Euroleague Top 16, Tel Aviv downs Barca
There were just three games tipping off round 3 of the Euroleague Top 16 this Thursday, but the Basketball typically threw up plenty of talking points. Such as Barcelona’s cagey form at this stage, the Catalan club fell to champions Maccabi Tel Aviv tonight. Barca’s great rival, Real Madrid fared much better on the road, smashing ALBA Berlin’s resolve to stay the only undefeated team in Group E. CSKA Moscow’s dominant continental form continued as the Russians saw off an in-form Anadolu Efes Istanbul in Turkey.
Group E
A juicy encounter in Group E saw current champions Maccabi Tel Aviv defeat FC Barcelona 70-68 as two of the title contenders squared off in the Euroleague Top 16. Barcelona’s form at this stage of the season will worry head coach Xavier Pascual and is in stark contrast to their unbeaten run in the Top 16 last season. The Catalan giant now nurses a 1-2 losing record and needs to find some more gears to progress to the next round. As for Tel Aviv, the Israeli powerhouse is moving along in solid fashion and led through every quarter here, despite Barcelona rallying late on. There was plenty of action around the glass in the game, with the teams combining for 85 rebounds (42 Tel Aviv, 43 Barcelona). However, Barca’s defense could not put up with the scoring of Jeremy Pargo as he drove Tel Aviv with 20 points and 7 rebounds. Ante Tomic took a game-high 21 points for the defeated visitors, but he was the only player from the Spanish team to register in double figures.
In the other Group E contest, Real Madrid traveled to Germany and put one over ALBA Berlin (61-79) to move to 3-0 at the top of the table. ALBA now sit on 1-2 and have lost their last two outings, a snowballing streak they will be hoping to snap next week when they visit Galatasaray. The two teams exchanged buckets through the opening two frames, but Madrid emerged with a narrow 34-36 lead at the long break. The visitors went big in the second half with some huge three-point plays draining through the nets; a 10-19 third and 17-24 fourth made it easy for Los Blancos down the stretch.
Group F
CSKA Moscow is increasingly looking like the team to beat this season as the Russian heavyweight landed in Istanbul and took a 69-78 victory off Anadolu Efes. The Turkish hosts are proving a tricky fixture at the moment thanks to their good form, and had won their opening two games of the Euroleague Top 16. CSKA are in better touch though and can better any team in the competition on paper, with the Moscow club now 13-0 in the Euroleague this season. The hosts put up a good fight though, but the Russian contingent showed its strength and resolve and it is looking increasingly like they have what it takes this season. Nando De Colo led the winners with 22 points, while Aaron Jackson added 21 for CSKA as the visitors recovered from a losing first quarter to edge every act after.