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Bayern are in a similar situation to the one Ulm were in yesterday against Gottingen. The Bavarians are ona bad run, they suffered five defeats in all competitions, lost their last two Bundesliga away games (Alba, Frankfurt), they suffered three defeats in eight rounds and last year's finalists are now in the 8th position. That is why I expect their right approach today, and with the right approach, Bremehaven can hardly be even in this game for long. Home team's record is 1-7, they are having a lot of problems with offense and stability. Last weekend against Wurzburg, they were in the lead by 13 six minutes before the end and they lost. So far they only defeated weak Tubingen in an away game, their average is 64 points in home games, they have the worst offense in the Bundesliga. Bayern, on the other hand, are at the top offensively, they are capable of playing great defense when they want, and the current situation is such that they cannot make calculations. Djedovic clearly said that they must display character. All in all, Bayern are not in a position to underestimate Bremerhaven, and in that case the big quality difference has to come to the fore. Details

The fact is, Ulm aren't in a very good place as they recorded 5 Bundesliga defeats. But that is particularly why they cannot take Gottingen lightly today. The away team are one of the two worst-quality teams in the league that will have a very tough matchup because Ulm's power is in transition. The visitors didn't show they can play good defense so far. They conceded 92,5 points on average, almost 97 away. They beat only Mittledeutscher away and lost the other three road trips by 44, 41, and 14 points. They suit Ulm perfectly which is why I believe the home team will end the losing streak today and finish with a lot of points. They definitely have better individual quality and great motivation. Details

Margin is as high as expected, but those should be expected in the rest of the season when teams like Okapi, Willebroke or Limburg face each other. Those are all run'n'gun teams. Okapi's game style is well known. They don't have a true center, but have great transition, and play very short offenses. They forced their rhythm against Pepinster in the last round, with the total number of points close to 180, and they went over 190 against Brussel before that, they were close to 170 against Oostende in an away match (even though they were weakened), and went over 180 against Antwerp. So, every match played against a similar team was very efficient. Willebroek are also playing with the Americans who don't mind running. They stayed very low under this margin against the defensively strong Spirou, but went convincingly over against offensively-oriented teams (Liege 199, Pepinster 184, Limburg 202). So, a margin set to 170 points doesn't look high. It's not worth it to bet on over for margins like these if you don't expect a 180 margin to be broken, and considering Okapi and Willebroek's game style, that's going to be the case here. Details

halon's coach Choulet said that it's more interesting for the viewers if the game finishes at 99-86 than at 60-40. That is another proof that he is an offese-oriented coach and hat his team mostly does as he wants them to do on the floor. Chalon play fast paced game with short attacks and great dependence on three-pointers. Gussing have a game that is somewhat similar to that. They are a team without proper centers that is full of Americans who do well with fast pace. Also, Gussing are not under a lot of pressure after the win over Den Bosch. The Austrians know full well that the last two rounds will be crucial in their bid to qualify for the next stage. They probably won't be able to ask for much here. They lost the first game 75-99, the French team beat them easily and I expect the same today. Details

Honestly, I hope that the odds on Coruna's win will be close to what the betting houses have set. That is a consequence of Coruna's current record of 1-6. This suggests that the team from Galicia is pretty bad, but I wouldn't agree with that. Weak odds are more of a consequence of difficult schedule and some injury problems at the start of the season. In the first seven rounds, Coruna faced pretty much all strongest teams in the league. At home they lost to Palencia and Burgos, and defeated Breogan. In the last round at Castello they were so close to winning, before that they almost defeated Palma. Huesca are an even younger team than Coruna and they are home court oriented. Last year they hardly won away game, this season they opened with a 0-3 record in away games. Realistically, the away team can hardly handle Coruna's frontcourt. On Wednesday against Castello, Burjanadze and Olmos scored over 50 points combined and they will be home team's key players today as well. As coach DIaz said, they will finally play at home against a team within their reach, he is optimistic because he knows that their current position is not a reflection of their quality. I agree with him. When it's all considered, I think that Coruna are bigger favorites than the odds might suggest, regardless of the fact that they won less games than Huesca. Details

