EuroLeague Primer: Round 18 - Tuesday

Written by

Kevin O'Brien

Updated on January 10, 2023 2:33PM EST

PREGAME UPDATES

Dwayne Bacon, Paris Lee, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis and Lefteris Bochoridis will all suit up Tuesday for Panathinaikos.
Bayern's Corey Walden will be available Tuesday.
Virtus Bologna's Isaia Cordinier will be in uniform for Round 18.
Dovydas Giedraitis will not suit up Tuesday for Zalgiris, but Achille Polonara, Isaiah Taylor and Mantas Kalnietis will.
ALBA's Louis Olinde and Gabriele Procida will not see action Tuesday.
Red Star's Luca Vildoza will not play Tuesday, and it is unclear if Ben Bentil will see action.
Real Madrid's Mario Hezonja will be available for Round 18.
Monaco's Adrien Moerman remains out for Round 18.

STATS AND INFO.

THE SLATE

OLY Olympiacos Piraeus at ASM AS Monaco

Status Check: Jordan Loyd (ASM), Adrien Moerman (ASM)

The Breakdown: Halfway into the campaign there are five teams tied atop the standings at 11-6, and two of them will compete in this contest. Monaco took down Olympiacos at Peace and Friendship Stadium when these teams met in Round 5, and they will now get them at home, where they have lost just twice all season. The oddsmakers have given the hosts as much as a 2.5-point edge, but they will have to make up some major deficits in the secondary stats, as Olympiacos has outscored its opponents by 158 more points than Monaco has and owns a 13.0-point advantage in net rating. Scoring should not be an issue for either club, as Monaco sits second in points per game and Olympiacos is right behind them. As such, it should come as no surprise that the over/under on this game is by far the biggest on the board.

RMB Real Madrid at CZV Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade

Status Check: Mario Hezonja (RMB), Gabriel Deck (RMB), Rudy Fernandez (RMB, Anthony Randolph (RMB), Carlos Alocen (RMB), Luca Vildoza (CZV), Facundo Campazzo (CZV), Hassan Martin (CZV), Nikola Ivanovic (CZV)

The Breakdown: Points figure to be far harder to come by in this game than in the previous one, as fewer points are expected in this contest than in any of the other five on the slate. That is hardly surprising considering these teams combined for just 128 points when Real Madrid handled a Red Star roster that will look similar to Tuesday's back in Round 4. Neither team will be at full strength, but the Spanish squad is better equipped to handle their absences, and they are favored by as many as 4.5 points. The implied point totals suggests Red Star will slow the game down a bit, but they could have a tough time finding holes in a defense that rates better than any other in the league, and they will need to make up a 12.5-point deficit in net rating.

EA7 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan at BER ALBA Berlin

Status Check: Shavon Shields (EA7), Kevin Pangos (EA7), Luigi Datome (EA7), Tommaso Baldasso (EA7), Marcus Eriksson (BER), Gabriele Procida (BER)

The Breakdown: These clubs have both gotten back on track following long losing streaks, with the visitors going 3-1 over the last four Rounds and the home team coming in winners of two straight. The Italian team has been better away from home than at it, and the experts expect them to pick up another win, as they are favored by 1.5 points. That would be a different result than last time, as the German club picked up the win when these clubs met back in Round 2. This will be a clash of styles, as no team plays at a faster pace than ALBA, and only one plays slower than Milan. The over/under suggests the Italian team will control the speed, which could be key, as no team is averaging fewer points nor is less efficient on the offensive end.

BKN Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz at BAY FC Bayern Munich

Status Check: Vladimir Lucic (BAY), Corey Walden (BAY), Andreas Obst (BAY), Zan Mark Sisko (BAY)

The Breakdown: Only two games on Tuesday's slate have an over/under north of 160.0 points, and this is the second of the two. Baskonia had a six-game winning streak snapped its last time out, but the oddsmakers expect them to get back on track, as they are favored by up to 2.5 points. The Spanish squad sits 11 spots higher in the standings and own an 11.0-point edge in net rating, but they have not been nearly as successful on the road as they have been in their own arena, and Bayern could wind up on top if they can slow down a team that ranks second league-wide in the pace department. They could also use more points after putting just 53 on the board when these teams faced off in Round 12.

FBB Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul at PAO Panathinaikos Athens

Status Check: Nemanja Bjelica (FBB), Tonye Jekiri (FBB), Ismet Akpinar (FBB), Tarik Biberovic (FBB), Dwayne Bacon (PAO), Paris Lee (PAO), Panagiotis Kalaitzakis (PAO), Lefteris Bochoridis (PAO)

The Breakdown: This will be a pivotal game for both clubs, as one of them will see a five-game losing streak come to an end and the other will be left searching for more ways to get their season back on track. Fenerbahce is favored by as many as 3.0 points, which does not come as much surprise considering they own a 13.0-point edge in net rating and won by 30 points when these clubs met back in Round 8. Both these teams rank top-6 in pace, so don't be surprised to see more points than the 159.5 that are anticipated.

ZAL Zalgiris Kaunas at VIR Virtus Segafredo Bologna

Status Check: Keenan Evans (ZAL), Achille Polonara (ZAL), Isaiah Taylor (ZAL), Tyler Cavanaugh (ZAL), Mantas Kalnietis (ZAL), Isaia Cordinier (VIR), Nico Mannion (VIR), Awudu Abass (VIR), Leo Menalo (VIR)

The Breakdown: Things will look a lot different on the Zalgiris side than they did even a week ago, as they will be without their top player in Evans for the rest of the season, and both Polonara and Taylor were brought in to fill the void. The Lithuanian team easily dispatched of Fenerbahce in Round 17 despite losing Evans early in the game, but the experts expect things to go differently Tuesday, as Virtus is expected to win by more points than any of the other five favorites on the board. Zalgiris won by three points on their home court back in Round 3, but they will need their new-look roster to gel quickly to match that feat.

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