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Trabzon lost El-Amin half way through the year

The first play and one of the most important players hurt the Achilles tendon and has to miss out the rest of the season. The role of the first play on the Cup last week was done by Tutku Acik, a valuable reinforcement from Besiktas

Our preview of the Turkish league and each of the teams showed all the changes that happened in TED Kolejliler, Ankara club, this summer. They were in the play-offs the last season. Our expectations were confirmed last week in Mersino, where they played against Efes, Mersina and Turk Telekom fighting for the quarterfinals of the Cup. Initial defeat from Efes was to be expected, and the key game was against Mersino the following day. Only a win could leave them in for the fight for the last two positions that take them further. After three quarters, they took over the reins, with 63-55, but in the last quarter, there was an unexpected decline. They lost the final quarter 25-11, and lost their chance a day before the game against the city rival Turk Telekom. Since Turk Telekom already secured passing through, that win shouldn't really be counted on anyway. 

It's important to notice that Vladimir Golubovic played at a high level through all of the three games. He came as a substitution for Jova Stanojevic, one of the key players from the last season. He was the first shooter and the first jumper of the team (41+18) in those three games. He was followed by the back Clay Tucker (34+10+12), who also had 2/12 three pointer shots in the three games. Kristaps Valters came as a reinforcement from Fuenlabrada, but he didn't find his place or played his best yet.

A very important thing could be concluded from those games. This is a completely different team than the last year when shooter Kirk Penney played. He'll wear Trabzon's shirt today. They rely on the three points shoot far less now, and had 19 shots per game in the last three games.

- Looking back at the last season, we played offensively. Now, we have to go defense. It's not simple to get used to it, and we need time. A demanding season is ahead of us, but when we switch to the new system in our minds, I believe we'll do some good things - coach Ercument Sunter announced before the season started. If you think about it, Efes, Turk Telekom or Mersin, none of the three scored over 80 points, so you could say there's some progress in their game.

There's no info about injuries or absences. They played the whole Cup, and it's expected that everyone will play in the league premiere. Trabzon, a club new to the league, will be the opponent. However, they're definitely not new when it comes to their players. They had enough money this summer, so they brought respectable players, including the amazing shooter Penney, wing Cooley, Lithuanian Latelynas, center Kay Peker... (more info in the preview). 
The goal is to be in the play-offs, and those high ambitions were confirmed in the Cup. They managed to go on in Gaziantep, in the most difficult of the four groups. They started with a defeat from Banvit 85-81, then won the away game 88-83, even though they were losing with 10 difference in the half-time. They played top match in the third round, conquering Karsiyaka 89-79. Karsiyaka already secured their pass through before that game, so they might have been a bit more relaxed in that game, but it doesn't reduce the importance of the Trabzon's efficiency.

Unfortunately, a very important injury took place on that tournament, and it could have some far reaching consequences. Khalid El-Amin, ex Cibona player who took Trabzon to the first league, injured Achilles tendon, and he'll be out for six months. Start play position was done great by Tutku Acik against Gazientep (El-Amin played for 14 minutes). Penney (22p, 6/10 three pointers), and the center Kaya Peker (21p, 10/14 two pointers) took the lead against Karsiyaka.

- Passing the Cup group motivated us even further. Nobody should doubt our aggressiveness at the beginning of the league, and we have no doubts about fans supporting us the whole time - coach Hasan Ozmeric said. It's well known that Trabzon, at least when it comes to football, is the biggest club outside Istanbul, and it remains to be seen how well basketball will fare. 

We had good performances both in the pre-season and the Cup, but we didn't reach the level of defense we wanted. When we find the solution, our defense will be better. TED Ankara is a good team, with a good roster, but we want to open up with a win - Trabzon coach announced.

They'll definitely be looking for El-Amin's substitution, and Tutku Acik who came from Besiktas will be the first play today.

TED were powerful in offense last year, but this year they want to orient on defense. You can read how the coach is thinking and about the change of their game style in the preview. If you check the scores of their 8 preseason matches listed in the competition preview and the club preview, plus the three Cup matches, you will notice that they never went over this margin. Trabzon is something entirely different, Penny joined them from TED, they are playing fast, with a lot of shots. But, they are a bit weakened after they lost their play maker El-Amin for 6 months, and I assume that will have an effect on their game. That is why it might be worth trying to go under on this high margin. We're betting at Sportingbet who don't take the extra time into consideration.