The margin makes sense if we take into consideration only maths but I think there are a few reasons for which Slupsk will not go over 80 points today. The first reason is the fact they lost their top player and shooter Harper, who is also the key defender alongside Blassingame. Also, they made some changes to the paint by acquiring center Davis, who will not play today. The second reason is Trefl's game style. Thy rae now a defense-oriented team that allowed only Szczecin more than 80 poins in regulation time. They allow an average of 73 points (already played two overtimes). Good news for the visitors is, the mighty center Majok is back, which means the home team will have a tough task under the rim. Theset teams met in preseason in Torun where Trefl won 80-74.Harper was Trefl's best scorer then. Slupsk went over this margin three times, in blow.outs against Polhpharma and Tarnobrzeg and the aforementioned game with Sczecin. They never went over 68 against good defenses (Stelmer, Torun). Details

Polpharma have showed in the last round that they are still reaching their true offensive rhythm. They defeated Trefl, but only after overtime. They scored 76 in regular time, before that against Tarnobrzeg and Lublin they stayed under 70, against Stelmet at 71, and they went over 80 only against Slupsk when they lost all chances early on (81-101). Today they are facing a team whose game style doesn't suit them at all. Kutno concede less than 62 points on average, and we should point out that they already solved two games in overtime. After the additional five minutes, they conceded 70 against Koszalina, and in the last round against offensively powerful Szczecin they also conceded 70 after overtime. In the six rounds played so far, Kutno haven't conceded over 71 in regular time. They are athletically one of the best teams in the league, it is unlikely that Polpharma will dominate the rebound, and with that they will have a hard time imposing their pace. Details

Coach Rose said that his goal today is to record as convincing a win as possible since they know they have to be winning home in order to get into the second round since they have two more away games to play. Rosa failed to put up a fight against the Turks last week, while they also struggles with some key players' injuries. In the meantime, Sokolowski recovered and they will be complete now. Kumanovo are home team's next opponent, which could be a good thing. The Macedonians don't play tough defense, especially away. Rosa, on the other hand, rely on tough defense and know how to take advantage of opponents' shortcomings in defense. For example, they hit 97 points against Kotka away, 92 against Turow away and and Dabrowa also 90 last weekend. Kumanovo conceded 92 points in Turkey and lost badly. They're not ding brilliantly away even in the domestic championship. They lost to Feni Industries 81-96, to Karpos Sokoli 83-90 and 93-101 against Strumica in the last round after overtime. I think the Macedonians will have much more problems with the opponents' defense than vice-versa. Rosa are better than Kumanovo quality-wise, the motivation is not questionable and that will have consequences on the final outcome. Details

Zlatorog started the FIBA Europe Cup with two convincing defeats. They lost to Gussing last week by 18, conceding 98 points. They conceded over 80 in the first round against Den Bosch, who aren't too convincing offensively. They lost to Helios in the Slovenian championship by 11 this weekend, and they obviously decided it would be better to give starters a rest before today's match, than taking them to an away duel in France where they wouldn't really have a chance to get points anyway. The official explanation was that Jurak and Vujasinović are sick, but they played full minutes in Domžale this Saturday. The wing player Jeftić is also out. Lasko only have nine seniors in the team, which means they'll only have six today, and a few juniors will get their chance. Jurak was their second best scorer in the Slovenian championship so far (15 points), Jeftić is the first (18), and Vujasinović is the best in assists, 4.3 per match. Chalon were crushed by Gravelins this weekend, and they'll probably react now. They play great at home in general, so they were mostly winning the home matches of the French championship convincingly. They outplayed Gussing in the FIBA Europe Cup by 24, scoring 99, and Zlatorog conceded 98 against Gussing and lost by 18 at home. Details

Braunschweig still haven't earned a home win, but the only home games they played so far were against Brose in the first round, and Ludwigsburg in the third, so very strong teams. They lost to Ludwigsburg in the overtime, and after that they had three away games. They convincingly defeated Bremerhaven, kept up well against Alba and Oldenburg. They are now finally returning home and they have a great chance to earn their first home win, and a convincing one, in my opinion. Their opponents are Crailsheim who cannot compete against Braunschweig defensively, nor when it comes to physical strength. Braunschweig earned easy wins against weaker teams (at Bremerhaven by 15, at Bayreuth by 40), and Crailsheim are home court oriented team who gave a hard time to Alba at home, defeated Ulm and Telecom, but they lost to Giessen by 40 last week in their own arena. In away games, they lost by 22 against unconvincing Tubingen, by 44 at Brose. Last year, Braunschweig celebrated at home against Merlins by 16, and I expect something similar today. The away team struggle against stronger teams. Braunschweig are a much more organized team, and their motivation should be at a high level. Details

