Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: round 4 underway
Round 4 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague tipped off on Thursday and there was plenty of action to start the second round of the week. The big news of the day is that only two clubs remain undefeated after the third fell away. That’s because Olympiacos downed Khimki in a contest between 100% records.
Real Madrid maintained its winning run with a victory against Zalgiris Kaunas and Crvena Zvezda stopped Maccabi Tel Aviv. Finally, Barcelona
Crvena Zvezda Belgrade vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv, 87-84
After a loss on Tuesday, Crvena Zvezda Belgrade got back to winning ways to move to 2-2 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. As for Maccabi Tel Aviv, the club was handed its second defeat and sits on the same record. The visitors looked in control through halftime, taking a solid 39-49 lead at the long break. A 23-12 charge in the third act allowed Crvena Zvezda back into the game (62-61) and saw the game out in a high-scoring 25-23 fourth.
Taylor Rochestie drained 22 points in the win, followed by James Feldeine with 19 points and 8 assists.
DeShaun Thomas propped up Tel Aviv with a game-high 28 points, while Pierrer Jackson secured 14 points.
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Real Madrid, 66-87
Real Madrid remained undefeated with a big road win over in form Zalgiris Kaunas. Victory allows the Spanish team to sit on a 4-0 record, while Zalgiris slips to 2-2. A 16-18 first quarter did little to show which team would dominate, but in the second frame, Los Blancos pulled away to lead 31-40 at halftime. The guests claimed the third period 19-23 for a 50-63 advantage at the final split. In the closing quarter, Real Madrid pulled away and cruised down the straight.
Is Luka Doncic the best player in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague? He scored 28 points to pace Real Madrid to victory.
Kevin Pangos dropped 20 points in the losing effort, while Antanas Kavaliauskas scored 16 points.
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Khimki Moscow Region, 92-75
In Greece, two of the tournament’s last three undefeated teams met and something had to give. As it was, former EuroLeague champ Olympiacos downed early season surprise package Khimki in a commanding performance. The Greek giant remained consistent at the bucket and led 49-40 through the halftime rest. In the third quarter, Olympiacos killed the contest with a 25-15 run that made it 74-55 through thirty minutes.
Nikola Milutinov led Olympiacos with 17 points, while Georgios Printezis scored 15 points.
Alexey Shved stood tall with 23 game-high points, followed by Thomas Robinson with a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Milan vs. Barcelona, 76-73
Both these clubs could have done with a win. Milan entered the game without a victory, while Barcelona lost its last two and needed to snap the streak. Milan edged the win after a nervy fourth period. Barcelona took early charge with a 17-22 first act, but Milan reversed the score to tie proceedings at 39 apiece through halftime. The hosts edged the third quarter 15-14 to lead 54-53 through three frames before seeing out the game with an impressive fourth quarter.