May 23, 2013
Top 16 Game 2 - February 05, 2009 CET: 19:45 Local time: 19:45 - PALAU BLAUGRANA
Regal FC Barcelona 85 - 65 Maccabi Electra

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-1 Top 16 1-0
9-1 Regular Season 6-4
9-2 Overall 7-4

Referees

Crew Chief
VOREADIS, LAZAROS, Greece
Referee
GKONTAS, SPIROS, Greece
Umpire
HERCEG, SINISA, Croatia

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
81.5 Points 82.8
35.3 Rebounds 36.0
8.7 O. Rebounds 9.9
26.5 D. Rebounds 26.1
15.5 Assists 15.1
7.7 Steals 8.6
4.0 Blocks 2.7
12.7 Turnovers 14.0
56.0 % 2PT 55.9 %
38.3 % 3PT 35.3 %
78.5 % FT 75.1 %
96.5 Index 92.8
Team Stats - Regal FC Barcelona
Team Stats - Maccabi Electra

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
14.3 / Navarro Points 15.4 / Eliyahu
6.9 / ILYASOVA, ERSAN Rebounds 7.7 / Fischer
1.7 / ILYASOVA, ERSAN OR 2.2 / Fischer
5.2 / ILYASOVA, ERSAN DR 5.2 / Eliyahu
3.8 / Navarro Assists 4.8 / ARROYO, CARLOS
1.3 / Basile Steals 1.1 / ARROYO, CARLOS
1.5 / Vazquez Blocks 1.7 / Fischer
2.5 / Navarro Turnovers 2.1 / Eliyahu
93.8 % / BARTON, LUBOS 2PT 71.3 % / Fischer
54.5 % / Basile 3PT 50.0 % / CASSPI, OMRI
100.0 % / BARRETT, ANDRE FT 100.0 % / HAGAG, DROR
14.3 / Navarro Index 22.4 / Fischer
Team Roster - Regal FC Barcelona
Team Roster - Maccabi Electra

THE TAKE

A classic Euroleague showdown is set to take place in Barcelona, Spain, where Regal FCB welcomes Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv on Thursday night. These teams have faced each other some 25 times in Europe's top competitions, most remarkably in the 1991 and 2000 Euroleague semifinals and in last season's Quarterfinal Playoffs. Barcelona lost against archrivals Real Madrid last week and needs to start winning right away to stay in the playoffs race. Meanwhile, Maccabi thrashed Alba Berlin and is looking to register its second win. Barcelona faces injury problems with Jaka Lakovic sidelined with a reparatory problem, which thrusts Victor Sada and Andre Barrett into the spotlight. Sada has a key matchup against Carlos Arroyo, who dished 10 assists against Alba last week. Meanwhile, Barrett must stop Dee Brown, who made a successful Euroleague debut last week. The biggest matchup of the night may be between super scorers Marcus Brown of Maccabi and Juan Carlos Navarro of Regal FCB. Both are proven all-around scorers and have faced each other many times. Brown will share playing times at both wings with veteran clutch shooter Derrick Sharp, experienced swingman Tal Burstein and small forwards Omri Casspi and Tre Simmons. Casspi will lock horns in a key matchup against Lubos Barton, while Brown and Burstein will have to fight against Roger Grimau and Gianluca Basile, arguably one of the best defensive shooting guards in Europe, who is also ready to pull the trigger from downtown. The battle in the paint will be interesting, especially now that Maccabi added intense power forward Charles Gaines, an extraordinary rebounder. Lior Eliyahu and D'or Fischer will be head coach Pini Gershon’s main frontcourt references along with backup big man Yaniv Green. Eliyahu has the tough mission to face an extraordinary defender in Ersan Ilyasova. Meanwhile, Fischer will try to go against the hosts' starting center Daniel Santiago. Barcelona is deeper around the baskets, with athletic forward Fran Vazquez and former All-Euroleague center David Andersen coming off the bench. Both Vazquez and Andersen are mobile big men with deep range that could change the game. Maccabi must be its usual self in offense, with a run-and-gun offense that always starts with Arroyo, as he tries to keep everyone involved. Barcelona needs Sada to stop him, as well as using its frontcourt depth to create miss-matches down low. A fully-packed Palau Blaugrana should generate a strong basketball atmosphere for this extraordinary Top 16 game in which the fans will be the true winners.

