Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: double header underway
The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague is back for its first double-round week of 2018, tipping off with Round 18 on Tuesday. This round will be completed on Wednesday before Round 19 is played out on Thursday and Friday. Getting the busy week underway was Olympiacos and Maccabi Tel Aviv, with the Greek giant claiming a win. In Belgrade, Khimki defeated Crvena Zvezda, while Brose Bamberg took out Zalgiris at home. Finally, Valencia did a number on Barcelona in an All-Spanish contest.
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv, 94-64
Olympiacos bounced back from a defeat last week to crush Maccabi Tel Aviv in a clash of former Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champs. This win moves the Greek giant to 13-5 in the standings and keeps pressure on CSKA Moscow at the top. As for Tel Aviv, the club slips to 9-9. Olympiacos controlled the early play and was up 24-16 after 10 minutes before extending to 53-40 through the long break. Maccabi Tel Aviv had no answers in the second half as the hosts dominated for their best offensive display this season, while limiting Tel Aviv to just 24 second half points.
Crvena Zvezda Belgrade vs. Khimki Moscow Region, 70-79
Khimki continued its good start to 2018 with another road win in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. The success came over a hapless Crvena Zvezda and sees Khimki’s dark horse status reaffirmed this season. After this game, the Russian club moved to 10-8 as the only non-former-champion in the top eight in the standings. As for Crvena Zvezda, the Serbian giant crumbles to 7-11. Crumble is an apt word as the hosts were 37-31 ahead through halftime and playing well. However, Khimki tightened in the second half and scored an impressive 48 points to sweep past Red Star.
Brose Bamberg vs. Zalgiris Kaunas, 93-86
Brose Bamberg put it together at home to take out this undoubted surprise package of this season. This was a good win for the inconsistent German champs, who now move to 7-11 in the standings. As for Zalgiris, the Lithuanian giant is still high flying in seventh place and a 10-8 winning record. Zalgiris actually looked to be travelling well and was up 37-44 at the midway buzzer. A 27-17 rally from the hosts wrestled the momentum back and Bamberg wrapped the game and a 56 points second half in a stylish fourth quarter finish.
Valencia vs. Barcelona,
Valencia secured a much needed win against Spanish rival Barcelona. In fact, both these teams need a victory, possibly Barcelona more considering its pedigree in the EuroLeague. As it was, Valencia took a home success to move to 5-12 in the record. Barcelona lost this battle, but is so far above Valencia with a 6-11 record. Either way, neither club is showering itself with glory this season and will need a major run of wins to move up the standings from here.