By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Just hours before the start of Games 2 in the Euroleague play offs series, Eurohoops provides you with the round up of what happened during Game 1 in all four play offs couples. So here are our MVP, the best five and the round up.
MVP
Ricky Hickman
It’s an easy choice and he is a well deserving MVP. He had 26 points and a 36 ranking, being the most decisive player on the floor in a big overtime win. What more could you ask? Probably nothing and if he continues to play like this, then Maccabi will return to Milan for the Final Four.
Best Five
- Ricky Hickman: A real MVP…
- Rudy Fernandez: A career night and a blow out win over the defending champions. He had 20 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and just one turnover in 30 minutes of action.
- Bostjan Nachbar: In 14 minutes he had 19 points, while Barcelona cruised to the win over Arroyo-less Galatasaray.
- Kyle Hines: He is by far the most consistent player the last three seasons in Euroleague, always providing when it’s needed. He had 15 points and 8 rebounds, more than crucial for CSKA‘s win.
- Sofoklis Shortsanitis: His numbers just can’t be ignored. In just 15 minutes he had 17 points on 7/9 shots. He got into foul trouble and that limited his use, but when he was on the court, he was just unstoppable.
The round up
Maccabi Tel Aviv is the only team which won on the road after Game 1 of Euroleague play offs. Now the tables are turned and EA7 Milano needs to react. At Moscow, CSKA survived a close call over Panathinaikos, as the Greeks proved that they are more than dangerous. At Madrid, heavy favorite Real prevailed with relative ease over Olympiacos in the most intriguing series so far. Olympiacos accused the Spaniards for flopping and Draper will miss the rest of the series. Also Olympiacos forward Stratos Perperoglou is expected to miss the game after getting the flu. At Barcelona, the Catalans got the win over Galatasaray, which is much depended on Arroyo’s condition and he is going to miss Game 2.