GAME NOTES

Regal FC Barcelona
  • Barca has won nine consecutive home games dating back to the end of the regular season last year.
  • Forward Lubos Barton has not missed a two-point attempt in his last seven games. He is 10 for 10 over that stretch.
  • Barton dished a Euroleague career-high 7 assists against Maccabi when he played for Joventut in a 98-92 win in January 2007.
  • Guard Victor Sada dished at least 2 assists in his last six Euroleague games, but has not score a field goal since Week 8.
  • Guard Gianluca Basile recorded his Euroleague career-high of 34 points in Barcelona’s 83-74 win over Maccabi in Game 2 of last season’s Quarterfinal Playoffs.
  • Basile has knocked down a three pointer in each of his last six Euroleague games.
  • Center Fran Vasquez has recorded four different career highs against Maccabi, all of them in the quarterfinals series last season. He grabbed 8 defensive rebounds in Game 2 and had 7 offensive rebounds, 13 total rebounds and played 38 minutes in Game 3.
  • Forward Ersan Ilyasova amassed four Euroleague career highs in Game 1 of the Quarterfinal Playoffs series last year against Maccabi in Tel Aviv: 21 points scored, 6 offensive rebounds, 33 minutes played and an index rating of 28.
  • The first time Daniel Santiago played against Maccabi was more than nine years ago, on January 21, 1999, as the Varese Roosters outscored Maccabi 100-96 behind 11 points and 10 rebounds by Santiago.
Maccabi Electra
  • Maccabi big men D’Or Fischer and Lior Eliyahu were two of the three weekly MVPs last week. Fischer recorded 21 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks, while Eliyahu had 22 points and 8 rebounds.
  • Eliyahu and guard Marcus Brown are both on a streak of seven straight games with double-figures in points.
  • Brown once played 50 minutes – every minute of a double-overtime loss for Efes Pilsen against Barcelona in an October 2002 loss to Barcelona.
  • Guard Tal Burstein is closing in on 1,000 points for his Euroleague Basketball career. He enters this week’s game against Barcelona with 989 points in 135 career games. He also needs just 2 more three-pointers to reach 100 for his Euroleague career.
  • Burstein played one of the best games of his Euroleague career on the road at Barcelona in December 2005. Burstein recorded 24 points and a 32 index rating in 39 minutes – all Euroleague career highs in a 78-88 Maccabi win.
  • Big man Charles Gaines could make his first Euroleague appearance for Maccabi this week. He will play against his former teammate, Lubos Barton. They played side by side for DKV Joventut Badalona in the 2006-07 season.
  • Maccabi qualified for the 2008 Final Four by eliminating Barcelona 2-1 in the Quarterfinals Playoffs. Only four Maccabi players from that series – Tal Burstein, Omri Casspi, Lior Eliyahu and Derrick Sharp – are still on the team.
  • Omri Casspi had one of the best games of his young career last season in Game 2 of the Quarterfinal Playoffs in Barcelona. He recorded the only double-double of his Euroleague career with 18 points and 10 rebounds. He set career highs with 8 defensive rebounds, 10 total rebounds, 30 minutes played and an index rating of 27.
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

PASCUAL, XAVIER
Regal FC Barcelona
"This is the most important game of the entire season until now. We hope for the help of our fans. For this game, we need a great atmopshere at Palau Blaugrana. We have to be calm when we are attacking and look for open shots. Now that he was almost back 100%, we lost Jaka Lakovic again, but we are ready to fill in for any injured player. Jaka is sad about not being able to help the team in such an important game. We hope that Andre Barret takes a step forward to be at his maximum, because for this game we'll need Andre and Victor Sada both playing their best."
GERSHON, PINI
Maccabi Electra
"Each team has some advantages, and we'll try to work on ours to get the result we want. Barcelona lost the first game, so I believe there's more pressure on them, because in case of a loss they will be in a difficult situation. They have guards who shoot very well and a very deep and talented front line, but we have good players too, and like we need to think how to limit them, they will have to do the same about us. Barcelona has an advantage that they play as one group since the season started, and we made some change and still working on our chemistry. This game is a good test for us if we are improving as it seems in the last weeks. In 2-3 weeks from now we'll be a much better team, but this game is now and we need to show we can handle it as well in the current situation."

