<TABLE class=team><THEAD><TR id=mdetail><TH class="right tname">BC Kyiv</TH><TD class=score>96 - 72</TD><TH class="left tname">Panellinios</TH></TR></THEAD><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE class=team><THEAD><TR id=mdetail><TH class="right tname">Oostende</TH><TD class=score>83 - 88</TD><TH class="left tname">Le Havre</TH></TR></THEAD><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE class=team><THEAD><TR id=mdetail><TH class="right tname">Proteas EKA</TH><TD class=score>89 - 72</TD><TH class="left tname">Banvitspor</TH></TR></THEAD><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE>
South Dragons 97- 82 Adelaide 36ers
3-1 + 5.88 units
YTD : 3-2 +2.7 units
13 November
Euroleague - Men
Start time : 11:00 AM PST
ALBA Berlin (GER) vs DKV Joventut (ESP) ( Spread )
My pick is
ALBA Berlin (GER) -1.5
Odds : 1.88
Bookmaker : betfair
3.41 units to win 3 units
Official preview from euroleague
<TABLE class="" id=ctl02_ctl00_GamePreviewQuotesContainer cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=CoachesQuotesContainer colSpan=2>Head Coaches </TD></TR><TR><TD class=GamePreviewCenterLeftContainer><TABLE id=ctl02_ctl00_ctl11_dataList style="WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" cellSpacing=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class=QuoteItemContainer cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=QuoteImageContainer rowSpan=2>
</TD><TD class=QuotePersonNameContainer>PAVICEVIC, LUKA </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteTitleContainer>Alba Berlin head coach </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteDescriptionContainer colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteContenidoContainer colSpan=2>”During the last few weeks it was very strange to play so many tough road games one after another. That was very difficult for the whole team and therefore it feels good to be back home for this game. Although in our group, every team is good enough to beat any other team, this game against Joventut is a key game for us. It is clear that the two Spanish teams as well as Fenerbahce and Lottomatica are better than us and Olimpija Ljubljana, who both have to fight really hard to reach the next round. For this we must play especially well at home for all the winnings. Badalona is a high level Spanish team that must be controlled with the tempo. It is a team that plays with a high speed and they are ready to make a turnaround of 20 points in a very short period. Everybody on the team is a shooter, they play very fast with a lot of energy and a lot of unpredictableness. If we want to win this game, we have to control the tempo in the best possible way.” </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
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</TD><TD class=QuotePersonNameContainer>ALONSO, SITO </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteTitleContainer>DKV Joventut head coach </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteDescriptionContainer colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteContenidoContainer colSpan=2>"Right now I am worried about our team, who has suffered two strong mental blows and we are looking for psychological recovery. We have to be capable of facing the next two games on the road because we won't have the support of our fans. We are working to be able to overcome that. Alba Berlin is forced to win, but we also are because we want to be in the Top 16 and having lost to Fenerbahce Ulker we have no other option than a win. Alba plays at home, the place where the Final Four will be played with some 15,000 fans that will push them to win the game, but of course, we will try that it does not happen." </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR><TR><TD class=PlayersQuotesContainer colSpan=2>Players </TD></TR><TR><TD class=GamePreviewBottomLeftContainer><TABLE id=ctl02_ctl00_ctl13_dataList style="WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" cellSpacing=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class=QuoteItemContainer cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=QuoteImageContainer rowSpan=2>
</TD><TD class=QuotePersonNameContainer>WRIGHT, RASHAD </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteTitleContainer>Alba Berlin guard </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteDescriptionContainer colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteContenidoContainer colSpan=2>”This game against Joventut is a very important one for us. They are coming in after a couple of losses, we are coming in after a tough loss. So this is going to be a real competitive game for both teams. For us this game is a chance to redeem ourselves after the big loss in Vitoria. We have practiced very hard knowing that a win on Thursday really can help us out. Against Joventut we will have to control the tempo. Whether we play fast or slow it down and run our offense must be in our hands. We have to act as a team and not get in to their game of up and down.” </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD><TD class=GamePreviewBottomRightContainer><TABLE id=ctl02_ctl00_ctl14_dataList style="WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" cellSpacing=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class=QuoteItemContainer cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=QuoteImageContainer rowSpan=2>
