ALBA Berlin (8-17) is on a four-game losing streak and has won just twice in its last 12 EuroLeague games. Luke Sikma (9.0 ppg., 5.7 rpg., 4.0 apg.), Ben Lammers (10.2 ppg., 4.1 rpg.) and Marcus Eriksson (10.7 ppg.) are its main pillars right now. Panathinaikos OPAP Athens (9-14) has won its last two games and wants to keep it going. The Greens are led by Nemanja Nedovic (16.7 ppg.m 3.8 apg.), Ioannis Papapetrou (12.4 ppg., 4.7 rpg.) and Georgios Papagiannis (9.6 ppg., 6.2 rpg.) and on Monday signed swingman Mario Hezonja to add even more punch.

ALBA did a lot of good things against Fenerbahce last week, sharing the ball with efficiency – 25 assists, 13 turnovers – and shooting with solid percentages (61.8% 2FG, 36.7% 3FG, 100% FT). Running its offense through Sikma, a forward with outstanding passing skills, should allow ALBA to get better options all around on offense. Lammers and Johannes Thiemann have the tough mission to stop Dinos Mitoglou and Papagiannis down low. If ALBA boxes out on defense and gets its transition game going, it should have a better chance to win.

• Niels Giffey has been sidelined since Round 17 with an injury.
• Jayson Granger is out after having hand surgery.
• Luis Olinde is expected to miss several weeks after injuring his hand ahead of Round 25.

Panathinaikos has a size advantage in critical spots, such as center – with Papagiannis – and small forward – with Papapetrou – and should make the most out of it. Panathinaikos ranks second in offensive rebounds (11.9 orpg.) and should keep looking to power the glass for second-chance opportunities. It is important for the Greens to prevent ALBA from running, so transition defense and putting pressure on Siva and Maodo Lo should one of the biggest keys to this game.

• New signing Mario Hezonja’s first appearance will have to wait until thw next round.

FC Barcelona (17-8) leads the standings and has won seven of its last eight games. Nikola Mirotic (16.0 ppg.) has been its top scorer until now, followed by Cory Higgins (12.9 ppg.) and Brandon Davies (11.8 ppg.). LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (11-14) is on a five-game winning streak, a record for French teams in the EuroLeague. Moustapha Fall (9.3 ppg., 70.0% 2FG, 5.5 rpg.), Norris Cole (13.4 ppg., 3.5 apg.) and David Lighty (11.7 ppg.) have been its main pillars throughout the season.

Barcelona comes off a really convincing win against Zalgiris Kaunas, forcing its opponents into low shooting percentages (48.6% 2FG, 26.3% 3FG) and forcing 20 turnovers. That kind of hustle should be needed against a physical team like ASVEL. Zalgiris averages 9.0 offensive rebounds, but grabbed 15 against Barcelona, so there is room for improvement. On offense, Higgins and Mirotic should stay as Barcelona’s go-to guys. On defense, Calathes faces a key matchup against Cole.

• Leo Westermann missed Round 25 game with an ankle injury.

Since it started to shoot the ball better, ASVEL has become unstoppable. Before its current winning streak, ASVEL had hit 38.8% of its three-point shots (171-of-441). Since then, it has improved to 45 of 97, or 46.4%. Sharpshooter Antoine Diot, Lighty and Matthew Strazel must keep finding good shots, creating space for Guerschon Yabusele and Moustapha Fall to play one-on-one in the paint. Preventing Calathes from dominating the game tempo should be another big key to this game.

• Derrick Walton has been sidelined for several weeks with a hip injury.

In a showdown between teams looking to bounce back from Round 25 losses, FC Bayern Munich hosts Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv on Thursday. Bayern (15-10) had a three-game losing streak snapped when it fell at LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. Coach Trinchieri’s men are 9-3 at home this season. Maccabi (10-13) has dropped its last two games and is 4-8 on the road this season. The Israeli champs are now four wins outside of the playoff zone and the pressure may be mounting.

• Nihad Dedovic missed the team’s Round 25.
• Robin Amaize has missed the last eight games.
• Zan Mark Sisko returned to action in Round 25 after missing seven games.