Players

GRIMAU, ROGER
Regal FC Barcelona
"I, particularly, have a bone stuck in my throat still concerning Maccabi, because of what happened in the playoffs last season, because of the tough way we lost. I hope during this Top 16 that I'll be able to unstick that bone."
ARROYO, CARLOS
Maccabi Electra
"It's a very big test for us. We know who's standing in front of us and ready for the challenge we'll face. We play good recently and have confidence that if we continue to play like that we'll have a big chance to win. Barcelona is having a very good season so far, and we'll have to work hard not to lose the ball and stay focused on the rebound. If we maintain these two aspects we'll be in a good position."
David Andersen - Regal FC BarcelonaRegal FC Barcelona registered its first win in Top 16 Group F by when it downed visiting Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv with seeming ease 85-65 at home on Thursday. Both teams were tied in Group H with a 1-1 records after the game, either in second place or in an all-tied group depending on the later result of Alba Berlin vs. Real Madrid. Barcelona's 15-2 advantage in three-pointers spelled the difference against Maccabi as eight different players among the hosts buried shots from long range. David Andersen pumped in 17 points, including a pair of triples, while Gianluce Basile followed with 16 points, with 5 three-pointers that helped Barcelona assert complete control after halftime. Ersan Ilyasova added 11 points, while Fran Vazquez had a double-double with 10 points and rebounds each, while Juan Carlos Navarro 12 for the winners. Barcelona's defense only permitted Maccabi 5 three-point tries in the game, forcing the game inside, where an 8-3 advantage on blocks hurt the guests. D'or Fischer led Maccabi with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Omri Casspi scored 11, but no one else reached double figures. Navarro shined early to lead Barcelona to a 20-16 edge after 10 minutes. Vazquez dominated the boards and joined forces with Gianluca Basile to boost the hosts' lead to 33-21 midway through the second quarter. Yaniv Green and Fischer brought Maccabi within 39-33 at halftime. Barcelona dominated the rebounds after the break, while Basile struck twice from downtown in an 11-1 run that broke the game open, 55-40, giving Barcelona full control until the final buzzer.

DOr Fischer - Maccabi ElectraFischer got Maccabi going with a five-meter jumper but Navarro followed free throws with a corner three-pointer for a 5-2 Barcelona lead. Eliyahu sank foul shots but Maccabi lacked ball circulation with Victor Sada stopping Arroyo. Ilyasova struck from downtown but a fast break layup by Arroyo kept Maccabi within 8-6. Casspi hit a mid-range jumper but Daniel Santiago scored over Charles Gaines while Navarro buried a fallaway shot to restore a 12-8 Barcelona edge. Yaniv Green made free throws but Barcelona improved with Vazquez on court. He set the crowd on fire with a put-back dunk that Arroyo matched with a layup. Sada nailed a seven-meter bomb for a 17-12 Barcelona margin. Casppi scored down low that Andersen answered with his trademark mid-range jumper. More free throws by Eliyahu and Navarro fixed the score at 20-16 after 10 exciting minutes.

Roger Grimau took over with a wild driving layup right at the start of the second quarter but Casspi also scored in penetration for a 22-18 score. Maccabi tried to power the offensive board with Fischer and Gaines together on court. Basile, however, finished a two-chance Barcelona offense with a bomb from downtown while Vazquez added a put-back layup to boost the hosts' lead to 27-19. Maccabi called timeout and Green nailed a four-meter jumper but Andersen followed a triple with a jump hook to make it a 12-point game, 33-21. Arroyo tried to change things with a corner three-pointer and added an outstanding driving basket for a 33-26 Maccabi deficit. Andre Barrett and Grimau buried back-to-back triples to keep Barcelona out of trouble at 39-27. Green sank another shot from the top of the key while Tal Burstein and Fischer hit consecutive jumpers to bring Maccabi back to life, 39-33, at halftime.

