Regular Season Game 13 - January 24, 2008 CET: 19:50 Local time: 20:50 - NOKIA ARENA

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
8-3 Regular Season 3-9
9-3 Overall 3-9

Referees

Crew Chief
ANKARALI, RECEP, Turkey
Referee
ARTEAGA, JUAN CARLOS, Spain
Umpire
JURAS, MARKO, Serbia

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
80.8 Points 73.0
30.4 Rebounds 30.5
7.9 O. Rebounds 9.2
22.5 D. Rebounds 21.3
17.5 Assists 11.5
11.4 Steals 9.9
2.8 Blocks 1.8
12.8 Turnovers 12.1
58.4 % 2PT 52.6 %
37.0 % 3PT 32.4 %
66.8 % FT 70.0 %
91.3 Index 76.6

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
11.5 / FIZER, MARCUS Points 13.7 / VUKCEVIC, DUSAN
7.3 / MORRIS, TERENCE Rebounds 9.1 / WATSON, TRAVIS
2.3 / Batista OR 3.4 / WATSON, TRAVIS
5.3 / MORRIS, TERENCE DR 5.7 / WATSON, TRAVIS
4.0 / HALPERIN, YOTAM Assists 2.9 / VUKCEVIC, DUSAN
1.5 / Batista Steals 1.6 / WATSON, TRAVIS
1.8 / MORRIS, TERENCE Blocks 0.8 / SESAY, ANSU
2.1 / BYNUM, W. Turnovers 2.1 / WATSON, TRAVIS
67.6 % / MORRIS, TERENCE 2PT 71.4 % / GIOVACCHINI, A
45.2 % / HALPERIN, YOTAM 3PT 37.7 % / VUKCEVIC, DUSAN
100.0 % / SHARP, DERRICK FT 100.0 % / GIOVACCHINI, A
16.0 / MORRIS, TERENCE Index 17.0 / WATSON, TRAVIS

THE TAKE

Maccabi Elite will look to extend its perfect record under head coach Zvika Sherf when it hosts Armani Jeans Milano on Thursday night at Tel Aviv’s Nokia Arena. The Israeli champs will target their 100th win in Euroleague Basketball and fourth straight under Sherf, who took the reins at the club at the beginning of the month. Under Sherf, the team has played more focused basketball and much better defense to move to a tie with Unicaja and Lietuvos Rytas atop the Group B standings at 9-3. With the other two co-leader facing off Wednesday, a win for Maccabi will see eying the top spot or at least the best overall record among second place teams and accordingly a top spot in the upcoming Top 16 draw. Meanwhile Milano’s hopes of playing beyond next week have all but evaporated. Even after an impressive win over Aris TT Bank last week, in which teenage forward Danilo Gallinaro matched his career-high with 20 points, Milano would need to win its remaining games and to have results from this group and others go its way to sneak into the Top 16 as the best fifth place finisher. Maccabi needed overtime to take Milano down 81-82 when they last met in Italy. Yotam Halperin scored a season-high 20 to lead Maccabi that night, while Gallinari also had 20 in defeat. In Macabi’s recent run, it’s most important players have been big men Terence Morris and Marcus Fizer and they will get a boosts as All-Euroleague center Nikola Vujcic is expected to play this week. On the other hand, guard Will Bynum, who has been a real spark off the bench, is a question mark after pulling a thigh muscle in an Israeli League game. I addition to Gallinari, Milano will look to shooting guard Dusan Vukcevic and big man Travis Watson to make things happen. The matchup in the paint that sees Watson and Ansu Sesay take on the Maccabi big men could be the pivotal spot for the visitors, though they will also need Gallinari to shine against David Bluthenthal and Omri Casspi to get real momentum. Maccabi is the clear favorite when taking into consideration its recent form, its home record – has won 23 of its last 25 Euroleague games at home – and its aspirations, which at least seem to be higher than Milano’s. But as always is the case at this time of the season, beware the underdog, who when playing carefree can always sting the favorite.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

CAJA, ATTILIO
AJ Milano
"We still have two games to play in the Euroleague and we'll try to do our best, as we did in all the other contests, to honor our historic team in this great competition. We have to play again the same game that we played last week against Aris, where we finally won our fist game at home in the Euroleague. We know that Maccabi has a deep roster and impressive potential, and also that it's always hard to play in their court. In the first-leg game, we were so unlucky, losing at the buzzer, but we had a great performance as a team. I think that it's going to be different this time, but we'll put all our determination to win on the floor."

