2014/2015 Euroleague. ALBA and Laboral through
Friday’s 2014/2015 Euroleague round nine action saw two more clubs progress to the Top 16 stage as ALBA Berlin defeated Limoges and Laboral Kutxa Vitoria saw off Valencia in an all-Spanish clash.
In the other four games, Real Madrid moved a step closer to wrapping first place in Group A with a victory over Sassari, while also in Group A Nizhny took its Top 16 fate down to the final week of the 2014/2015 Euroleague Regular Season with a win over Anadolu Efes. Zalgiris Kaunas will be sweating next week after the Lithuanian team let Nizhny back into the race by losing on the road to Unics Kazan.
Group D saw Olympiacos down Crvena Zvezda Belgrade in a scintillating games between the two best teams in the group.
Group A
A full schedule of Group A games were left for Friday, and it proved to be an exciting round of action as not much was decided on the night. The Group will go into the last week with Top 16 places still up for grabs, while first place in the standings is still up for debate.
That said, Real Madrid took a big step to securing first with a crushing 58-83 road win over Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari. Los Blancos took out the Italians in their own back yard and drained 27 points in the second quarter and 29 points in the final act. The Spanish giant now tops the group with a 7-2 record, while Sassari have guaranteed themselves last place and currently have 1-8. Madrid were able to hold sole possession of first place thanks to Anadolu Efes’ loss 61-65 home loss at the hands of Nizhny Novgorod.
The Turkish team have had a stellar 2014/2015 Euroleague season so far, but slipped to a Nizhny team in need of a win to stay in contention for the Top 16. The Russians duly obliged by building a lead through the middle quarters and holding it. A win for the Novogorod outfit will be enough to qualify next week, but Nizhny faces a tricky all-Russian clash against Unics Kazan. Speaking of Unics, the Kazan contingent opened the door for Nizhny by taking out Zalgiris at home, sweeping the powerhouse 73-60. The game was close in the first half and Kaunas looked on course to get the win needed to qualify, but Unics used a 9-0 run in the third to take the win and consolidate its own qualification place that was earned last week.
Group B
ALBA Berlin claimed the last Top 16 place up for grabs in Group B with a 65-75 road win over Limoges in France, eliminating the hosts and Cedevita Zagreb in the process. ALBA won every quarter and rarely looked in doubt through the game, Jamel McLean was big with 18 points and 7 board to pace the winners.
Group D
There was plenty of movement in Group D as Laboral Kutxa edged into the Top 16 and Olympiacos ensured possession of first place heading into the next round of the 2014/2015 Euroleague. Olympiacos engaged in a fantastic battle with Serbian heavyweight Crvena Zvezda and the Greek team trailed at home through 30 minutes, losing three quarters to trail 42-48 heading into the last frame. The hosts went hot with a 22-11 run that sealed the victory and handed the Reds first place with a 64-59 final score.
Laboral Kuxa Vitoria tied up its position in the next phase of the tournament by outlasting Valencia 93-89 in this clash of Spanish teams. The victory eliminated Valencia and pushed Laboral into third with a 5-4 record.