The End is Near

Not much to tell about Alba´s game last night. The atmosphere was peaceful, relative, as the real important game for the germans took place 4,000 kilometers away, near the cost of africa. Marco Baldi should send a nice bouquet to Villereurbanne. The french heroic comeback and victory assured that Alba would avoid meeting Zenith St. Petersburg in the top 16.

As I wrote last time, finishing 3rd is actually better than finishing 2nd. Instead of Bayern, St. Petersburg and Turin, the german capital will host Darussafaka, Galatasaray and Gran Canaria. Not an easy group, but more possible to qualify from than the Bayern´s one. But then again, a month ago nobody thought the albatrosses would reach the top 16 so fragile. They lost at least once to all other three teams who qualified for the next round. And that effects self confidence.

So what are Alba´s chances to qualify from the top 16? The good news Alba can take from this round is their character. They have a bunch of players who like each other, and are willing to give it all for the team. Last night, although there was nothing to play for, the players from the capital city showed devotion to victory. It was not an importnt game nor a difficult one, but it was on of those games which can be a charcter test. Alba passed it.

Professionally though, there are bad news. As I wrote over and over, the german team is having difficulties defending the pick´n´roll. Even yesterday, against inferior Bilbao, Alba did not guard it well. Why do I say it, even though the spanish - sorry, basque - team struggled to reach 68 points? Let´s take a look at the statistics. The basques had a terrible 13-19 assists-turnovers ratio. On the other hand, Bilbao, one of the weakest teams of the Eurocup, scored 59% (19/32) from the two. Therefore: in those rare moments when they managed to keep the ball and to reach the paint, it usually ended up with a two. Bilbao just could not translate it to more points, mostly becuse their guards are not good or smart enough for this level.

Aito´s team guarding aggresively and actively looking for a steal. When it happens, it is a fast break with easy lay up or a dunk and everybody in the Mercedes-Benz-Arena is singing halleluja. When not, they depend on the quality of the opposing guards and on of their ball movement speed. Unfortunatley, both turkish teams present a talented back line.

Spencer Butterfield will miss at least the first half of the top 16. More bad news. But perhaps without him, Alba can show a tighter rotation (I am sorry guys, but Bennet Hundt should not be allowed to play in this level) and avoid Butterfield´s defensive burden. One thing is sure - it will be interesting when Galatasaray will come to town.

#AlbaBerlin #Eurocup #BilbaoBasket