What about the next mach against Barca in Euroleague

GAME PREVIEW

FC Barcelona Regal

vs.

Zalgiris Kaunas

preview

Local time: 20:45 TV CET: 20:45

Head Coaches
PASCUAL, XAVIER F.C. Barcelona Regal head coach "This is the key game of the Top 16, among the most important we have ever played in Palaublaugrana. This could open the doors of optimism for us. With four victories, you can only be eliminated by point difference. Zalgiris could have won either of its first two games. They've had a strange season, with a change of head coach, but now they are very solid. They are more disciplined, playing at a similar level as the other teams in our group. It's a team that is difficult and I am sure they will show it this week. As for injuries, Pete Mickeal is practically recovered. He trained as normal on Tuesday with the rest of the team. I am sure he will play. Juan Carlos Navarro practiced at a slower pace as compared with his teammates. We'll see how his situation evolves, but we're optimistic he'll play."	TRIFUNOVIC, ALEKSANDAR Zalgiris Kaunas head coach "I already said few times this season that FC Barcelona Regal and CSKA Moscow are the strongest contenders for the Euroleague title. Coach Pascual has many options during the game because he can choose from a wide range of players. Most of them are versatile and can be used differently in each game. I don’t think we could lack motivation playing against such a strong opponent, but we need to raise our concentration level for all 40 minutes. Also we need to focus on details we are preparing for this game and stick to the game plan."
Players
LORBEK, ERAZEM F.C. Barcelona Regal forward "It will be a very tough game. Zalgiris is playing very well and has good players at all positions. This year they have a stronger team than in recent years. It's a big game, but we are prepared for it and we'll try to get the win."	JANKUNAS, PAULIUS Zalgiris Kaunas forward "Of course, it would be much better to go to Barcelona with two wins in our pocket, but it is what it is. Anyway, nothing is lost yet. It is tougher situation for us now, but we need to fight, to be concentrated and we still can achieve good things. FC Regal Barcelona is one of the best teams in Europe and they don’t have many weaknesses. Even if we lost two games in the Top 16 – both games we failed only in last minutes or seconds. We need to learn from it and to play better in the clutch time. It will be hard in Barcelona if Marko Popovic is sidelined, but other players will have to step up and to make the shots for him."

