This week: The action continues into Round 21

Thursday, January 11

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul vs. FC Bayern Munich

Fenerbahce (12-8) will attempt to continue its climb up the standings with a visit from Bayern (8-12). The Turkish team has won six of its seven games under Sarunas Jasikevicius, most recently downing Partizan on Tuesday behind 24 points from Tyler Dorsey. Bayern, in contrast, has lost three in a row, most recently being swatted aside by Real Madrid two days ago, and suffered a 67-76 home loss against Fenerbahce earlier in the season. Scottie Wilbekin's 17 points were key on that occasion and Fener will again look to subdue Bayern star Isaac Bonga who was held to 8 points on that occasion.

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. AS Monaco

A matchup with major significance in the battle for playoff positions takes place in Athens when Panathinaikos (12-8) hosts Monaco (11-9). December's meeting between the teams produced one of the most thrilling finales of the season, with Marius Grigonis hitting a three-pointer on the buzzer for the Greens to net a 90-91 victory. Grigonis was again on top form earlier this week, netting 24 points to help overcome Efes. Monaco also tasted victory on Tuesday, as the unstoppable Mike James drained 26 points to down Baskonia and snap a two-game losing streak. James has at least 20 points in six of the last eight games and stopping him is a clear key for the Greens.

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade

Milan (9-11) will look to complete a perfect week and gain its fourth straight home win with a visit from direct rival Zvezda (8-12). The Serbian team needs to tighten up defensively after allowing 100 points at ASVEL on Tuesday, while Milan, which could climb into the playoff places with a victory, will look for another strong performance from Devon Hall, who has averaged 16.5 points on 13-of-16 field goal shooting in the last two games. Milan blasted Zvezda 71-93 when the teams met in Belgrade in November, but 51 of those points were scored by the now-injured Shavon Shields and Maodo Lo.

Real Madrid vs. Valencia Basket

After suffering back-to-back narrow home losses, Valencia (10-10) will aim to protect its vulnerable position in the all-important top 10 with the tough task of traveling to league leader Real (18-2). The reigning champ comfortably dismantled Bayern on Tuesday behind 18 points from big man Vincent Poirier and remains unbeaten at home all season. November's meeting at La Fonteta saw Valencia dominate early on before Real responded to win a thriller 73-76, with 17 points from Gabriel Deck enough to overcome 22 from Brandon Davies.

Friday, January 12

Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Virtus Segafredo Bologna

Efes (7-13) is desperate to restart its playoff ambitions by ending a seven-game losing streak with a visit from Virtus (14-6). The visitors will look for former Efes man Bryant Dunston to continue his strong form in the paint, after recording PIRs of 18 and 15 in the last two games. Efes can always rely upon the firepower of Shane Larkin (18.5 points per game), but needs a big collective improvement defensively as it has averaged a league-high 89.3 points allowed per game. Virtus sharpshooter Marco Belinelli will hope to profit from that weakness in the host by repeating the long-range scoring accuracy – 17 points on 3-of-3 from three-point range – that helped his team to a 93-81 win over Efes in November.

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv

Another meeting of direct rivals in the playoff chase will see two potent offenses collide as Partizan (10-10) welcomes Maccabi (12-8). Partizan is looking to recover from four losses in five games, while Maccabi was a big winner on Wednesday night as Wade Baldwin had 22 points and 8 assists to overcome Virtus. Lorenzo Brown was the difference maker with the same numbers, 22 points and 8 assists, when Maccabi grabbed another high-scoring win, 96-81, over Partizan back in Round 2. The Serbian team will hope for more production from new signing Jaleen Smith after he scored 11 points at Fenerbahce earlier this week and needs another strong performance from Bruno Caboclo to cope with in-form Maccabi rebounding ace Josh Nebo.

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Olympiacos Piraeus

Two playoff-chasing teams looking to bounce back go head to head as Baskonia (10-10) hosts Olympiacos (11-9). Baskonia has lost three of its last four, while the Reds saw a four-game winning streak snapped at Barcelona on Wednesday. Two power forwards with long-range scoring prowess will be fundamental, with Chima Moneke (14.3 points per game) going up against Alec Peters (15.7 ppg). Moneke stole the show when the teams met in Round 7, netting 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field to help his team to a thrilling 74-75 road win. Codi Miller-McIntyre sealed that victory with a stunning buzzer-beating game-winner and Olympiacos needs to control his orchestration after he dished 11 assists against Monaco earlier this week.

FC Barcelona vs. Zalgiris Kaunas

Barcelona (14-6) is looking to make it four home wins in a row with a visit from Zalgiris (7-13), which has won two out of three under new coach Andrea Trinchieri. The visiting team boosted its confidence with a great win at Valencia on Wednesday thanks to 24 points on 6-of-9 three-point shooting from Keenan Evans. When they last met, Barca won 80-85 in Kaunas last month behind 18 points from leading scorer Nico Laprovíttola, who is an injury doubt after missing Wednesday's win over Olympiacos with a muscular problem. Watch out for a big battle between Jabari Parker, who top scored with 21 points in that victory over Olympiacos, and former Barca forward Rolands Smits, who averages 11.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per night.

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. ALBA Berlin

Rejuvenated ASVEL (4-16) will aim for a third straight victory with a visit from ALBA (3-17) in a meeting of the league's bottom two. The French team has been powered in the last two games by point guard Paris Lee, providing 45 points and 15 assists, with 4 triples in each game. ASVEL has already triumphed over ALBA this season, winning 68-73 in Berlin in November behind 19 points from Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot. Only Johannes Thiemann (16 points) scored in double figures that night for ALBA, which will have to find fresh energy after a narrow loss in Milan earlier this week and remains the only team in the competition without a road victory this season.