It might seem weird to play an under at a team that hit 100 points in the last round and averages 80-ak points. There are a few reasons why I think Giessen will not have a productive game today. They hit 100 points against Craisheim (the worst defense in the league) and played Wurzburg and Hagen and Brose (all offense-oriented) at high numbers. They were limited to 65 home against Ludwigsburg and to 71 against Alba. They are to face the top defense lately today. Bremerhaven have not conceded over 78 points this season. They concede 72 on average, 69,3 away. They conceded only 70in Bonn against the extra-fast Telekom and 72 against Tubingen and 66 against Ludwisburg in the last round. They lost to Giessen easily after conceding less than 80. But comparing this Bremerhaven and the one from back then is tough. Coach Muli is defense-oritned and so is his team now. I expect Giessen to struggle today, esecially because they don't have two key players that set up the pace - Palm and DiLeo (injuries). Details

Relatively low margin, but when we look at Lleid and Prat's offensive efficiency, their game style and importance of the game, it pays off, in my opinion, to bet on under for moderate stakes. With Navarro, these are the teams marked by the most defensively oriented basketball in the League. Lleida still haven't earned a win, their record is 0-5, they score only 69 points on average. So far they haven't been as great defensively as it was expected, but they faced mostly offensively oriented teams (Palma, Castello, Breogan) while they were left under today's margin against Burgos and Huesca. Prat won one game so far, when they limited Caceres to 62 points. The away team are also at an average of 69 points, in the last three rounds they haven't played a match at a number of points higher than 139. They played at that much points against very fast Barcelona B. These two teams faced each other twice in the pre-season, Lleida won the first one 59-47, Prat won the second one 80-68. Considering the current situation these teams are in, and the fact that this is a Catalonian derby, I expect defense to be dominant once again. These are teams that play slow, and another problem for Lleida is injury of their main play Simeone who is very important for offense. Details

The set margin is in accordance with and Brussels' average this season, but when such offensively oriented and powerful teams face each other, anything under170 points is worth considering. Both Okapi and Brussels manage best in the run and gun pace, they prefer short attacks, they don't have true centers but mobile fives. In the first five rounds, Okapi faced a team similar to Brussels only once - against Antwerp and the game went over 180 points. Their other opponents were mostly the best defensively oriented teams in Belgium (Oostende 168 points, Mons 162). Brussels went against Mons to 179 points, and against Oostende around today's margin. In their three head-to-head clashes so far when Okapi were the home team, the games always went over 170 points. The home team would impose their pace, and Brussels would accept that. I expect something similar today as well. Details

Polipharma should be a run-and-gun team in theory. They are run but they lack gun. They force faster pace but shooting numbers are not good which resulted in three defeats, two to very poor teams. They are now to face Stelmet, the top Polish team with the best defense. The home team have poor shooting and a poor center line. They made one change to the pant three days ago but that doesn't sound like something that could make the difference. Stelmet recorded three wins in the Polish championship so far but lost all three in Euroleague. Their next EL test is on Friday, which is why I think they will be focused today, especially because they let go in the last game. Coach Filipovski won't allow that to happen again. Besides, Stelmet beat Polpharma by at least 25 points in the last two seasons (by 37 and 28 last year). I daresay the difference in quality is even better now. Polpharma are among the 2-3 worst teams in the league and Stelmet have to win if they put up any kind of a decent performance. Details

Oldenburg didn't show much this season, far from what they looked like last season. Their defense is especially lacking, allowing 83 points in the Bundesliga, and they never conceded under 80 in nine matches of the current season. They lost to Bilbao by 34 points in the Eurocup on Tuesday, and didn't do well against Brose and Trent before that. They barely beat the weak Bayreuth in the home match in Bundesliga, and had luck beating Frankfurt. Braunschweig beat Bayreuth in an away match by 40+, and they kept up all right against Berlin Alba. Last week, they beat the defensively decent Bremerhaven in an away match. Braunschweig stayed under this margin only against Alba and Brose in the first five rounds, and went over 90 against the defensively strong Ludwigsburg. Oldenburg's weaknesses are obvious, especially in their backcourt, and Braunschweig have great players for those positions. Details

