Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: Khimki edges Baskonia
Khimki Moscow Region continued its hot Turkish Airlines EuroLeague form with a victory over Baskonia, which sent the team to joint top of the standings. We were also treated to the first Greek classic of the season as Panathinaikos took out Olympiacos. Elsewhere, current champs Fenerbahce crushed Brose Bamberg, while Unicaja Malaga dominated Crvena Zvezda.
Khimki Moscow Region vs. Baskonia Vitoria, 91-90
Khimki squashed a resurgent Baskonia by a single point to move to the 5-1 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, joint with leading club CSKA Moscow. Khimki’s rise this season has been meteoric, but Baskonia threatened to spoil the party before dropping to its fifth defeat (1-5). The visitors led 40-48 through halftime and 61-64 after thirty minutes. However, Khimki wrestled back the game in the fourth act before Anthony Gill drained the decisive double.
Gill finished on 20 points with Alexey Shved, while James Anderson added 18 points.
Matt Janning drained 19 points in the losing effort, followed by Tornhike Shengelia and Johannes Voightmann with 14 points apiece.
Brose Bamberg vs. Fenerbahce Istanbul, 57-80
Reigning Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champs Fenerbahce travelled to Germany and crushed Bamberg, snapping the hosts’ three-game winning run (3-3). The win pushes Fener up to 4-2 in the mix at the top end of the standings. The visitors controlled large parts of the game and led by double digits (33-43) through halftime. Brose Bamberg struggled to get into the contest and was blown away in the second half.
Jan Vesely topped Fenerbahce with 15 points, while Brad Wanamaker added 13 points and Luigi Datome 12 points.
Augustine Rubit paced a poor Bamberg attack with 12 points.
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Panathinaikos Athens, 62-70
A huge Greek derby took place in the EuroLeague on Friday, with Panathinaikos (3-3) taking the spoils on the road at its great rival. Olympiacos had the chance to go top this evening, but instead lost its second in succession (4-2) after its first defeat a week ago. The Greens had opened a 30-35 lead through the long break, but Olympiacos fought back to a single play game at 47-49 through three stanzas. In the final act, Panathinaikos drained 21 points to extend past the hosts to victory.
James Gist set the tone for Panathinaikos with 15 points, with Lukas Lekavicius securing 14 points.
Janis Strelenieks topped Olympiacos with a game-high 18 points.
Unicaja Malaga vs. Crvena Zvezda Belgrade, 79-65
Unicaja Malaga joined a growing band of clubs on 3-3 by seeing off a Crvena Zvezda team that is struggling to get going this season. By the long break, the Spanish team had opened a 14-point advantage at 45-31 and the lead provide to be insurmountable for the guests. Crvena Zvezda huffed and puffed in the second half, but Malaga had the tools to ensure a cruising victory.
Nemanja Nedovic scored 17 points in the win, while Sasu Salin drained 15 points.