Zalgiris Kaunas
Zalgiris Kaunas has been playing in a really choppy way this season: after a great start to the season and at one point being in 1st place in the standings, Zalgiris fell into a "hole", where they lost 6 games in a row. However, after the away game against Panathinaikos, which Zalgiris won 81-69, Zalgiris seems to have regained its confidence and a 3-game winning streak followed immediately afterwards. Not only that, but Zalgiris has won 4 games in a row, but the Kaunas club averaged 17 points. A 92-73 win over Baskonia, a 99-62 victory over Istanbul Fenerbahçe and a last-second, last-second win over Bayern, 4th in the standings, made it the biggest win in history.
The most pleasing aspects of Zalgiris are the adaptation of Schiller and the leadership of Grigonis. Considering that this is the Austrian's first season as a head coach in European basketball, Schiler doesn't waste any time, and with every game we can see new variations of combinations and timely rotations of players. There is no point in expanding on Marius Grigonis' season, because everybody can see the level of player he is becoming, and it is to be expected that Marius will stay in Kaunas until the end of his contract (2022).
Zalgiris currently has 9 wins and 7 losses, so a win in Berlin would help them stay in the fight for a spot among the top 8 teams in the Euroleague, given that this game will be followed by games against much more capable teams. All Zalgiris players are ready for the game and there are no injuries or other circumstances that would prevent anyone from playing.
Berlin Alba
Alba Berlin is the team that was predicted to finish last in the standings before the season. However, the team is currently in 13th place with 6 wins and 9 losses. Alba's most surprising performances include a 93-88 away win over CSKA Moscow, one of the Euroleague favourites, an 89-63 thrashing of Istanbul Fenerbahce and a 100-92 away win over Valencia, who are 5th in the standings. However, these victories were followed by 2 consecutive defeats by crushing margins: a 69-92 loss to Panathinaikos Athens and a 62-91 defeat to Real Madrid.
Berlin is one of the worst defending teams in the whole league, and when it comes to the strength under the basket, the opposing front line usually plays a good game against Alba. Alba's main centre is 205 cm. Thieman, who is not only on the defensive end, but also on the shooting end this season (three-pointers ~24%, two-pointers ~48%). Key players for Alba are L. Sikma and P. Siva. Sikma is a great all-around player who can not only score points, but also distribute passes to his teammates and fight for rebounds. Meanwhile, Siva is a force on offense and has already shown this season that he can single-handedly drag his team to victory and close out games.
Forecast
In many cases, one would expect a team with a losing streak to rehabilitate and break it on home court. However, the situation is a bit different in this match, as the full Alba rotation is not clear due to the number of injured players and the head coach Reneses will be replaced by an assistant coach. Zalgiris has a great rhythm, plays efficient and eye-catching basketball and has all the chances to extend the winning streak and make the new year a bit more fun for everyone.
Zalgiris -4,5, 1,9 kof., betsafe
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