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On Olympiacos Euroleague championship: From crises emerge heroes +++ Austrian championship: Monster double-double, 21-point lead not enough as Dukes steal Game One +++ Taxi ride in the aftermath: Three Russians, a Turkish driver and the question why +++ Live chat: CSKA Moscow vs. Olympiacos for 2012 Euroleague championship +++ Live chat: Panathinaikos vs. FC Barcelona in Euroleague 2012 third-place game +++ NIJT wrap: Lietuvos Rytas takes title; plus, BiE’s nine European (and one Chinese) prospects to watch +++ Žalgiris Kaunas dance team (attempts to) Cheer Up Final Four fans +++ Kirilenko on playing for Utah Jazz, CSKA Moscow: “It’s hard to compare” +++ Jonas Kazlauskas vs. Dusan Ivkovic: Euroleague history will be made +++ D-Will meets with Prokhorov in Istanbul, snaps in-game pic of Kirilenko +++
Jan
1

Sporting Bet lines and odds for Euroleague week 10 matchups

What’s at stake on the final Wednesday night of the Euroleague 2009-10 regular season? Some bragging rights and potentially a couple of playoff spots. The win-and-in scenario tonight belongs to Lietuvos Rytas, a big six-point favorite at home against Unicaja.

AJ Milano, who’s hosting Real Madrid and is nevertheless a five-point underdog, also advances to Final 16 play with a win. Group rival Asseco Prokom, another homecourt five-point ‘dog – here’s to thinking the bookmakers don’t think much of Milano and Prokom under pressure this season, eh? – gets in with the upset victory and Milano loss.

With Real Madrid playing for top seed, however, and Khimki locked in to its no. 3 spot, figure Milano not to make up the five-point gap while Prokom at least keeps it close while likewise covering the pointspread. (Whether the latter manages to squeak into the Final 16 is another matter altogether…)

Pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s Euroleague games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet, run below the break.

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Jan
0

Bet365 lines and odds for Euroleague week nine matchups

What’s at stake in Euroleague play tonight? A couple of Top 16 spots at least with one win-and-in scenario. Plus, there’s a bit of history as Union Olimpija hosts CSKA Moscow in a game the official Euroleague press calls “what is likely [Olimpija’s] last Euroleague game ever at Tivoli Arena.”

According to Ball in Europe sponsor Bet 365, the game to watch may be Olympiacos at Efes Pilsen, with the home team a 1.5-point underdog; Efes is attempting to prevent a three-Euroleague game losing streak and crawl its way into fourth place, keeping alive its Top 16 hopes for another season.

Meanwhile, the beneficiary of the Panathinaikos victory over Asseco Prokom last night may well be today’s win-and-in team, AJ Milano. To say that Milano’s porous defense – they’ve managed to hold a Euroleague opponent to under 68 points just once this season – has been disappointing would be an understatement but makes for great high-scoring viewing if you’re not a fan. The Italians will be looking to salvage their hopes for advancement while avenging their week three loss to Khimki: Surely this team is too talented not to cover that pointspread of nine against a team that’s already clinched a Top 16 spot. Plus, that 146.5 line at the bookmakers will be toast. Go over.

Tonight’s pointspreads and over/under lines, as provided byBall in Europe sponsor Bet 365, are as follows.

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Jan
0

SportingBet lines and odds for Euroleague week nine matchups

And Euroleague action is back for week nine action. Tonight’s slate of games is fit to make the playoff picture clearer. Lietuvos Rytas is in with a win, whereas a Khimki win or an Asseco Prokom loss gets the Moscow region team into the final 16.

According to the bookmakers, the marquee game to watch tonight amidst a lot of mismatches is clearly the game at Belgrade. The inconsistent Lietuvos Rytas can thank its current 1-3 run for its status as a five-point underdog at Partizan, and a double-digit loss would hardly be surprising for the Lithuanians at Pionir, where the black-and-white haven’t lost this season since opening day.