Bayern excels by playing a physical game that leads to lots of steals and forced turnovers. It leads the league in fouls (23.2 per game), is second in steals (7.8 apg.) and fourth in turnovers forced (14.1 TOpg.). Maccabi’s poor free-throw shooting (76.7%, 16th in the league) is something Bayern can take advantage as is Maccabi’s struggles from the three-point line (35.6%). Forcing Maccabi into tough shots and fouling when the Israeli champs have good looks could be a recipe for success.

• T.J. Cline is due to make his EuroLeague debut.
• Yovel Zoosman will be out until late March with a knee injury.
• Omri Casspi will travel to Munich with the team and may play after missing several weeks with illness.
• The participation of Wilbekin (thumb), Othello Hunter and Casspi will be game-time decisions.

Bayern has made the most two-pointers (21.5 per game) and the fewest threes (7.2 per game) in the league this season. Maccabi has a deep and long frontline with Othello Hunter, Ante Zizic, Dragan Bender and Angelo Caloiaro and they together will be tasked with controlling the paint on both ends. A collective strong game by the Maccabi bigs blocking shots, on the glass and scoring inside would put Coach Sfairopoulos’s men in a winning position.

AX Armani Exchange Milan will try to bounce back from losing two of its last three games when it hosts Khimki Moscow Region on Thursday. Third-placed Milan (16-9) has won five straight home games and is 9-4 on Italian soil this season. Khimki (2-22) is on a 16-game losing streak, though Alexey Shved and co. continue to play hard.

• Jeff Brooks has not played in the last six games.
• Zach LeDay has missed the last two games with an injury.

Milan’s high-powered attack is second in the league in three-point accuracy (42.0) and has committed the fewest turnovers (10.8 TOpg.). Khimki has been vulnerable to the three-pointer, allowing a league-high 43.2%. Milan should get plenty of good looks, but it needs Malcolm Delaney, Luigi Datome, Punter, Shavon Shields and Sergio Rodriguez to make their threes, because when the threes don’t fall, Milan struggles. Coach Messina’s men have made just 34.3% of their triples in defeats this season.

• Devin Booker has missed the last four games.
• Anton Ponkrashov made his Khimki return in Round 25.
• Errick McCollum did not play in Round 25.

Khimki can ill-afford turnovers in Milan; the team has averaged just 10 turnovers per game in wins and 14.4 in losses. Khimki also needs to make more use of its interior weapons, such as Jordan Mickey, to balance the attack, since it is tied for second-to-last with just 17.5 two-point shots made per game.

Real Madrid hosts Zalgiris Kaunas on Thursday in a showdown between two playoff hopefuls separated by just one game in the standings. Real is fifth at 15-10, while Zalgiris is four places behind despite its 14-11 record. Los Blancos will try to shake off back-to-back losses and recapture its winning form before heading to Russia for two games next week. After winning seven in a row at home, Real has dropped three of its last four in Madrid. Zalgiris snapped a two-game slide on Tuesday with a victory over Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade and now wants to turn that into a winning streak. The Lithuanian champs are 7-6 on the road this season with losses in four of their last five.

• Anthony Randolph is out with a ruptured left Achilles tendon.
• Rudy Fernandez did not play in Round 25 due to back issues.
• Sergio Llull’s participation in the games is questionable with a knee injury.

After losing its last two games in a row, Real will look to geth back to the winning track as soon as possible if it wants to stay among the top teams. In front of them they will have a team with fighting spirit which also happens to be the second-best team in the league from beyond the arc. The hosts will have to pay attention in defense to those open shots, while also make sure that the guests do not travel too often to the free-throw line, where they lead the league with a 85.2%

• Zalgiris swingman Patricio Garino remains out of action after a knee operation.
• Arturas Milaknis is out after making 200 consecutive appearances in the competition. This was the second-longest streak this century.

If any team has the tools to neutralize Walter Tavares’s defensive impact, it’s Zalgiris, which is second in the league in three-point shooting at 42.0%. However, Zalgiris is very selective from downtown; its 19.9 threes attempted per game are the third-fewest in the league and it will be without ace shooter Arturas Milaknis this week. If Maruis Grigonis, Lukas Lekavicius and Nigel Hayes heat up and stretch the floor, it would be a great sign for the visitors. Zalgiris has averaged 9.5 three-pointers on 47.2% shooting in wins this season and just 6.9 threes at 35.2% in defeats.