not been defeated in Moscow for 17 games and more than a year. Fenerbahce needs to bounce back from a two-game losing sequence in which it has averaged just 67 points. CSKA’s stars Teodosic and De Colo have missed previous matches but their teammates still did the job. Today they are considered as doubtful, probably to mix up the opponent’s tactics. Fener is an experienced team and they have a chance in Russia. The away win is priced at 3.75. A more logical approach is the away win with a handicap of +7.5 points, currently priced at 1.90 with bet365.

Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul (7-6) will gun for its third straight win with the visit of Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv (5-8) which, conversely, needs to snap a four-game losing streak. Going up against the club he led to title glory in 2014, Darussafaka coach David Blatt knows his team has been outperformed by Maccabi in assists (14.5 per game against 17.6) and rebounding (21.3 against 25.3), but can call upon a more effective three-point shooting conversion rate (40.5% against 37%). This is a hard to call but Maccabi has provided some surprising results so far and maybe they have an answer to their recent form. It pays at 3.30 with bet365.

Surging Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens (8-5) and equally confident Baskonia Vitoria Gasteiz (9-4) meet in a big battle between the teams currently positioned fifth and fourth in the standings. Panathinaikos now possesses the league’s best defense after allowing just 66.67 points per game during its current three-game winning streak. But Baskonia has won four in a row, restricting its opponents to 62 points or less in three of those games, and this one could go either way. Panathinaikos looks strong at the moment and they should even cover the -6.5 points handicap (1.90 with bet365).

Finally, two teams in desperate need of an upturn in fortunes meet as FC Barcelona Lassa (5-8) hosts EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (4-9). Barcelona, which has lost six of its last seven games, has the worst offense in the league and hasn’t exceeded 76 points since Round 6. But Milan, which has lost six in a row, has allowed more points than any other team, 87.53 per game, and has also seen its previously solid offensive production plummet with an average of 72 points in the last three games. Barcelona should win but this is a no bet.