By Lefteris Moutis / moutis@eurohoops.net
The betting season has started rather well for Eurohoops, with 2 out of 3 predictions in the first two days. CSKA comfortably beat Galatasaray and Darussafaka pulled off a major upset to prevail over Crvena Zvezda, but the three-for-three was missed because of Olympiacos’s poor offensive function and the low score in the game against Real.
Let’s take a look at the last four games of the opening week.
UNICS Kazan – Barcelona
UNICS Kazan do not have the material to pinch a spot in the top eight, but they can definitely square up to teams like Barcelona on their home court. The Russians have won their three games in the VTB League mighty easily, but the Euroleague is certainly very different. The Catalans, respectively, have played much more difficult games, but weren’t as consistent. According to the estimates of the betting companies Barcelona are the favorites (4,5 points) but it’s better to avoid betting on this game.
Fenerbahce are very strong at home and they are the big favorites for the win over Bamberg. The Turkish team wants to start off the season in the Euroleague with an easy win, but the gritty German team are accustomed to fighting to the end. The 9,5-point handicap makes it harder to predict and so it seems easier to move towards the Under at 151,5 points (@OPAP 1,75). The Germans play good defense, they will try to keep the pace down in order to stay in the game as long as possible.
Panathinaikos – Zalgiris
In theory, Panathinaikos start off with one of the easiest games of the season in the Euroleague. Zalgiris are not a boogeyman, they do not have a quality roster, and they will probably lose easily. However, James’s injury has been quite disruptive for the “greens”, they are trying to change their game, the derby against Olympiacos is approaching, and the game against the Lithuanians is definitely “peculiar”. Panathinaikos’s point-limit is rather high (78,5) for a game that is expected to be slow. So we’re going with the Under (@Stoiximan 1,95) for the points scored by the “greens”.
Baskonia – Efes
Baskonia are a totally different team compared to last year in terms of the faces, but their philosophy remains the same despite the fact that Perasovic is now coaching Efes. The Basques want to run on the open court, exactly like their former coach is doing with his new team. The point limit is set at 162,5 (@Sportingbet 1,87). Even if it’s still early in the season, the two teams can score more than that.
The betting tips:
Fenerbahce – Bamberg Under 151,1 points
Panathinaikos – Zalgiris Panathinaikos Under 78,5 points
Baskonia – Efes Over 162,5 points