Also a must for viewing and tempting for punting is the Khimki-AJ Milano matchup. To say that Milano’s porous defense – they’ve managed to hold a Euroleague opponent to under 68 points just once this season – has been disappointing would be an understatement but makes for great high-scoring viewing if you’re not a fan. The Italians will be looking to salvage their hopes for advancement while avenging their week three loss to Khimki: Surely this team is too talented not to cover that pointspread of nine and that 146.5 will be toast. Go over.

Pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s Euroleague games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet, run below the break.

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Dec
0

SportingBet lines and odds for Euroleague week eight matchups

Another Thursday, another round of Euroleague lines for your perusal. First thought? “Whoa, Partizan is favored by just three at Orleans?” Second thought: “And that’s the closest game on the slate, as the ‘book sees it?” Whoa.

Pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet, run below the break.

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Dec
0

SportingBet lines and odds for Euroleague week seven matchups

A great slate of games on tap tonight as Euroleague week seven wraps up. Unicaja, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Montepaschi Siena look to clinch a Top 16 spot, while Cibona Zagreb hopes to stave off elimination and things in Group B are destined to get knottier. The bookmakers’ lines on the games forecast at least two nail-biters, plus a third that should be included, in BallinEurope’s opinion.

The pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet, follow below the break.

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Dec
0

Bet365 lines and odds for Euroleague week seven matchups

It’s do-or-die time in Euroleague this week. In tonight’s games, subplots include must-win games to avoid mathematical elimination from the postseason for Asvel Basket and Entente Orleanaise; possible second round-clinching wins from Panathinaikos, Montepaschi Siena and probably Unicaja; and the AJ Milano-EWE Baskets Oldenburg game in which the loser sees its advancement opportunities dwindle.

The lines and odds for tonight’s games, as provided by Ball in Europe sponsor Bet 365 follow below the break.
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Dec
0

SportingBet lines and odds for Euroleague week six matchups

Taking a brief look at the professional prognostication for tonight’s Euroleague games and, whoa, do the bookmakers really have Asvel Baskets and Zalgiris Kaunas as the game to watch tonight? Crazy, though a bit understandable when one considers the pointspreads given in three prospective David-and-Goliath matchups (AJ Milano at Panathinaikos, Cibona at Montepaschi Siena, Fenerbahce at Barcelona).

The pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s Euroleague games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet are as follows.

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Dec
0

Bet365 lines and odds for Euroleague week six matchups

Euroleague presents the slightly shorter slate of games for the week tonight, with two matches to be played. Judging from the sportsbook litmus test, i.e. oddsmakers tend to know what’s going on because they stand to lose the most on a given proposition, it’s five decisive wins we’ll be watching tonight. (Despite the interesting contention that Baskonia-Roma has recently become a full-fledged rivalry; tell you what: If Roma pulls off the upset tonight, *then* it’s a rivalry.)

The pointspreads and over/under lines on tonight’s games, as provided by Ball in Europe sponsor Bet 365, are as follows.

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Nov
0

SportingBet lines and odds for Euroleague week five matchups

Whoa, nice slate of games tonight in Euroleague basketball, headlined by the match The Euroleague Boss has said “promises to be an instant classic”: Montepaschi Siena vs. FC Barcelona. Judging by the wisdom of the sportsbook, the Baskonia-Moscow game should be worth watching, too.

Pointspreads and over/under lines for tonight’s games, as provided by Euroleague/Ball in Europe sponsor Sporting Bet follow the break.

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Nov
0

Betting on basketball: Pointspreads and odds for Euroleague week 4, part 2

The second half of Euroleague play this week is the small half, with just four games happening this evening, and at least one dandy if the bookmakers are accurate – which they tragically so often are. After all, it’s their money out there. That’s how I justify it to myself, anyway. Tonight’s pointspreads and over/under lines, as provided byBall in Europe sponsor Bet 365, are as follows.

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