Gianluca Basile - Regal FC BarcelonaFischer took over with a wild put-back dunk right after the break but Ilyasova stepped up with a baseline jumper to restore a 41-35 lead. Fischer kept pacing Maccabi with a jumper but Grimau answered from downtown to give the hosts some fresh air at 44-37. Brown shined with a backdoor layup - his first points tonight - that Vazquez matched with free throws. Maccabi struggled to find open shots now while Basile struck from way downtown for a 49-39 Barcelona margin. Maccabi called a much-needed timeout, as Barcelona dominated the boards now. Ilyasova and Fischer traded free throws but Maccabi had already entered the foul bonus. Vazquez did not miss from the foul line while Basile buried a corner three-pointer that broke the game open, 55-40, after an 11-1 run. Brown stepped up with a layup-plus-foul and fed Fischer for an alleyoop dunk. Ilyasova shined with a big triple and even when Fischer scored again, Andersen hit one from downtown to boost the hosts' lead to 61-47 after three quarters.

Green scored again early in the fourth period, as Maccabi tried to return to the game. Andersen, however, sank his trademark turnaround jumper while Ilyasova scored in transition for a 65-49 Barcelona margin. The hosts kept excelling in defense, while free throws by Andersen sealed the outome, 67-49, with 7 minutes to go. Both teams fought now for points differential, a critical issue in such a balanced Top 16 group like this is. Navarro sank a running "bomba" that Fischer matched with a put-back layup. Vazquez dunked it while Navarro scored again for a 20-point Barcelona margin, 73-53. Barcelona kept pushing the pedal, as Lubos Barton sank a corner triple and the whole team stayed aggressive in defense. Nothing changed in the final 3 minutes, as Barcelona rejoined the race to reach the Quarterfinal Playoffs while Maccabi needs to bounce back from this severe loss right away.
Thursday, February 05, 2009
Javier Gancedo, Barcelona
Referees: VOREADIS, LAZAROS (GRE), GKONTAS, SPIROS (GRE), HERCEG, SINISA (CRO)
Attendance: 6786
By Quarter1234
Regal FC Barcelona20192224
Maccabi Electra16171418
End of Quarter1234
Regal FC Barcelona20396185
Maccabi Electra16334765
Head coach: PASCUAL, XAVIER
Regal FC Barcelona
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
5 BASILE, GIANLUCA 23:46 16   5/8 1/2 1 1 2 2         2 2 16
6 BARRETT, ANDRE 14:09 3   1/3     2 2 3 1 2       2 7
8 TRIAS, JORDI DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
9 BARTON, LUBOS 15:35 3   1/2   1 1 2 1             5
11 NAVARRO, JUAN CARLOS 24:31 12 3/6 1/4 3/4   1 1 1 1 1     4 4 7
13 ANDERSEN, DAVID 20:41 17 4/5 2/4 3/4 2 2 4 1   3 3   3 3 18
17 VAZQUEZ, FRAN 26:58 10 3/5   4/4 7 3 10 2 2 1 3 1 3 2 22
20 DJEDOVIC, NIHAD DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
21 ILYASOVA, ERSAN 23:45 11 2/6 2/8 1/2 1 6 7     1 1 1 2 3 7
24 SADA, VICTOR 25:51 3 0/1 1/2   1 3 4 5 1 1     1   9
25 SANTIAGO, DANIEL 8:36 2 1/1       1 1     1 1   2 2 3
44 GRIMAU, ROGER 16:08 8 1/3 2/3   1   1     1   1 1 1 4
Team             1 1   1           2
Totals 200:00 85 14/27 15/34 12/16 14 21 35 15 6 11 8 3 18 19 100
51.9% 44.1% 75%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: GERSHON, PINI
Maccabi Electra
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 GAINES, CHARLES 5:25   0/1           1   1     1   -2
5 BROWN, MARCUS 35:00 6 2/4 0/1 2/3   2 2 6 1 2     3 7 13
6 SHARP, DERRICK 1:04                              
7 ARROYO, CARLOS 27:54 9 3/11 1/2           2 1   3 2 2 -2
8 ELIYAHU, LIOR 24:57 8 2/6   4/4 2 3 5 1   3   1   4 10
9 GREEN, YANIV 19:31 8 3/4   2/2 1 2 3 1 2       1 1 13
10 BURSTEIN, TAL 13:06 2 1/2       2 2 2   2     2 1 2
11 SIMMONS, TRE 1:13                              
12 BROWN, DEE 13:44 4 2/2             2 1     3   2
13 CASSPI, OMRI 30:07 11 3/9 1/2 2/4 2 3 5   1 1   2 3 2 4
14 HAGAG, DROR DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
21 FISCHER, D'OR 27:59 17 8/13   1/2 5 6 11 1     3 2 4 1 21
Team             2 2     1         1
Totals 200:00 65 24/52 2/5 11/15 10 20 30 12 8 12 3 8 19 18 62
46.2% 40% 73.3%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

