Galatasaray Medical Park host Olympiacos on Thursday in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Top 16 for the first time since 1960.
With both teams looking for their first win in the Top 16 Group E, Galatasaray Medical Park hosts Olympiacos on Thursday in what promises to be an outstanding basketball atmosphere at Abdi Ipecki Sports Hall.
This is the first meeting between Galatasaray and Olympiacos since 1960, when Galatasaray swept a two-game series against the Reds in the European Cup's first qualifying round.
More than a half-century later, they cross paths again, this time in the biggest scenario possible. It will also be a special game for Galatasaray combo guard Jamon Gordon, who faces his former team for the first time. Expect plenty of drama and a passionate crowd.
Olympiacos has 15 players on its roster and three will be left out of each game. Last week, Marko Keselj, Dimitrios Katsivelis and Kalin Lucas were discarded. Galatasaray signed Boris Savovic, who has yet to make an appearance. Galatasaray sat Tutku Acik and Sertac Sanli last week to meet roster requirements.
Galatasaray will improve its chances to win the game if it manages to slow Vassilis Spanoulis, whose experience, driving skills and deep range make him Olympiacos' unquestionable leader. Spanoulis will test his scoring skills against Jaka Lakovic, the Euroleague's all-time third-best scorer.
Jamon Gordon will probably see extended playing time against Spanoulis due to his defensive skills and aggressiveness. If Acik continues unavailable, Ender Arslan exploit his experience against Olympiacos' young point guards Kostas Sloukas and Evangelos Mantzaris. Acie Law, who played in the fourth quarter against CSKA last week, will probably see more playing time in head coach Dusan Ivkovic's rotation.
Huseyin Koksal and Josh Shipp will alternate at both wings. Shipp must use his size and power against Kostas Papanikolaou, a hard-to-guard small forward with range and driving skills. Meanwhile, Koksal must be aggressive against sharp shooter and three-point expert Martynas Gecevicius.
But the battle in the paint will be the biggest key to this game. Galatasaray will use Preston Shumpert or Darius Songaila at power forward to spread the floor against Pero Antic, whose size and rebounding skills could make the difference in this game.
Shumpert faces a critical match-up against Georgios Printezis, whose speed and talent are tough on any defender. Furkan Aldemir and Luksa Andric will have to do battle under the baskets with Joey Dorsey and Andreas Glyniadakis.
Controlling the defensive board and finding open shots will be critical for both teams.