Mons and Spirou will play another classic Belgian duel, a regional derby where everyone play their best. They faced each other four times in the championship last season, each won twice, and the total points never went over 142, they mostly stayed very low under 140. Just looking at the numbers, Mons and Spirou have an average of 160 points per match. Still, taking a better look, it's obvious they got those numbers while playing offensively oriented teams. Mons played a match at 156 points against Willebroek, a bit over 160 against Okapi, and much more over against Brussels. All three of those teams are run-and-gun teams. Spirou stayed under this margin against Okapi and Liege, but boosted their numbers against Limburg and Leuven. What's more important is that Mons and Spirou played a preseason match with 68-68 in the regular game, that the coaches like Iani Stas and Defraigne always base everything on the firm defense. I doubt the margin will be this high in the duels between Spirou and Mons later in the season, so we should use this one. Details

Slask weren't impressive so far, especially not offensively. They score about 70 points per match, and it's obvious that the team that's been changed since the last season hasn't found its chemistry yet. They played their last duel on Thursday, so only had about 40 hours to get rest and get ready, something they're not used to. They scored 71 points against Šiauliai two days ago, and the coach Uvalin described his team's game as disastrous. They'll face Kutno today, another team with bad offensive game, but they look very good defensively. They conceded 63 points per match in the first three rounds, but they went to overtime against Koszalin in the last round. Kutno might be the best team of the league in rebounds, they don't let their opponents get too many offensive rebounds, which means no points from long offenses or counter attacks. Considering Slask's form and the guests' game style, I expect the home team to have lots of problems today. Details

Logrono will host a duel between two teams who left a really good impression in the Spanish second league so far, especially because of their offensive basketball which is a joy to watch. Clavijo have the best offense with 93 points per match, and their matches end at 173 points. So, the coach Perez is pushing them to play as fast as they can because they don't have dominating centers to use for 5-on-5 game. Barcelona B aren't such a team, either. They score about 80 points, and concede only a bit less. Their last match against Prat ruined their numbers a little bit, but they played against a defensively oriented team, and that was a regional Catalonian derby. Barca went over this margin in the other three matches. They're similar to Clavijo since they've got a new coach Julbe, their offenses are shorter and they like running. Considering both teams have a similar style, we can expect a match where offenses will dominate, where both teams will score close to 70 points from the floor (their average this season), and that makes me think this match will end at 160+ points. Details

Classic story in which Bayern awaits a team that can hardly compete with them for a longer period of time and it's hard to expect that the Bavarians will keep the same intensity throughout all 40 minutes. Bayern have been showing two different sides of themselves in the national championship and Euroleague. They are more serious and defensively stronger in Europe, while it seems that they are only doing what they have to do in Bundesliga. They played their last three league games at 179, 175 and 176 points. Bayreuth are coming to Munich with statements that they have nothing to lose, that this is their easiest game of the season. They away team already probed that they can play well offensively with such attitude. They lost 11-97 in Berlin against Alba, at Oldenburg 82-87. Bayreuth are one of those Americanized teams that forces fast pace, but they are quite 'soft' in defense, they concede 90 points on average, pretty much the same as the Bavarians score. Last year they lost 75-102 in Munich, 70-103 two seasons ago, and in my opinion, it 's worth to bet on over on the set margin for a moderate stake. Details

Gottingen's problems from the start of the season don't seem to have an end. Their top point guard Perry still hasn't even had a debut, they let defender Minard go recently (because of a major injury), and point Jones, the team just before the Brose game to do brilliantly, didn't get a deal because Gottingen couldn't afford him. That resulted in the home team recording three tough defeats and beat only Mittledutscher, who are without a win this season. They lot to Tubingen by 40 points and Tubingen then got crushed to Frankfurt last round. The visitors have problems of their own but still managed to win 2 games. They lost to Oldenburg and Wurtzburg in nerve-wrecking games. The defensive end is Oldenburg's strength, especially at back positions. There is no doubt the home team will have a tough time today. Gottingen went over 63 points only against MItteldeutscher. Defensively, things are not good as they allowed the opponents 85 or more points. Frankfurt are much better. especially in defense, and have more physical power I think they are much heavier favorites than the odds suggest here. Details