PASCUAL, XAVIER
Regal FC Barcelona
"This was a game in which the most important thing was to win, especially after the loss in Madrid. This was a complicated game against a complicated opponent and an experienced team that tried to confuse us with their matchup defense. It was a game that could become very complicated, but we were really focused. We played correct defense in general terms, not as brilliant as some other games. We did a great job deactivating their most important players. We lacked confidence in second-chance opportunities, but we played tough and were the fair winners in this game. The tiebreaker is important, of course, especially if you consider that we will finish the Top 16 in Tel Aviv. We have to see how this group evolves. Indeed, this is a good result. We have to bounce back from the loss in Madrid and this game was not easy at all. If we lost tonight, everything would have been really complicated for us. I am happy for my players, who took a step forwards against a team that arrived here without that much pressure. We must play twice against Alba Berlin now. Berlin is a tough place to play. Tau Ceramica won there in a game decided in the final minute."
GERSHON, PINI
Maccabi Electra
"First of all, congratulations to Barcelona for the win and a very nice game. They deserved to win tonight and were better than us most of the game. They powered the offensive boards and shot very well from three-point range. They stopped our plays and had very good defense most of the game. They deserved to win and there is little to add about that. I still believe that tiebreak advantage is very important and Barcelona got a big advantage tonight. I don't see any way that Barcelona will not finish first in this group. We will try to beat them in Tel Aviv, it will not be an easy game for them. I believe that Barcelona is the best team in this group and they still have to play here against Real Madrid. It looks good for them."

Players

ANDERSEN, DAVID
Regal FC Barcelona
"I feel more comfortable after six months here in Barcelona. I understand the coach better and my teammates more, too. This is a new team growing together and hopefully we can stay like that, growing as a team and keep playing better basketball. Hopefully we will play better in the next big games. Our defense was really good tonight, even through Maccabi is a great offensive team. We played good defense and limited them to maybe 17 or 18 points in the second half, which is crucial. Our offense is coming back. We have started to run. This was a big game and everybody wanted to play at their best level. I was fortunate that my teammates found me in good position and hit good shots. The main thing is that, as a team, we played exceptionally good defense and ran very well."
SADA, VICTOR
Regal FC Barcelona
"Defense was the key to this game. We didn't let them play comfortable and tried to slow down the game tempo. We had a great shooting night and maybe took too many three-point shots, but we were left open often and showed that we want to win the game - and won it in the end. We did not manage to win in Madrid, but lost by a narrow margin. This win is a safety cushion for us now, even though we have to keep playing. Everyone is keeping an eye on us, Madrid and Maccabi, but Alba Berlin cannot be left out, either. We have to respect every opponent. I feel good now after my injury. My ankle is now ready to play with intensity. I am in good form, but I hope that better times will come, too."
ELIYAHU, LIOR
Maccabi Electra
"We got off to a good start, but we didn't play aggressive against a very good team like Regal FCB. We lost by 20 points and that says it all. Of course, the game is Tel Aviv will be different, I believe it will be. Now we face a very important game in the Israeli League on Sunday and then travel to Madrid to face Real in a crucial game, too. The Top 16 has just started and we have four games to play. We can bounce back from this loss even though it won't be easy, as there are many good teams in this group. I am sure we will play way better in our next games against Madrid."
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