By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
In five out of eight games in the first week of Top16 action were won by the guests. So you know what you can expect from now on. There’s one rule at this point in Euroleague, that nothing can be unexpected. Still the easy win of Nizhny Novgorod in Milan is still a great upset which got the spotlight. Speaking of which…
MVP
He returned with a bang leading his team to a road win in Milan. In 23 minutes of action, he had 19 points on 3/6 threes, dished 8 assists and made only one turnover. He also had four rebounds and one steal. This is a break out season for him and maybe the best is yet to come.
Best Five
- Taylor Rochestie: The “artist”
- Reggie Redding: Alba got with relative ease the win over Barca and he had 16 points on 7/11 shots and 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and two turnovers.
- Rudy Fernandez: There’s no way to deny that when Rudy plays good, Real is a much better team. Against a great defense he had 15 points on 50% shooting, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and one turnover.
- James Gist: He was the man who turned the tide against Maccabi for Panathinaikos with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 turnover and 2 huge blocks.
- Othello Hunter: He was amazing for the Reds with 18 points on 9/10 shots and 7 rebound. He was ready for a Top16 road win in Malaga.
Best losing performance: Marcelinho Huertas
The Brazilian guard did his best in order to save Barcelona, playing also for the injured players of his team. Huertas finished the game with 23 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals and 5 turnovers. He is a great fighter but in Berlin he was not enough.
Biggest win: CSKA Moscow
It was the biggest game of this week, it was decided in overtime, Dimitris Itoudis beat his mentor Zeljko Obradovic for the third time in their third duel and the bottom line is quite simple. Even if we are just in the first week of Top16, this result can be the key for CSKA Moscow securing the home court advantage in the play offs. Not a bad way to start the second phase of Euroleague.
The upset: Alba Berlin
Yes, Navarro, Oleson and Abrines weren’t there, but still Barcelona is a resilient team. That’s why the win of Alba and specially the way this win was achieved is the definition of upset. The Germans proved that they are not easy prey and they will fight until the end in order to make the next step.
The survivor: Galatasaray
After a tone of problems, many roster changes and a Top16 qualification that was decided in the last moment, Galatasaray got the win over Zalgiris. It’s one more sign of the fighting spirit this team has, no matter what happens outside the court.
The underachiever: Unicaja
There’s no shame in losing to Olympiacos. Still Malaga is sitting on top of Liga Endesa and has to protect its home court in order to get to the play offs. The team of coach Plaza couldn’t do that and no matter the opponent, has to get wins at home.
The dissapointment: EA7 Milano
We have to be hard with Ea7 Milano. It’s a team that made it to the play offs last season, we expected them to improve but so far they aren’t. And they paid for it with a defeat against one of the relatively weakest teams of Top16, even if Nizhny continues to play great.
The last word: The return
Just days after being sold to Anadolu Efes, Thomas Heurtel returned to Vitoria. In 15 minutes of action he had 0 points on 0/3 shots, 1 rebound and 2 turnovers. Yes it was a rocky start in a familiar, yet opposing environment. The French guard had an awkward debut with his new team, but there’s a good explanation for that and the future is going to be much better.
Euroleague 2014-2015 – 11th Day
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Alba Berlin |
F.C. Barcelona |
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Unicaja Malaga |
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Laboral Kutxa |
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CSKA Moscow |
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EA7 Milano |
Nizhny Novgorod |
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Galatasaray MP |