At a glance: The Istanbul derby awaits in Round 6

This week's games bring exciting clashes over three days

The Istanbul derby highlights the action in Round 6 of the regular season, which begins with no less than 10 teams tied for third place. Here's your guide to the upcoming week, with games spread over three days.

Wednesday, October 22

Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv vs. Real Madrid

Two teams searching for a return to winning ways meet in Belgrade, where Maccabi (1-4) hosts Real (3-2). Maccabi will have to stay positive despite the disappointment of last week's late collapse against Olympiacos, which saw Jeff Dowtin Jr. again demonstrate his three-point shooting prowess by netting 6-of-7 three-point attempts, taking his season conversion rate to 66.7%. In contrast, Real needs to improve its accuracy from beyond the arc after only making 5 of its 27 attempts in last week’s loss at Zvezda, with Mario Hezonja particularly struggling as he went 1-of-9. Maccabi ranks next-worst in the league in rebounding, so it needs Jaylen Hoard (6.2 rpg.) at his best to challenge Chuma Okeke and Gabriel Deck (5.6 and 4.2 rpg., respectively).

Thursday, October 23

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. Dubai Basketball

ASVEL (1-4) will be desperate to banish a three-game losing run as it welcomes in-form Dubai (3-2). Fresh from stunning double round week victories over Fenerbahce and Barcelona, Dubai will look for more inside dominance from big men Mfiondu Kabengele and Filip Petrusev, who combined for 33 points and 21 rebounds in the win against Barca, so home team center Mbaye Ndiaye will need to deliver another solid performance after recording 11 points and 7 boards in last week's loss against Virtus. That game also confirmed that ASVEL has found a new offensive leader in the form of Glynn Watson (13.6 ppg.), who will try to outscore Dubai dynamo Dwayne Bacon (14.4 ppg.).

Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv vs. AS Monaco

Co-leader Hapoel (4-1) will attempt to maintain that status with a visit from one of the chasing pack, Monaco (3-2). Hapoel was perfect on the road last week as big man Dan Oturu continued his strong form (14.2 ppg., 6.0 rpg.), and he now faces a battle with Monaco center Daniel Theis, who has scored in double digits in every game this season. Matthew Strazel’s three-point shooting (53.3%) will be a threat to Hapoel’s defense, but Antonio Blakeney has been even more effective from deep (61.5%) and home team coach Dimitris Itoudis can boast the most productive offense in the league (93.8 ppg.) as he heads into his first coaching duel with Vassilis Spanoulis.

FC Barcelona vs. Zalgiris Kaunas

Two of the 10 teams currently tied for third place go into battle as Barcelona (3-2) welcomes Zalgiris (3-2). Both are seeking a return to winning ways, with Zalgiris losing twice in the two-round week. Barca also suffered a setback last time out with a loss at Dubai, and will hope key scorer Kevin Punter and Will Clyburn can return to form after respectively being held to 2 and 7 points in that game. Zalgiris struggled for an inside presence in its Round 5 home loss to Milan, making only 16 two-point shots at 44.4%. That was partly compensated by the three-point shooting of Arnas Butkevicius (6-of-7), and the Lithuanian team will also hope to continue the offensive rebounding, which yielded 17 second chances last time out.

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. Valencia Basket

Two teams struggling for consistency meet in Italy, where Milan (2-3) welcomes Valencia (2-3). The Spanish team was happy to welcome back rising star Jean Montero in last week’s loss at Monaco, when Nate Reuvers maintained his strong form with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. Montero’s return will further boost a Valencia offense that already leads the league in assists with 21.2 per game, led by Omari Moore (5.0 apg.), but Milan boasts the competition’s stingiest defense with just 77.2 points allowed per game so will fancy its chances of slowing the visitors down. Offensively, Milan enjoyed a breakout game from EuroLeague rookie Quinn Ellis with 15 points to overcome Zalgiris last time out, so the Englishman will attempt to maintain those standards.

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz

Baskonia (0-5) will attempt to gain its first win of the season by ending Zvezda's (3-2) three-game winning streak. Kobi Simmons is set to make his debut for the Spanish team after arriving to cover injuries to both Markus Howard and Trent Forrest, with Markquis Nowell also taking an enhanced role. Former Baskonia star Codi Miller-McIntyre again showed his talent to lead the Zvezda in every department by combining 18 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists in last week’s impressive win over Real, and Chima Moneke will also look to continue his outstanding season (14.4 ppg., 7.0 rpg.) to pile more misery on his old team. His battle with Tadas Sedekerskis (9.0 ppg., 6.2 rpg.) will be crucial to the outcome.

Friday, October 24

Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul

The Istanbul derby will be staged on the European side of the city as Efes (2-3) welcomes Fenerbahce (2-3) to the Basketball Development Center. Efes will have to find solutions in the paint after big men Ercan Osmani and Georgios Papagiannis joined Vincent Poirier on the injury list, which could mean a debut for summer signing Brice Dessert. Fenerbahce’s offensive options have been significantly improved by the return to fitness of Scottie Wilbekin, who drained 4 triples in last week’s win over Bayern. He will take part in a shootout with Efes leader Shane Larkin, who has made 10 of his 16 three-point attempts in the last three games. Fener also possesses a deep threat in the frontcourt, with last week’s win featuring 5 triples from Finnish forward Mikael Jantunen.

Virtus Bologna vs. Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens

Panathinaikos (4-1) will go in hunt of a fourth straight win with a tough trip to Virtus (3-2). The Italian team is coming off a perfect two-round week powered by scoring star Carsen Edwards (20 ppg.), who will relish his backcourt battle with Kendrick Nunn. The reigning league MVP is coming off a rare bad game, netting just 4 points in last week's win at Efes, when veteran Kostas Sloukas showed he can still control the offense by dishing 12 assists without a single turnover. The Greens will hope for another heavy scoring night from Cedi Osman after he poured in 29 points against Efes, while Virtus needs a strong performance in the paint from Saliou Niang (8.4 ppg., 5.8 rpg.).

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. Paris Basketball

Partizan (3-2) will look to maintain its 100% home record as it welcomes dangerous Paris (3-2). The French team leads the league in rebounding (43.2 rpg.) and will look to dominate the paint through Mouhamed Faye, who had a breakout performance with 11 points and 10 rebounds in last week’s narrow loss to Hapoel. The home team also possesses power underneath the boards with Tyrique Jones averaging 9.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per night. Partizan playmaker Carlik Jones delivered his best form of the season to propel last week’s win over Baskonia, pairing 18 points with 10 assists, and he will look to continue that form as he squares off with league-leading scorer Nadir Hifi (23.2 points per game).

FC Bayern Munich vs. Olympiacos Piraeus

Bayern (2-3) will target a return to winning ways as it welcomes Olympiacos (3-2). The German team is the league’s lowest scorer (76.6 points), and misfired again in last week’s loss at Fenerbahce. Similarly, Bayern ranks last in rebounding (30.0 rpg.), so it faces a major challenge from an Olympiacos team that places second in that category (39 rpg.). Sasha Vezenkov and Nikola Milutinov both scored 23 points in last week’s dramatic comeback win over Maccabi, so minimizing their physical dominance will be a major challenge for the hosts. Kamar Baldwin is establishing himself as the leader of Bayern’s offense with averages of 11 points and 5 assists in the last two games and he’ll need to be better than ever on Friday.