</TD><TD class=QuotePersonNameContainer>RIBAS, PAU </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteTitleContainer>DKV Joventut guard </TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteDescriptionContainer colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD class=QuoteContenidoContainer colSpan=2>"Wew have to be worried for not having won the last two games. We were doing well, but games are won in the final buzzer. If we play well some minutes but then we disappear in the last period we can lose any game, which is what just happened. We have some players out, but if you are exhausted in the final minutes, you have to be mentally stronger to keep the game on your side. If we manage to take a win in Berlin we can, somehow, erase the home loss to Fenerbahce Ulker. I think we have some options, it is a court where we can try to be ourselves again. We need a road win right now." </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE id=ctl02_ctl00_ctl10_ctl00 style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" cellSpacing=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class="previewItemContentContainer articleItemContentContainer" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=otherdataContainer>Alba welcomes DKV Joventut to the state-of-the-art O2 Arena in Group C on Thursday for a crucial battle that could have Top 16 implications. These teams faced each other in the ULEB Cup for the first time last season with Joventut beating Alba twice on its way to winning the title. It will be a special game for DKV forward Jan Jagla, born and raised in Berlin, who returns to his hometown to face Alba. With Week 2 MVP Pops Mensah-Bonsu sidelined, Jagla will spend more time on court, leading a versatile, mobile frontcourt that also features center Edu Hernandez-Sonseca, up-and-coming big man Henk Norel and versatile forward Luka Bogdanovic. Experienced center Patrick Femerling returned to practice, but he is not expected to play much against Joventut, so Adam Chubb will be its main reference in the paint. His matchup with Hernandez-Sonseca will be one of the keys to this game. Bogdanovic and Jagla will battle against Dragisa Drobnjak and Aleksandar Nadjfeji, while Joventut will have to worry about Ansu Sesay, a great shooter and a good athlete at power forward. Joventut is still without Ricky Rubio, who is not expected to play this month. As such, Demond Mallet will be its fulltime floor general, with combo guard Pau Ribas backing him up. Meanwhile, Alba is really deep at point guard, with Rashad Wright and Steffen Hamann trying to put pressure on Mallet. Alba also features a good battery of shooters in Julius Jenkins and Casey Jacobsen, with a perfect complement in do-it-all forward Immanuel McElroy, the key player for the hosts due to his intensity, versatility and power. Ferran Laviña seems the right man to stop McElroy, but players like Simas Jasaitis and even youngster Pere Tomas will have to help him at all times. Jasaitis is set for a big matchup against Jacobsen, two former Tau Ceramica players that reached the Final Four with that team in different seasons. Meanwhile, Jenkins will test his scoring skills against Bracey Wright in another key matchup. Joventut needs to dominate the game tempo, play aggressive and lock the defensive rebound against McElroy, Nadjfeji and Chubb. Meanwhile, Alba needs to slow down the game tempo and get Jenkins and Jacobsen involved, especially in double-team situations. Expect a strong basketball atmosphere and an exciting game in the O2 Arena on Thursday.
GAME NOTES
DKV Joventut
- Big man Jan Jagla returns home this week as he is a native of Berlin. Jagla was a teammate with current Alba Berlin players Steffen Hamann, Patrick Femerling and Philip Zwiener on the German national team at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
- Point guard Demond Mallet spent six seasons playing in Germany before joining Joventut. Among the former teammates he will be reunited with this week are Immanuel McElroy and Aleksandar Nadjfeji, who he played with at Koln in the 2006-07 season, and Steffen Hamann, who he played with at Brose Baskets before that.
- Mallet dominated Berlin in two wins last season in the ULEB Cup, averaging 22 points and 3.5 steals in 30 minutes per game.
</TD></TR><TR><TD class=dateContainer>Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Euroleague.net
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