RECORDS 2-0, Group H Regular season 2011-12 0-2, Group H 9-1, First Group D Regular season 2011-12 4-6, Fourth Group B PROBABLE STARTERS Marcelinho Huertas Guard Mantas Kalnietis Juan Carlos Navarro Guard Vytenis Lipkevicius Pete Mickeal Forward Sonny Weems Erazem Lorbek Forward Paulius Jankunas Kosta Perovic Center Robertas Javtokas THE STAKES Two Turkish Airlines Euroleague powerhouses go face to face in a pivotal contest in Top 16 Group H, as FC Barcelona Regal welcomes Zalgiris Kaunas on Thursday. Both teams have faced each other 15 times and none was more important then the first one, when Barcelona edged Zalgiris in the 1985 Cup Winners' Cup final. Barcelona has a 6-1 home record against Zalgiris, whose only win at Palau Blaugrana came in the 2004-05 season. The hosts have the best defense in the competition (59.6 ppg.) and only Montepaschi Siena has been able to score more than 70 points against them. Zalgiris leads the 2011-12 Euroleague in fouls committed (290). INJURIES Zalgiris may be without Marko Popovic, who missed a domestic game this weekend due to a hamstring injury. The Lithuanian champs released Reeves Nelson. Juan Carlos Navarro, Pete Mickeal and Boni Ndong sat out in a Spanish League game on Sunday but all are probable on Thursday. THE TAKE Both teams have deep frontlines and the battle in the paint promises to be the biggest key to this game. Barcelona's main frontcourt reference is Erazem Lorbek, who comes off a very good game against Maccabi. Kosta Perovic offers size and post moves, Boni Ndong and Fran Vazquez are great rebounders, shot blockers and mid-range shooters, while C.J. Wallace can open the floor with his outside jumper. Perovic and Ndong may see extended playing time against shot-blocking ace Robertas Javtokas and physical big man Milovan Rakovic. Zalgiris has very good offensive rebounders in Paulius Jankunas and Tadas Klimavicius, so boxing out will be critical for the hosts. Jankunas must try to use his mid-range shots against Vazquez, the Euroleague's all-time shot blocking leader. Of course, Zalgiris must find the way to stop Navarro, who rarely has a bad game against the Lithuanian powerhouse. His records in scoring (32) and performance index ranking (35) came against Zalgiris. Navarro must find his magic against Tomas Delininkaitis and Vytenis Lipkevicius, who will see extended playing time if Popovic doesn't travel. Chuck Eidson and Pete Mickeal can be a factor at the wings. Both must try to slow down Sonny Weems, whose athleticism and one-on-one skills can impact the outcome of a game. Mantas Kalnietis has to use his physical skills, but he won't have it easy against defensive stopper Victor Sada. Marcelinho Huertas must step up against DeJuan Collins, who has scored in double digits in both Top 16 games so far. Game notes, FC Barcelona Regal   Game notes, Zalgiris Kaunas Barcelona has the best defense in the Euroleague this season by allowing only 59.7 points per game. Barcelona commits and draws fewer fouls than any other Top 16 team with just 18.6 fouls committed and 19.3 fouls drawn per night. Barcelona commits fewer turnovers than any other team in the Euroleague with just 10.8 per game. Erazem Lorbek is ranked 11th on the Euroleague’s career blocked shots list with 99 rejections, just one behind Maceo Baston to enter the Top 10. Juan Carlos Navarro needs 7 more fouls drawn to become only the third player in Euroleague history to draw 800 fouls. He remains a distance from Marcus Brown in second place with 876. Barca has won nine games in a row against Zalgiris. Barca won the 1985 Saporta Cup with a 77-73 win over Zalgiris in the title game. Zalgiris has the worst defense in the Top 16 by allowing 81.3 points per game. Zalgiris has committed more fouls than any other Top 16 team with 24.2 per game. Marko Popovic has made at least 1 three-pointer in 34 straight Euroleague appearances. His last Euroleague game without a triple came in November 2006 with Zalgiris at home against CSKA. The only win ever registered by Zalgiris over Barca came in the 2004-05 season when Zalgiris shocked with a 98-102 road win. Dainius Salenga had 16 points and 8 assists and Jankunas played as well, but didn't score. Salenga was a teammate of Fran Vasquez in Girona during the 2005-06 season and with Victor Sada during the 2006-07 season. DeJuan Collins has made 9 consecutive free throws in Euroleague action. REFEREES Crew Chief Referee Umpire Guerrino Cerebuch Italy Tolga Sahin Italy Damir Javor Slovenia Barcelona Regal Min Pts 2FG M-A 3FG M-A FT M-A Rebounds As St To Blocks Fouls Rkg O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv Totals 2400:00 929 272/506 82/234 139/181 118 308 426 194 89 130 49 20 223 232 1118 Average 200:00 77.41 53.8% 35% 76.8% 9.83 25.66 35.5 16.16 7.41 10.83 4.08 1.66 18.58 19.33 93.16 Totals 2425:00 917 246/493 80/230 185/260 122 286 408 157 69 170 20 33 290 270 876 Average 202:05 76.41 49.9% 34.8% 71.2% 10.16 23.83 34 13.08 5.75 14.16 1.66 2.75 24.16 22.5 73 Zalgiris Kaunas Monday, January 30, 2012 Euroleague.net

Stats Comparisions: Teams and players

Team Aver.			Team Leaders	Head-to-Head			Team Leaders			Team Aver.
77.4	Pts.		LORBEK, ERAZEM	14.8	Pts.	15.9	WEEMS, SONNY		Pts.	76.4
53.75 %	2FG%		VAZQUEZ, FRAN	69.44 %	2FG%	87.50 %	KUZMINSKAS, MINDAUGAS		2FG%	49.90 %
35.04 %	3FG%		MICKEAL, PETE	53.33 %	3FG%	40.54 %	WEEMS, SONNY		3FG%	34.78 %
35.5	Rebounds		LORBEK, ERAZEM	4.9	Rebounds	5.6	JANKUNAS, PAULIUS		Rebounds	34.0
16.2	Assist.		HUERTAS, MARCELINHO	4.4	Assist.	3.8	KALNIETIS, MANTAS		Assist.	13.1