Players

VUKCEVIC, DUSAN
AJ Milano
"We know that we have only a few chances to be qualified for the Top 16, because we depend on the results of the other teams, but as long as we can hope to do that, we'll try to believe in the qualification as we did in the very first game. We go to Tel Aviv to play the best game possible. We're going to have to be careful on defense and try to avoid their fastbreaks."
Yotam Halperin - Maccabi Elite Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv pulled away in the second half en route to a 91-76 home win over Armani Jeans Milano on Thursday night at Nokia Arena. The victory was Maccabi’s fourth straight since head coach Zvi Sherf took over and left the Israeli champs strong in the fight for a top seed in the Top 16 draw. Maccabi improved to 10-3 in Group B, the same as leader Lietuvos Rytas. Maccabi can only win the group if it beats Aris TT Bank on the road and L. Rytas loses at Cibona next week. Meanwhile Milano dropped to 3-10 and will finish its Euroleague season next week at home against Le Mans. Yotam Halperin scored 13 points in the third quarter as the hosts turned a 44-46 halftime deficit into a lead that continued to grow as the visitors tired. Halperin finished with a season-high 24 points on his 24th birthday to lead Maccabi. Alex Garcia added 14 points and standout defense, Terence Morris finished with 12 points and 7 rebounds, Nikola Vujcic scored 10 and dished 4 assists in 18 minutes in his return after nearly three months on the sidelines, Esteban Batista contributed 9 points and 10 rebounds and Vonteego Cummings dished a career-best 10 assists. Danilo Gallinari had a season-high 27 to pace Milano, Dusan Vukcevic added 16, Ansu Sesay 15 and Travis Watson had 9 points and 11 rebounds for Milano, which got only 6 points from its reserve players, not enough to win in a place like Tel Aviv.

Maccabi won the opening tip and went right inside to Marcus Fizer for the game’s first points. Gallinari got the visitors their first points with a three-pointer on the next possession. Halperin hit a long-range jumper and then a three-pointer to put the hosts up 7-3. Milano fired up from outside on nearly every trip downcourt and Sesay connected from downtown to keep Milano within 1. But a Morris three-pointer and a Fizer dunk on the break were followed by a bench technical on Milano, as Maccabi went ahead 14-6. Vukcevic single-handedly carried the visitors back with a three-point play and then a three-pointer. Soon Watson gave the visitors a 16-17 lead with a basket in the paint, but David Bluthenthal restored the Tel Aviv advantage with a triple. Gallinari corrected his own miss and a Sesay steal and slam gave Milano control. Casey Shaw added a basket on the offensive glass to put Milano up 6 before Will Bynum ended the period with triple that made it 23-27 after 10 minutes.

Danilo Gallinari - AJ MilanoGallinari kept Milano’s surge going with a free throw and then a basket-plus-foul at the start of the second period. When Vukcevic sliced through the paint for an easy hoop, Milano led 23-33 and Maccabi used a timeout to regroup. Sesay added to the visitors lead before Batista ended a three-plus minutes Maccabi drought with a pair of free throws. Vujcic made his return to Euroleague action after nearly three months on the sidelines and soon connected on 2 free throws, before adding his patented jump hook a minute later. However Gallinari threw down a dunk on the break as the visitors kept a 29-40 advantage. Maccabi captain Derrick Sharp and reserve Alex Garcia stepped things up on defense and scored 2 points each to get the hosts going and then a Vujcic slam cut the deficit to 3. After a Milano timeout, Vukcevic hit from outside, but Vujcic penetrated and dished to Batista to keep it close. Halperin free throws made it a 1-point game, Sesay answered with a triple, but Bynum fed Morris for a slam as Maccabi got within 44-46 at halftime.

A fierce Watson slam got Milano started strong after the break, but Halperin answered with a three-pointer and Bluthenthal added a triple to give Maccabi the lead for the first time since the opening period. Gallinari tied the game at 50-50 with 2 free throws and then restored Milano’s lead with a three. The lead continued to change hands with a Morris triple, followed by a Vukcevic basket and a Halperin hoop. Halperin added a layup after a Cummings steal to put Maccabi up 60-57. Halperin remained hot with a three-pointer, but Gallinari kept it close with 2 free throws as he reached a season-high 21 points. Halperin reached 13 third-quarter points with a pair of free throws, but Gallinaro continued their duel with a drive for a basket. Garcia drained a three-pointer to end the third quarter with the hosts holding a 71-65 lead.

The pace of the game dropped as the fourth quarter got underway, with more than two minutes passing before Vujcic found a cutting Garcia with a pretty pass. Watson kept Milano in touch with a slam, but Vujcic set up Garcia again, this time for a three-pointer to give Maccabi its biggest lead yet, 78-69. After a timeout, Garcia continued to shine with a penetration that resulted in Maccabi’s first double-digit lead. Watson drew a foul from Vujcic and made a free throw, but a fresh Lior Eliyahu scored inside for Maccabi. Shaw fouled out, leaving Milano exposed underneath. Sesay tried to change things, but Garcia made big plays at both ends to help seal the win. Any hope that Milano still had disappeared when Sesay fouled out while committing an unsportsmanlike foul on Eliyahu. Cummings and Batista padded the margin in the last two minutes as the fans celebrated another win.

