With six games on Tuesday and three on Wednesday, the action keeps coming thick and fast
At a glance: Round 13 gets another double round underway
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The latest double round week features several must-watch matchups, including the reigning champ and a major challenger battling for a return to form, and a legend making his home coaching debut. Here’s your guide to Round 13 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague.
Tuesday, December 3
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. FC Bayern Munich (18:30 CET)
After losing its last two games by conceding 93 and 97 points, Efes (6-6) will look for improved defense as it hosts a Bayern team (8-4) also aiming to bounce back. Bayern suffered its heaviest defeat of the season with last week’s 24-points margin at Zvezda, so Gordie Herbert will be keen for his players to regain their usual competitive edge. That includes a return to form for Carsen Edwards, who leads the league with 19.8 points per game but scored just 3 on 1-of-8 field-goal shooting in Belgrade. A bright spot was recent signing Onuralp Bitim, who scored 13 points in just his second game and now returns to face his former club. Efes will counter him through Rodrigue Beaubois, who has made at least one three-pointer in eight straight games.
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. Real Madrid (20:00 CET)
After claiming its first road win of the season with last week's Clásico thriller, Real (6-6) will attempt to keep climbing the standings with a tough trip to improving ASVEL (4-8). The French team has won two of its last three games behind the excellence of Theo Maledon, and ASVEL will also test Real’s perimeter defense with the league’s most accurate three-point shooting game – Nando De Colo (11.1 points per game) is one of six ASVEL players shooting at least 40% from downtown. Real’s battling win in Barcelona owed a lot to the magical little and large duo of Facundo Campazzo, who ranks second in the league in assists with 7.7 per night, and Round 12 MVP Walter Tavares, whose average of 8.4 rebounds is far better than anyone else.
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv vs. Paris Basketball (20:05 CET)
Co-leader Paris's efforts to claim a ninth straight victory will be tested by a Maccabi team boosted by last week's big win at ALBA. November MVP TJ Shorts, who averages 21.3 points and 8.5 assists over the last four games, will face a fascinating backcourt duel with Maccabi playmaker Rokas Jokubaitis, who ranks fourth in the league in assists (5.6 per game) and also poured in 24 points as his team netted 103 total last week. That included another big contribution from Jaylen Hoard, who has averaged 18.0 points over the last four games. This is a meeting between the second- and third-best offensive rebounding units in the league (12.4 and 12.3 respectively), so protecting the defensive glass will be key for the likes of fit-again Jasiel Rivero (5.4 rebounds per night) and Tyson Ward (5.5 rpg).
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. FC Barcelona (20:15 CET)
A major showdown between two of the four teams tied for fifth place will see Panathinaikos (7-5) attempt to end a two-game losing streak against similarly struggling Barcelona (7-5), which has lost three in a row. Greens playmaker Kostas Sloukas will make his 400th career appearance and attempt to outshine one of the league's fastest rising backcourt stars, Juan Nunez. Barcelona will have to deal with the athleticism of Mathias Lessort, who has averaged 16.5 points and 8.0 rebounds over the last four games. That will involve stretching the floor through Jan Vesely, who is on track to attempt more three-point shots than any season since 2011. Scoring threat from the backcourt will be led by Kendrick Nunn, who averages 20.6 points in the last five games, and Kevin Punter, whose 27 points were not enough to defeat Real Madrid last week.
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. Zalgiris Kaunas (20:30 CET)
Fast-improving Partizan will attempt to claim a third straight win against a Zalgiris team which has lost four of the last five. Partizan’s latest victory, over Olympiacos last week, owed a lot to efficient collective play with just 5 turnovers committed, and Carlik Jones will attempt to maintain the playmaking which saw him make 8 assists with no turnovers in that big win. There was also a strong performance from big man Brandon Davies (12 points, 5 rebounds), and he will now go up against his former club and a matchup with Laurynas Birutis, who is searching for a return to form after totaling just 4 points in the last three games. Partizan will have to defend the deep threat of Deividas Sirvydis, who has made 9 triples in the last two games.
Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (20:30 CET)
Boosted by last week's impressive win in Kaunas, Baskonia (5-7) will look to claim another big win by downing high-flying co-leader Fenerbahce (9-3). The Spanish team would love key scorer Markus Howard to emerge from a shocking slump which has seen him miss all 21 of his three-point attempts in the last four games, but will hope for more inside dominance from Donta Hall after his double-double of 14 points and 11 boards against Zalgiris. Fenerbahce needs a response after being shocked at home by Milan last week, but a major positive was Wade Baldwin making a successful return from injury with 19 points. He also has an increasingly confident backcourt partner in Arturs Zagars, who set career highs in points (16) and playing time (27 minutes), and will now look to lead his team in Vitoria.
Wednesday, December 4
AS Monaco vs. Olympiacos Piraeus (19:00 CET)
Vassilis Spanoulis faces his first home game as Monaco coach (8-4) in a romantic reunion with his former playing club Olympiacos (8-4), in a showdown between two of the three tied currently tied in third place. The visiting team will avoid sympathetic nostalgia as it seeks a return to winning ways, and will focus on slowing down the all-round threat of Mike James after he dished 10 assists in Spanoulis’s debut victory at Panathinaikos on Friday. The hustle of Alpha Diallo (24 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists) also epitomized the spirit Spanoulis is looking to build, and Olympiacos will have to match that through backcourt star Thomas Walkup and long-serving team captain Kostas Papanikolaou, who will be relishing to inflict a first EuroLeague coaching defeat upon his friend and former teammate Spanoulis.
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (20:30 CET)
Two of last week’s most impressive winners go head to head in an important meeting in the middle of the standings between Milan (6-6) and Zvezda (6-6). Veteran power forward Nikola Mirotic is playing as well as ever for Milan, leading the league in PIR (23.4 per game) after averaging an outstanding 24.0 points and 9.0 rebounds over the last four games. He faces a great battle this week with Zvezda’s equally in-form Filip Petrusev, who inspired the impressive Round 12 victory over Bayern by pouring in 25 points on 10-of-12 field goal shooting. In the backcourt, Shavon Shields has returned to fitness to lead Milan and will go up against Codi Miller-McIntyre, who didn’t score a single point but dished 12 assists on just 1 turnover last time out.
Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. ALBA Berlin (20:45 CET)
In Wednesday’s final tipoff, the league's bottom two teams play for the prize of climbing away from last place as Virtus (2-10) hosts ALBA (2-10). Virtus, which has lost four in a row, needs better backboard protection after averaging a league-low 31.6 rebounds – a big deficit to ALBA, which ranks third in rebounding with 36.3 per night in large part thanks to Trevion Williams grabbing 7.5 per game. ALBA’s struggling defense, which has allowed a league-high 91.6 points per game, will be tested by the back-in-form Will Clyburn, who scored 25 points on 5-of-8 three-point shooting in last week’s narrow loss at Paris. At the other end, ALBA will hope for another solid contribution from rising youngster Elias Rapieque, who scored a career-high 14 points last week.