Tip-off at 19:00 for Maccabi Tel Aviv vs Barcelona, EuroLeague Round 4. The game is at Aleksandar Nikolić Hall in Belgrade, with referees Hordov, Kardum and Bittner. The Israelis are 1–2, the Catalans 2–1.
Barcelona have won the last five meetings. The hosts average 91.7 points per game, compared to the opponents’ 99.3. The players in the best form are Jaylen Hoard on one side (performance index rating 18) and Will Clyburn (26). Defensively, the Israeli team allows 8.3 fewer points per game to opponents.
No absences are reported for Maccabi; Barcelona are without Juan Nuinez and Nicolás Laprovittola.
Oded Kattash, Maccabi head coach
“We’re heading into a very special week, facing two good and talented teams, each a bit different. We’re in our own process; no doubt these are important experiences for us. We’re coming into it in relatively good shape. Hopefully, we’ll see home games at the arena this season. From a sporting standpoint, I think this is a return to normality. There’s a natural process of a team coming together, and I believe the win gave us a boost of energy and, most importantly, confidence. We need to stay on track, keep practicing the right way, because I think the good practices are what led to the improvement in our performance. We have to stay focused. We’ve had some good games, and we had a strong one against Hapoel Tel Aviv, a very talented team on the level of Barcelona and Olympiacos, so this win can definitely give us confidence.”
Marcio Santos, Maccabi center
“We’re facing a double week, and there’s still room for us to improve – both defensively and offensively. I think it’s going to be a good game. Barcelona is always a strong team; it’ll be a battle, as always. We want to win both games. We need to know how to control the tempo of the game. We were trailing and couldn’t execute what we wanted, but we never stopped playing. We kept fighting, defended the right way, and worked hard for the win, and that’s the key to victory.”
Jimmy Clark, Maccabi guard
“I feel like we’re entering this EuroLeague double week with positive momentum after two good wins — one of them in the EuroLeague, which was also our first victory in the competition. We’re coming in with good energy, and as long as we stay active and keep building our team chemistry, we’ll be fine. We need to dictate the tempo and establish our team identity, something we already started to see in the previous game.”
Myles Cale, Barcelona forward
‘It’s a tough week with three matches. Tomorrow we’re playing against a great team, but I have faith in the team. Every match is very important.’
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