Thursday, January 24, 2008
Euroleague.net
Referees: ANKARALI, RECEP (TUR), ARTEAGA, JUAN CARLOS (ESP), JURAS, MARKO (SRB)
Attendance: 11000
By Quarter1234
Maccabi Elite23212720
AJ Milano27191911
End of Quarter1234
Maccabi Elite23447191
AJ Milano27466576
Head coach: SHERF, ZVI
Maccabi Elite
# 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 BYNUM, WILL 23:15 3 1/2 0/3 1/2   2 2 4 2 2     2 2 4
5 FIZER, MARCUS 11:25 4 2/3 0/1           1 2   1 1 1  
6 SHARP, DERRICK 7:42 2 1/2 0/1     1 1   1 1       1 2
7 VUJCIC, NIKOLA 18:09 10 3/5   4/5 1 1 2 4         1 6 18
8 ELIYAHU, LIOR 4:36 3 1/1   1/2         2         1 5
9 MORRIS, TERENCE 29:05 12 3/6 2/4   3 4 7 1   3     2 1 11
11 CASSPI, OMRI 6:18     0/1     2 2     1     2   -2
12 GARCIA, ALEX 17:55 14 3/4 2/3 2/4 1 3 4 2 1       4 2 15
13 BLU, DAVID 15:47 6   2/5   1 1 2 2         3   4
14 CUMMINGS, VONTEEGO 19:48 4 2/3 0/2         10 3 1     3 1 11
15 BATISTA, ESTEBAN 16:45 9 3/7   3/4 2 8 10 1   1     2 5 17
21 HALPERIN, YOTAM 29:15 24 4/5 3/5 7/7 1   1 2   1     1 2 24
Team                                
Totals 200:00 91 23/38 9/25 18/24 9 22 31 26 10 12 0 1 21 22 109
60.5% 36% 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: CAJA, ATTILIO
AJ Milano
# 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 SESAY, ANSU 30:37 15 3/7 2/6 3/3 3 2 5   1 2 1   5 3 10
8 GALLINARI, DANILO 37:03 27 5/10 2/7 11/13 1 3 4   3 1     1 8 28
10 ARADORI, PIETRO 7:57                   1     3   -4
11 SHAW, CASEY 14:55 4 1/2   2/2 3 3 6     1     5 1 4
12 BOOKER, MELVIN 32:28 3 0/1 1/5     1 1 3 1 1     1   1
13 WATSON, TRAVIS 26:58 9 4/6   1/4 3 8 11     1     3 4 15
14 VUKCEVIC, DUSAN 33:10 16 5/9 1/6 3/3 1 4 5 5 1 2     1 4 19
15 KATELYNAS, MINDAUGAS DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
16 GENTILE, STEFANO DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
17 MARELLI, SANDRO DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
18 GIOVACCHINI, ANTHONY 16:52 2 1/2 0/1     2 2 2   2     2 1 1
Team                   1           1
Totals 200:00 76 19/37 6/25 20/25 11 23 34 10 7 11 1 0 21 21 75
51.4% 24% 80%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

SHERF, ZVI
Maccabi Elite
"In the first half, we didn't play the defense that we want and can show. We needed to stop Gallinari and his great talent. Sometimes, we were over-sharing the ball, and it will not be a problem once we improve our decision making. Alex Garcia played a great game today and he woke up the team once he stepped on court. Nikola Vujcic was back in shape faster than I expected."
CAJA, ATTILIO
AJ Milano
"We started out good and played good for 30 to 35 minutes and tried to stick to the game plan, but Maccabi's deep bench made the difference. We wanted to play good and honor our last road game in the Euroleague, and I think we did it."

Players

VUJCIC, NIKOLA
Maccabi Elite
"It felt great to win. It will take time until I'm back in full shape, but I'm happy that I helped my team win. Maccabi has had a great run, and I hope it will continue."
HALPERIN, YOTAM
Maccabi Elite
"It was a nice win, but I don't think we played well enough. Maybe the pressure was too big. Personally I'm happy that I helped get the win for my team. Garcia came off the bench and did a great job and he deserves the credit for that. Now it's money time. We have the game in Greece against Aris left, and after that we'll need to focus on the Top 16."
VUKCEVIC, DUSAN
AJ Milano
"It was important for us to come here and play well despite having no chance to qualify to the Top 16. We played well in the first half but then Maccabi took over. They have a deeper bench and it allowed them to play more physical, and that made a big difference in the second half."
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