In Belgrade, at Stark Arena, it is time for the Euroleague Final Four. In the first semifinal, Olympiacos will face reigning champions Anadolu Efes.
They split the regular season series (1-1). However, this game is, as every Final Four game, different than any other.
For Efes, Krunoslav Simon (averaging 6.9 points this season) will miss the Final Four due to a knee injury. Head coach Ergin Ataman told reporters that “this will be a tough game and for us it will be important to improve the game tempo and find baskets in the open court”.
They allowed only 64 points per game in their playoff series against Armani Milano. In the semifinal, the Turkish side has to contain the scoring ability of Olympiacos’ players, like Sasha Vezenkov and Tyler Dorsey.
Therefore, defense will be the key for Efes on Thursday, despite Vasilije Micic and Shane Larkin having a more offensive approach in their game.
For its part, Olympiacos will try to win in order to reach the Championship Game after five years. EuroLeague Coach of the Year Georgios Bartzokas noted that “we want to do what we do all year and if we have 1-2 players on a good day, even better.”
At Stark Arena, the “Reds” will feel like they are competing at their own home court, due to the large Greek and Serbian crowd that is expected.
Final Four games are really tough to pick a winner. Therefore, for this semifinal, my betting predictions will be all about players’ performances.
I think Kostas Sloukas will record more than 5 assists (odds at 2.37). The star guard of Olympiacos is averaging 4.9 assists this season and has the ability to do so in his eighth Final Four appearance.
My second betting prediction is Vasilije Micic to record more than 28 points, rebounds and assists in total (odds at 2.37).
The regular season’s top scorer is averaging 18.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4 assists this year (a total of 27.3). My opinion is that he will do so in suh a significant game.
Value bets
Kostas Sloukas over 5.5 assists (2.37)
Vasilije Micic over 28.5 points, rebounds and assists (2.37)
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