Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: Olympiacos loss puts CSKA top
CSKA Moscow holds sole possession of first in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after Olympiacos lost on Friday. The Greek team was unable to defeat Baskonia on the road, allowing CSKA first place after its win yesterday. Elsewhere in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, Round 17 wrapped with Real Madrid nailing Khimki on the road, Anadolu Efes gaining a rare win over Crvena Zvezda, and Zalgiris topping sorry Malaga.
Khimki Moscow Region vs. Real Madrid, 78-95
Real Madrid’s recent resurgence in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague continued in style with a big road win over Khimki. The win handed the former champs an 11-6 record in a tie for fourth place, while Khimki slipped to 9-8, but is still in the mix. Los Blancos dominated the first half and was rewarded with a cruising 31-51 halftime lead. Khimki improved in the second half, but Real Madrid was in excellent form and controlled the game despite losing the second half.
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Crvena Zvezda Belgrade, 104-95
Anadolu Efes finally blew the shackles off its campaign and went big in a mini classic against the Serbian champs. In need of a win, the Turkish club moves off the bottom of the standings with a 5-12 record and will be hoping this performance is a sign. As for Crvena Zvezda, the club dropped to 7-10. A 22-21 first quarter was hotly contested, but from there the hosts went on an offensive blitz. Anadolu Efes broke 25 points in the remaining frames, securing a cruising win.
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Unicaja Malaga, 79-77
Unicaja Malaga needs a win, but could not stop high-flying Zalgiris from getting back to winning ways. This win pushed the Lithuanian champs to 11-6, while Malaga fell back to 7-10. The visitors were up by 8 at 32-40 through the long break. However, Zalgiris found form for the first time in 2018 and used 47 second half points to pick up a home win. This included a 27-22 run in the deciding fourth quarter.
Baskonia Vitoria vs. Olympiacos Piraeus, 86-54
Olympiacos let slip its share of first place to a rampant home performance from Baskonia. This was a rare occasions where the Greek club’s tactic of scoring low and defending big collapsed. Interestingly, the hosts were down 16-21 through 10 minutes, but Baskonia used a 20-9 run to take the lead for good. A dominant 36-14 third act followed as the Spanish club took apart Olympiacos and claimed the win.