Plenty of action in last night’s Euroleague fixtures with no surprises. Tonight we will see do Fenerbahce and Lokomotiv Kuban got what it takes when playing under pressure. Both teams must win tonight against opponents that are already out from the competition. Two of their direct rivals for the last spot that leads to the final four won yesterday. Olympiacos won against Unicaja Malaga in a convincing manner and Galatasaray was lifted by Arroyo’s huge night in Kaunas against Zalgiris. 

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Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar vs. Partizan NIS Belgrade –  Group F (17:00 CET)

If Partizan NIS loses in this one, then it is all over for the Serbian side. They will have to wait until next season to reach Euroleague’s Final Four tournament. After this they have a home game against Zalgiris and another tough away fixture against Galatasaray. Not the best schedule, but everything is possible with no room for mistakes.

The Russian side is in a better position because Bayern Munich lost last night against CSKA Moscow, but on the other hand Galatasaray fought for a very important away win against Zalgiris. They need the win this afternoon in order to keep up in the race for the fourth place.

Last game between the two sides finished 87:81 in favor Lokomotiv Kuban. It was early in the Top 16 phase and the situation is different now. Partizan showed great basketball during this group stage, especially at home, but they lacked experience. The long term injury of their first play Leo Westermann also hurt the team.

Injury Status:
Lokomotiv Kuban – Out: Maksim Kolyushkin
Partizan NIS –Out: Terence Kinsey, Leo Westermann and Dragan Milosavljevic

Fenerbahce Ulker vs. EA7 Milan – Group E (19:30 CET)

Fenerbahce has the easiest schedule till the end of the Top 16 phase from all teams in Group E. They play Emporio Armani tonight, team that has already secured a place in the playoffs. After that they visit Laboral Kutxa the Spanish side that dropped out from the Euroleague few rounds ago; and host Anadolu Efes in their last game of the Top 16 phase. Fenerbahce plays team basketball under the guidance of Zeljko Obradovic. Although the team is filled with star individuals like Kleiza, McCalebb and Bojan Bogdanovic they tend to play tight D and organize long offensive plays. It would be a big upset not to see them in this year’s playoffs. 

Injury Status:
Fenerbahce Ulker – Out: Ilkan Karaman, Gasper Vidmar and Kenan Sipahi
EA7 Milan – Out: Keith Langford

FC Barcelona vs. Panathenaikos Athens – Group E (20:45 CET)

Barcelona will notch the top spot even if Fenerbahce Ulker tops EA7 Milan this afternoon. So the motivation for them in this one will come in question. They play one of Euroleague’s giants, but they also need to keep their strengths for the domestic competition and the Euroleague playoffs.

Panathenaikos on the other hand needs the win because they will play against Unicaja Malaga in the next round and their bitter rivals Olympiacos in the last game of the Top 16 phase. Both of these teams have chances of qualifying and it will be tough to win against them.

Barcelona is always motivated when playing the Greek side and additional imperative for them is that they can finish the Top 16 phase undefeated. Panathenaikos lost at home to Barcelona in their first meeting this year with the score set at 56:63. Both coaches have full squads on disposal.