WATCH CLOSELY: LITERALLY EVERY BASKET COUNTS NOW!
The Top 16 has started: long live the Top 16! You might say there was not too much drama in this first week, but experience teaches that on such a stage, literally every basket counts. You never know if your final fate will depend on point difference, and whether apparently insignificant baskets traded in the last two minutes of a blowout will eventually become the difference between being in the playoffs or not. The three road wins that Dynamo, Olympiacos and Tau earned will also come at a premium in such a short "season." Particularly impressive was Tau's win in Tel Aviv. Nokia Arena is in my opinion the best place to play basketball in Europe, but at the same time the most difficult to win at, despite the fans being simply very passionate and almost never rude at all. Tau won with authority despite having it tough the previous weekend in the Spanish Cup, despite still being without Planinic, a player very difficult to replace given his uniqueness, and despite the absence of head coach Velimir Perasovic, who was hospitalized with heart trouble a day before the game. (Best wishes to Coach Perasovic!) Tau started the game with a key 13-4 run sparked by Igor Rakocevic, who scored 16 points in a torrid first quarter and then bided his time until hitting the final dagger, a three in the last two minutes of the game. Perasovic's absence surely played a little role psychologically. It's not the first time players are very motivated by paying a homage to the head coach who cannot be on the bench while trying to make an assistant - usually well-liked by everybody, as in Ignacio Lezcano's case - happy. Now, don't ask me how you can go from a 30-point first quarter to an eight-point, sputtering second quarter like Tau did. Also, don't ask me how you can be as good a passer as Vujcic is (2 assists shy of another triple double!) or how Will Bynum, very impressive in the early stages of the season, can turn himself into a -1 player in terms of ranking. The two teams shot a combined 25 for 44 on "free" throws, less than 57%. Lior Eliyahu was fantastic: I really think he's gonna be a star, but he would have been completely unstoppable had he gone better than 3 for 8 from the charity stripe. Same goes for Kaya Peker, who shot the same on foul shots. Considering the level that scouting has reached nowadays, a bad free throw shooter will always be exposed in the fourth quarter, and his overall offensive efficiency will be hampered big-time. Tau shot 12-for-25 from three-point distance (48 percent) and 54 percent on freebies, which apparently doesn't make any sense. In a close game, this apparently easy chore, making free throws, makes a whole lot of difference, as Aris - who shot 11-for-20, or 55 %, vs. Dynamo Moscow, who converted 27 out of 33 shots, or 82 % - could very well tell you.
Maccabi's defeat puts an added importance on its game in Rome next week. If Lottomatica can hold serve again on its homecourt after convincingly beating Pau, going 2-0 to start the Top 16 would be a great boost for a team that was out of the Top 16 until Pepe Sanchez of Unicaja hit his miracle shot against Partizan in Belgrade. Both Maccabi and Lottomatica have had their highs and lows throughout this season, one that started with high expectations. The two coaches, originating from the same country, Croatia, know each other well, and know as well that the winner next Thursday will make a significant step toward the promised land, even if fates will be sealed later on. Rome, still playing without Dejan Bodiroga, will probably depend a lot on David Hawkins, who sealed the win vs. Pau with a steal-dunk-block sequence in the last 90 seconds. That came after Jasmin Repesa took him out for missing a couple of defensive assignments and causing a costly turnover. The motivational tool paid big dividends, and the explosive swingman came back with a vengeance. When he's on his game, he's a really tough cover, and Jon Stefansson, the quintessential team player, might complement him to perfection.
Other quick points: Barcelona did not show any fatigue after its taxing victory in the Spanish Cup, while Benetton was a little deflated in Malaga against Unicaja, looking like a distant relative of the team that shocked Italy by winning that country's national cup on Vidivici Bologna's homecourt the previous weekend. A sure sign of things turning sour for Treviso was Spencer Nelson, MVP of the Italian Cup Final 8, being unable to complete anything on offense in Malaga (1-for-6, 3 points). In at least three different instances, you could see that finishing at the basket, something Nelson was able to do repeatedly in Bologna, is way tougher in the Euroleague, where the Pietruses and Santiagos of the competition force you to alter the shot... Olympiacos won a key game on Partizan's court behind 20 first-half points by Scoonie Penn. Watch for the former Scavolini and Cibona player to come up big again, because he really thrives under pressure, even if sometimes he's even too focused for his own good.... Also notable was Taquan Dean's first game in the Euroleague. The replacement for Travis Hansen contributed significantly to Dynamo's win in Thessaloniki (another tough place to win on the road). Dean is very versatile, can play defense with the best of them and you don't want to leave him open: he will certainly help Dusan Ivkovic.... Panathinaikos won big despite shooting 28 percent from three-point distance and 62 percent from the free throw line, showing one more time that offense sells tickets but defense wins games (and Euroleagues?). Nobody other than than Horace Jenkins scored in double figures for Efes, as the the Greens allowed their guests only 5 assists while forcing 17 turnovers. Efes put together a very meager 40 in the ranking department... The defending champions from CSKA took a page from the same book in allowing just 6 points to DKV Joventut in the third quarter. Out of the 60 regulation quarters CSKA has played so far this season, opponents were keeped at 11 or less points a whopping 12 times (20 percent!). Who says defense can't be spectacular?
POSTED BY
FLAVIO TRANQUILLO - ITALY
DATE:
Monday, February 19, 2007