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The Turkish Airlines Euroleague match-day 2 kicks off today with İstanbul powerhouse Fenerbahçe Ülker facing Polish outfit PGE Turow Zgorzelec on the road in Group C, and Galatasaray Liv Hospital entertaining Spanish side Valencia Basket in Group D at Abdi İpekçi Sports Arena in İstanbul.
Fenerbahçe, under the tutelage of new world-famous Serbian head coach Zeljko Obradovic, started its Euroleague campaign last Friday on a winning note with a hard-fought 77-74 victory over visiting Italian powerhouse EA7 Emporio Armani Olimpia Milano at Ülker Sports Arena.
Galatasaray, on the other hand, was beaten 76-68 by Serbian outfit Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) Telekom Belgrade on the road a week ago tomorrow.
Obradovic's men, therefore, will be aiming for their second win in as many group games when they take on PGE Turow Zgorzelec on Wednesday. The Polish host, as a matter of fact, is the weakest link in the group and was trounced 84-77 by Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos Athens in their opening game last Friday.
Fenerbahçe, therefore, can overcome the Poles, without any difficulty, if it keeps its eyes on the prize.
Fenerbahçe fans again will be expecting 25-year-old US guard Andrew Darius Goudelock, who banged in 19 points against Milano, and 22-year-old Serbian shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic and mighty Turkish center Oğuz Savaş -- who netted eight apiece -- to deliver the goods against minnow Turow Zgorzelec.
But the rule in basketball, as in any other sport, is “Thou shalt not underestimate an opponent or overestimate thyself.” This is what Fenerbahçe must bear in mind on Wednesday.
In other Group C games: Milano welcomes Barcelona to Mediolanum Forum and FC Bayern Munich hosts Panathinaikos Athens.
Galatasaray can't afford to lose
Once bitten twice shy, they say. Galatasaray, therefore, faces a must-win situation, so to speak, against Valencia Basket in İstanbul on Thursday. Galatasaray was defenseless against Red Star last week, allowing Serbian center Boban Marjanovic to net 22 points and 28-year-old Los Angeles guard Marcus Darrell Williams 15 with relative ease.
Defense is the best offense; in other words, defense does win basketball games. Ergin Ataman's men, therefore, cannot afford to let Valencia Basket lose and allow them shoot freely as the Serbians did.
Though Valencia was beaten at home 71-68 by Greek side Olympiakos last Thursday, it proved beyond a doubt that it is a force to be reckoned with in European basketball. Valencia Basket enjoyed a glorious 2013-14 season by clinching the Eurocup. In each of its previous two Turkish Airlines Euroleague appearances -- 2003-04 and 2010-1 -- the Spaniards were just one win away from the Final Four.
And so if Red Star was tough for Galatasaray, Ataman's men should expect Valencia Basket to be equally tough in a clash of two winless teams. Puerto Rican point guard Carlos Arroyo led Galatasaray to greater heights both at home and in Europe last season, and fans want him to deliver against Valencia Basket at Abdi İpekçi on Wednesday.
Other Group D games pit Neptunas Klaipeda against Red Star and Olympiakos Piraeus vs. Laboral Kutxa Vitoria.
(Cihan/Today's Zaman)
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