Euroleague Basketball Tips
Euro League basketball predictions appear under each mini game preview.
Olympiacos – Zenit
After having won its home opener in Round 2, Olympiacos Piraeus welcomes Zenit St Petersburg on Friday. The Russian team arrives in Greece to try to snag its first Euroleague victory ever. A coaching change sparked the Reds, who played great against Valencia Basket in Round, to the delight of their fans, and now will have another go at home to try to improve a 1-1 record. Zenit lost once at home and once on the road, so will face a tall order to break the ice at Peace and Friendship Stadium.
Olympiacos will try to ride the momentum it got from the coaching change and the win against Valencia. Playing at home again will certainly help a bit, but moving the ball swiftly on offense might help even more. If the hosts also manage to play tight defense and keep Zenit at less than 30% from beyond the arc, as the visitors have shot until now, Olympiacos will have an upper hand to add their second win of the year.
Despite having a coach and some players with EuroLeague experience, Zenit still seems to be adapting to the big stage, but that process will have to end soon if the guests want to keep moving forward with the playoffs in mind. Zenit is giving up 86.0 points per contest so far, so tightening up that defense will be key. The Russian team is ranked fifth in assists, propelled there by Alex Renfroe and Andrew Albicy. If the visitors manage to combine that creativity with better defense, they may be close to their first win of the season.
Tip: Under 154.5 at 1.90 with bet365
(Price correct at 18/10/2019, 10:15 CET, could have changed)
Barcelona – ALBA Berlin
FC Barcelona will be going for a third straight win to stay perfect in the regular season as it welcomes EuroLeague returnee ALBA Berlin. The hosts will look to stay on the winning momentum they have entered while ALBA, in its second straight road game, will try to bounce back from a dramatic loss in Istanbul last week against Anadolu Efes.
Barcelona seems to be unstoppable in this start to the season as the big signings of the summer are meeting the expectations. Niko Mirotic leads the team in points and rebounds, while Brandon Davies excels on those fronts and also assists. As long as Barcelona’s big men keep peforming the way they have been doing these last weeks, the hosts will have reasons to expect a good result from the game.
ALBA started the season with two outstanding performances, and the team is clearly on the rise. To succeed in such a tough trip, the German squad will need to stay true to its offensive style (95.0 ppg. and 25.5 apg.) and count on Siva, Rokas Giedraitis, Marcus Eriksson – who also returns to what was once his home – and Landry Nnoko. However, with such a talented team as Barcelona, a shootout could be a double-edged sword, so defense must be a key goal for the visitors to have chances in Barcelona.
Tip: 1 (-12.0) at 1.90 with bet365
(Price correct at 18/10/2019, 10:15 CET, could have changed)
Valencia – Anadolu Efes
Valencia Basket will be looking to start up its win column at home against Anadolu Efes Istanbul. Valencia has had to start the season playing against the defending champs and the runners-up, which can be tough on any team. On the other side, Efes comes from an OT win by the skin of their teeth against ALBA Berlin at home and lost the first game of the season at home, so it will be looking to start a positive streak in Spain.
Valencia has the third poorest offense in the league at the moment (67.0 ppg.) and that will have to change radically against such an offensive powerhouse as Efes. Players like Aaron Doornekamp, Alberto Abalde, Sam Van Rossom or Guillem Vives will need to step up their game in offense as they are combining an average 9.5 points per game in a combined average playing time of about 16 minutes each, something that is definitely not enough in a competition like the EuroLeague.
Louis Labeyrie might be ready to play against Efes, while Jordan Lloyd had some minor knee problems this week but he is expected to be available.
Efes comes to Valencia after a tough home win in overtime last week. Last season’s runners-up got back their main offensive weapon, Shane Larkin, and will continue looking up to him in offense. Efes is the team averaging the least steals in the league (4.5 spg.) so a bigger effort in defense would probably pay off big time, especially against a low-scoring team like Valencia. A win at the home of the current 7DAYS EuroCup champs could go a long way when money time comes.
Adrien Moerman, Bugrahan Tuncer and Tolga Gecim will not play against Valencia while Krunoslav Simon is questionable.
Tip: 2 (-2.5) at 1.90 with bet365
(Price correct at 18/10/2019, 10:15 CET, could have changed)
News Source: Euroleague.net
Basketball tips: Livetipster
