TOP 5 / TOP 16
5-PARTIZAN IGOKEA BELGRADE (SERBIA)
Last night Pionir was the Roman Coliseum, and Partizan players were the gladiators. A furious come-from-behind victory for the the Black & White over the former unbeaten Montepaschi Siena, outscoring 31-21 the greens from Tuscany in the fourth quarter. A lionheart win for Partizan, who’s still seriously on track for the quarterfinals.
4-PANATHINAIKOS ATHENS (GREECE)
PAO seemed like a team in trouble last week in Siena and last night ’til the halftime. Maybe (for sure) in that halftime Obradovic in the locker room said a couple of tough words to his players, and in the third and fourth quarter the Greens had a big reaction, enough to grab the win past Efes Pilsen Istanbul, a strong and tempered 74-65 win.
3-CSKA MOSKOW (RUSSIA)
An impressive display of power last night in Rome, where Cska Moskow crushed 82-54 Lottomatica Rome, the best expression of Ettore Messina’s way of coaching his players. Tough defense, almost perfect offense, and completely perfect Ramunas Siskauskas.
2-REAL MADRID (SPAIN)
Strong win for Los Merengues in Lithuania, a clear 83-69 victory who put Real Madrid at the top of Group F. When Real plays as a real team, they can beat everybody in this Euroleague. Obviously Los Merengues are looking to the first days of may, when at their own Arena the Euroleague will celebrate the Final Four.
1-TAU CERAMICA VITORIA (SPAIN)
The only undefeated team in the Euroleague Top 16, Tau Ceramica rolls over the solid Lithuanians Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius, a strong 87-84 win for the Spahija’s bunch, a win who secure the basque to the Euroleague next stage, also clinching the First Place in Group E and the home-court advantage in the next quarterfinals.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
MILT PALACIO (PARTIZAN IGOKEA BELGRADE)
In the NBA they call him “Miracle Milt”, because of a crazy buzzer beater with the Rick Pitino’s Boston Celtics. The Belize native scored 26 points (8/11 from the field and 9/9 from the charity line) in the Partizan last night win, being the key player of the Black & White in the crunch time.
ZORAN PLANINIC (TAU CERAMICA VITORIA)
The former New Jersey Nets player made a great performance last night, 16 points, 6/11 from the field, 6 rebounds, 8 assists and 10 fouls drawn, leading Tau Ceramica to the fourth win in a row and to the Euroleague quarterfinals.
RAMUNAS SISKAUSKAS (CSKA MOSKOW)
A terrific shooter with a superior basketball IQ, this could be a general definition of the lithuanian player. Last night in Rome he had 25 points, 8/9 from the field (3/3 from the three points line), 6/7 free throws and 4 rebounds. Ramunas Siskauskas, one of the best european basketball expression of this season.
LYNN GREER (OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS)
One more time City of Brotherly Love Finest, Lynn Greer. The Temple University product has dominated the game in Tel Aviv, leading Olympiacos to the 87-82 win (greeks outscored israeli 26-11 in the fourth quarter) with 27 points, 8/12 from the field, 6 assists and 3 steals.
DANIELE VECCHI
