Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez hosts Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv on Thursday in France with the visitors looking to lock up the last Quarterfinal Playoffs berth from Group D and the host trying to survive and keep fighting for the same prize. Maccabi (2-2) will guarantee second place this week only if it beats Pau (1-3) and Tau also defeats Lottomatica. If it loses, Pau will be eliminated regardless of the result in Italy. A win for Pau could leave the question wide open heading into the final week of the Top 16 - depending on the other Group D result this week, Roma vs. Tau Ceramica. But Pau will want to beat Maccabi by more than 4 points, the margin of their first game in Tel Aviv, to ensure better control of its own fate. When these teams met two weeks ago in Tel Aviv, Pau used a big first half from Britton Johnsen (20 points) to build a 12-point third-quarter lead , but Maccabi captain Derrick Sharp was clutch down the stretch and lifted his team to a 74-70 win. Maccabi might need more heroics in France as two of the team's most important players - all-Euroleague center Nikola Vujcic, who has a hamstring injury, and power forward Jamie Arnold, who is ill - are questionable for the game. Accordingly, Maccabi will lean more on rookie forward Lior Eliyahu (11.9 ppg., 5.3 rpg.), while reserves Yaniv Green and Noel Felix, neither of whom has played more than 14 minutes in any game this season, could be called upon to do big things. Forward Sharon Shason could also get some time at power forward to deal with Pau's team speed. Pau's ever-changing lineup features countless mismatches. Melvin Sanders (9.9 ppg.) and Ricardo Greer (7.7 ppg., 6.1 rpg., 3.1 apg.), neither bigger than 1.96 meters, started last week at the forward spots, while Johnsen (11.6 ppg.) and Ian Mahinmi - both 2.06 or taller - came off the bench. The focal point of Pau's inside game is Michael Wright (15.1 ppg., 5.1 rpg.). Greer could bring valuable intelligence to the floor, not only because of his multi-talented game, but because his brother, Jeff Greer, took on Maccabi with Israeli club Ironi Nahariya in a domestic game just days ago. Greer and Sanders, in turn, will need to match up with Simas Jasaitas (10.2 ppg.) and Tal Burstein, who'll be needed to score more if Vujcic and Arnold both sit. Maccabi guard Will Bynum (10.6 ppg.) is expected to play despite sitting out Sunday's domestic game for personal reasons. Goran Jeretin will assume starting point guard duties with Yotam Halperin and Sharp (11.6 ppg., 51.6% 3FG) off the bench. Aaron Miles (10 ppg., 3.6 apg.) and Xane D'Almeida started together last week for the first time as the team won its first Top 16 game in years by topping Roma. C.C. Harrison (9.8 ppg.) is expected to return against Maccabi, too. Despite some close calls, Maccabi has only two road wins all season and will be looking for a third without some key players against a stingy team. Aside from the visiting team's lineup questions, the focal point of this game will be the height and speed mismatches at the interior positions. If Pau is able to run around and through Maccabi, it could change the look of Group D with just a week remaining in the round.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Euroleague.net - Yarone Arbel, Tel Aviv