Euroleague Round 7, recap
More Last 16 positions were claimed as Round 7 of the Euroleague drew to a close on Friday night, while other clubs got closer and others survived to fight another day. With Thursday night’s games already recorded and the competition moving into its eighth week of the Regular Season, we are starting to see more clubs advance or fall by the wayside.
Group A
CSKA Moscow downed Budivelnik Kiev 74-82 on the road to secure a place in the Last 16 and last season´s third placed Euroleague team will be one of the favourites for the competition again. The Russian giants have come back from a patchy opening to the league to record three consecutive wins and go 5-2 in Group A. Kyle Hines picked up 10 of an 18 point haul in the fourth quarter as Moscow outpaced the hosts to put Kiev 1-6 in 5th place.
FC Barcelona handed Fenerbahce a first Euroleague defeat of the season in an impressive 94-81 home performance that included a dominant 23 point and 12 rebound game from Bostjan Nachbar. The win takes Barcelona to 2nd in the group with a 5-2 record, while the Spanish giants progress to the Last 16. Bo McCalebb paced the visitors with 22 points, but it was not enough for one of the league´s form teams as they fell away in the last 10 minutes. The Turkish club holds onto first place but falls to 6-1.
Nanterre´s narrow 62-61 Thursday win over Partizan NIS puts the French club in pole position for the final Last 16 spot in Group A. The victory puts the club in 4th with a 3-4 record, while Partizan sits last with 1-6.
Group B
Real Madrid continued to cruise through Group B on Thursday with a commanding 69-89 win over Brose Baskets Bamberg on the road. The win kept Madrid unbeaten in the competition with a 7-0 record, a week after Los Blancos booked a place in the Last 16. Bamberg slips to 5th with a 2-5, but a Last 16 place is still possible for the German club.
With Madrid looking comfortable in the group, the teams directly below are locked in a tussle for the remaining Last 16 places. Turkish club Anadolu Efes continued to hold onto second place with an easy 88-65 home win over Strasbourg. The win pushes Efes to 4-3 while the French visitors slip to the basement and 1-6.
EA7 Armani Milano and Zalgiris Kaunas are both in contention for progression in Group B and the two clubs clashed on Friday night. A Justin Dentmon (15 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds) inspired Kaunas defeated Milano by a two point margin (73-71) to move into fourth place with a 4-3 record. Italian club EA7 also holds a 4-3 record but occupies the 3rd place spot.
Group C
Current two time Euroleague champions Olympiacos have eased through the competition this season and already qualified for the Last 16 a week ago. This week the Greek giant progressed to 7-0 with a good win over Turkish club Galatasaray on Thursday. The 72-54 loss for Galatasaray puts the club at Group C, but qualification to the next round looks likely for the second placed team.
Unicaja Malaga´s Euroleague form has not been the best, but the Spanish team is moving in the right direction after beating Stelmet Zielona Gora 67-84 on Thursday. The victory sees Malaga stay 4th with a 3-4 record, while Polish club Stelmet ZG stays in fifth with 2-5.
Bayern Munich´s early Euroleague form is now well and truly out of the window after Friday´s 71-62 road defeat to Montepaschi Siena. Oddly though, Bayern could still seal a place in the Last 16 in the club´s debut season despite the recent awful form, the German team stays in 3rd with a 3-4 record. Italian champs Siena have struggled this season, but Daniel Hackett with 15 points, 10 assists, and 4 rebounds and Spencer Nelson with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals were fantastic on the night. The win keeps Monetepaschi´s slim Last 16 hope alive, although the club still sits last in Group C with a 2-5 record.
Group D
Russian team Lokomotiv Kuban joined CSKA Moscow in the Last 16 after sinking Lietuvos Rytas 53-84 on the road on Thursday. It was a remarkable achievement in what is the club´s debut Euroleague season and Lokomotiv tops Group D with 6-1. Rytas has struggled throughout the campaign and remains rooted to the foot of the table with 1-6.
Kuban´s early progression to the next round is all the more impressive in a group that contains Euroleague juggernauts Maccabi Tel-Aviv and Panathinaikos. Israeli giant Tel-Aviv shot down Crvena Zvezda 76-78 on Thursday to sit in second in the group with a 5-2 record and the team will be confident of a Last 16 berth. Zvezda stays in 5th place and in contention with a 2-5 record.
Panathinaikos still have Last 16 hopes despite another disappointing Euroleague night. There have been too many for The Greens this season and on Friday the team slipped to a 79-77 defeat at the hands of Laboral Kutxa. Spanish team Kutxa overtakes Panathinaikos in Group D thanks to 17 points from Milko Bjelica, 15 from Fernando San Emeterio, and 10 from Thomas Heurtel. The win puts the team in 3rd with a 4-3 record, while the Greek visitors slips to 4th and a 3-4 record, although qualification is still in their hands.