betprepare.com

Erceg is back, Arroyo will probably return as well

The clash of these teams before the season started was the last Cup game, with elimination at stake for Usak, but Galata won72-67. Jawai, Gordon, and Dağli played back then. This team is a bit different, but this should still be a hard and not too efficient game.

Usak continue with great games with each new round. They are at the very top with a 8-3 score, leading ahead of Fener and Besiktas and heading to the playoff. They are meeting the defending champions in a great atmosphere after returning from Konya with a +37 win. Selcuk managed to parry them in the first half (35-39), but the second half was a rare feat of demolition. It is not every day that a team wins a half by 59-26, but they only took advantage of the complete collapse among the home team, who were also missing De Vries, an important player for them.

-Results can be deceiving, Selcuk are a good team, especially on the offense. We scored a valuable victory, and any away win is even more valuable. Congratulations to my players on keeping discipline until the end. I think we still should not be talking about the playoff, although we are delighted by the performance we've had so far- said coach Ozan Bulkaz.

-We've had to compensate for the home loss vs Banvit- added Mehmet Emre Boztepe.

- We knew the rivals were having a hard time, we prepared well for the game the week before and scored a well deserved win by playing a good game.

The brilliant performance allowed the coach to rest their main players, which is rather important when one remembers they're playing an important game in three days. Coach Holman needed only 28 minutes to score an impressive 19 points and 18 rebounds. Through solid, quality defense they resolved the game in the second half, allowing the opponents only 26 points. Today they will be meeting the toughest team of the league - Ataman's Galatasaray.

Galatasaray have their own problems in turn. In the irrelevant last game of the Euroleague first stage in Munich, along with other already known absences, Carlos Arroyo was missing as well. He did not appear on Sunday vs Trabzon either, but coach Ataman cleared the mystery, informing the media it was just a case of the flu.

- He said he was not feeling well, but I believe he will appear vs Usak, it was nothing serious- said Ataman calmly after a 87-81 victory, in which they allowed their opponents 30 points in the second half (17-30) and 48 in the first part.

- We played a more aggressive defense in the second half, and did better on offense. Ender, Hairston and Sinan did well, six of our players scored double digits and we managed to win.

Sinan
Güler (14p) and Ender Arslan (19p, 4a) carried the perimeter line, replacing Arroyo. Unlike the Munich game, Mensah-Bonsu played, adding another 12 points and 6 rebounds. Another important piece of news is the return of Zoran Erceg, with another 12 points. He played a little over 20 minutes and seemed to be doing OK. Macvan also scored 12, with Galata shooting an impressive 10/15 for three points.

They are familiar with today's opponents, as they played an away game vs Usak before the season started. Their clash was the last Cup game, elimination was at stake for Usak, but Galata won72-67. Jawai, Gordon, and Dağli played back then. This team is a bit different, but this should still be interesting, defense heavy game. Back then the match ended at 139 points, with 25:26 in the last quarter. The clash of Mensah-Bonsu and Holman will be particularly interesting, as the Brit is rather inferior to many centers in height. Holman is only 2cm higher however, and this will be an important matchup. Galata had a lot of problems with Carter (22 points) in that Cup match, Akyol and Hairston, who did not play then, will have to be very careful.

These two teams are at the very top of the league in their defensive performance, and it is no wonder that their first game this season, the Cup one that also took place in Usak, ended with Galata winning 72-67. Of that, the free throw rich last quarter netted a total of 51 points. Usak have four unders to a 147.5 margin in their last five games. Galata can certainly answer in kind to a tough defensive match, and I am sure they will not repeat the Trabzon incident a few days ago when they allowed 30 points in the second period, briefly losing control of the game. They managed to get things back in order through defense in the second half. At the same time, Usak don't have the individual quality of Trabzon with Penney and Stoll, they play team basketball, disciplined and organized. In those conditions, I see this as a 140 point match...