Anadolu Efes eyes victory over Unicaja in Euroleague

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Anadolu Efes center Semih Erden (L) tries a shot while defended by Zalgiris Kaunas’ Robertas Javtokas during a Euroleague Top 16 match.

Anadolu Efes will try to continue its perfect home record when it meets Unicaja Malaga in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague tonight. 

Efes joins Madrid and CSKA in a three-way tie for first place in Group E, each with a 9-3 record. All three teams have already qualified to the playoffs. 

Unicaja ranks fifth at 6-6 and will be out if it loses or if Panathinaikos Athens beats Brose Baskets Bamberg tonight. 

CSKA Moscow also meets Real Madrid in a crucial battle on top of the Group E tonight. 
Efes defeated Unicaja 73-78 behind 15 points from Jordan Farmar when they met earlier in the Top 16. 

Coach Oktay Mahnuti said the team will try to get two wins against Spanish teams in the last two weeks of the Top 16. 

“Our first aim is to win against Unicaja Malaga, then to get a victory at Madrid to finish the group in the first two spots,” he was quoted by the Euroleague website. 

“I am mentioning from the beginning of the Top 16 that our main goal is to finish the group in the first two places. We do not want to lose at the last step and want to grab the home court advantage at playoffs.” 

Beşiktaş faces tough Maccabi in Israel 

“In the last home game of Top 16 we want to have a victory with the support of our amazing fans,” he added. 

In the Group F, Beşiktaş visits Maccabi Electra. Last week, Beşiktaş fought hard to claim its first win in the Top 16, and the Turkish champion will try to put another good display against a solid opponent, although it has no chance for qualifying.