Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: Round 14 underway
Under the new Turkish Airlines EuroLeague format that was introduced last season, some weeks two rounds are played over four days. This is amazing for the fans and brings some added excitement to the competition. It means a struggling team can truly turn their fortunes around or a flying team can crash and burn, all in the space of a week. On Thursday, Round 14 of the league got underway with four games around the continent.
Crvena Zvezda Belgrade vs. Panathinaikos Athens, 63-69
Panathinaikos collected its second win of the week while inflicting a second successive defeat on Crvena Zvezda. This low-scoring result allowed the Greek giant to move to 10-4 in sole possession of third place. Crvena Zvezda dropped 5-9 on this loss. A 15-20 first quarter allowed the visitors to build a 38-41 halftime lead. The contest remained tight throughout, but The Greens held off late pressure from the hosts to seal the win.
Brose Bamberg vs. Real Madrid, 66-81
Real Madrid is getting its Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season back on track. Los Blancos has not won three on the spin after a six from five losing run. Success over Brose Bamberg allows the Spanish giant to move to 8-6, while German champs Bamberg fall to 6-8. Madrid got the job done early, using a 13-29 first act to take a massive lead. From there, the visitors controlled the game and never looked like letting Brose Bamberg back into the contest.
Maccabi Tel Aviv vs. Fenerbahce Istanbul, 82-73
Maccabi Tel Aviv has had to face three Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champs in the last three game. The Israeli giant, itself a former champions, lost on the road at CSKA Moscow and Panathinaikos, but used home comforts to take out reigning title holders Fenerbahce. Fener remains a highflyer at 9-5 despite the loss, while Tel Aviv moves to 8-6. The hosts stayed a step ahead throughout, extending a 40-36 first half lead through the third and fourth quarters. Fenerbahce never looked into it and has now lost its last two.
Valencia vs. Zalgiris Kaunas, 63-71
Valencia’s season went from bad to worse, while Zalgiris’ keeps getting better and better. The Lithuanian champs traveled to the Spanish champs and produced a solid road performance to move to 9-5 alongside Fenerbahce in fourth. Valencia, on the other hand, is rooted to the bottom at 11-3. The hosts actually led 63-71 through the long break, but a 10-20 Zalgiris run in the third quarter settled the game for good.