Turkish Airlines EuroLeague: CSKA Stays Perfect at 7-0
It was a case of the rich getting richer in Round 7 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular season as the top teams added to their wins. CSKA Moscow continues to lead the EuroLeague with their perfect 7-0 record. They are currently tied with Real Madrid, who are also undefeated.
CSKA Moscow secured their seventh win on Thursday with a convincing 79-93 blowout of FC Bayern Muenchen at the Audi Dome. The Army men remained in control of the game from start to finish. The loss sends Bayern Muenchen down to eighth place in the standings with a 3-4 record.
Cory Higgins set the tone for CSKA as he led four other teammates to score in double figures with his game-high 18 points. Veteran Sergio Rodriguez ran the offense and dished out eight assists. The key factor in the win for CSKA was their impressive 3-point shooting. They went 13-of-29 from downtown outpacing Bayern Muenchen’s 3-of-17 from distance. Nihad Djedovic and Derrick Williams shared top-scoring honors for Bayern Muenchen with 14 points each.
FC Barcelona Lassa moved into the league’s top-5 with a win over Zalgiris Kaunas on the road. The Spanish club took the game in overtime 85-88 to improve to 5-2. Fourth-placed Armani Exchange and sixth-placed Anadolu Efes also have 5-2 records so that logjam in that part of the standings will be something to watch as competition heats up.
Kyle Kuric and Ante Tomic led Barcelona with 15 and 14 points, respectively. This was another game that found its winner thanks to success from beyond the 3-point arc. Barca rained down a dozen treys to bombard their hosts into eventual submission.
Speaking of Anadolu Efes, they prevailed over a tough team in Panathinaikos Athens 78-62. Panathinaikos head home to lick their wounds. The team slides to seventh place in the standings with their 4-3 record. Rodrique Beaubois shot an efficient 8-of-14 from the field to finish with a game-high 19 points to lead Anadolu Efes to victory.
Herbalife Gran Canaria halted their losing skid with an 84-78 victory over Maccabi Fox Tel Aviv. This was a tough loss for the Israeli team as they are now at the very bottom of the standings with their 1-6 record. They have a lot of moves to make and adjustments to employ in order to get on a positive win rate.