Olympiacos still in deep crisis
CSKA Moscow decimated Olympiacos in Piraeus on Friday and forced the Greeks to their fifth straight loss in the EuroLeague (81-97).
Thanks to a dominant performance in the second half (31-46), CSKA Moscow crushed the “Reds”, who still
Olympiacos now has to fight for the qualification to the playoffs, currently being tied with Bayern Munich and Baskonia (12-12).
Yesterday, it was a close game until the middle of the third quarter (63-65). But after that the Muscovites were unstoppable.
The Russians closed the game on an 18-32 run and never looked back. They cruised to an easy victory. Their sixth in a row. CSKA already secured their playoff spot.
Six players scored in double figures for the winners, with Cory Higgins leading the way with 18 points. Sergio Rodriguez also had an excellent performance with 15 points and 12 assists.
On the other hand, Zach LeDay (21 points), Vassilis Spanoulis (14 points) and Giorgos Printezis (12 points) stood out for the losing squad.
CSKA Moscow improved to 19-5 and has the upper hand in the battle for the second place in the EuroLeague standings. On the other hand, Olympiacos dropped to 12-12 and their qualification to the playoffs is questionable.
The Greek giants have been in free fall over the past couple of months. They play badly on both ends of the floor and easily lose to their opponents (Barcelona, Anadolu Efes, CSKA Moscow).
In January Olympiacos was fighting for the home-court advantage but now they have to turn things around to even reach the playoffs.
The Greek team is dealing with chemistry issues, as most players play far below their standards. If they continue that way, it will not be a surprise if they fail to qualify to the postseason.
That said, the question is: Will they make a come-back and secure a spot in the playoffs? Their next two games against Buducnost and Armani Milano, both on the road, will show more.
In the other two games on Friday, Bayern Munich defeated Buducnost (75-89), while Barcelona edged Real Madrid in the Spanish Clasico (77-70).