Fenerbahçe faces tough rival Barça

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

Barcelona thoroughly dominated the boards (34-18) and had nearly twice as many assists (23-13) in the last face-off against Turkey’s Fener. DHA photo

Fenerbahçe Ülker will try to beat the odds when it meets Barcelona Regal in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague tonight.

Two teams at opposite ends of Group F clash tonight when the Istanbul team hosts the Catalan giants at the Ülker Sports Arena. Fener has won its last two home games to improve to 2-5 in the Top 16 and is hoping to make a late run for the top four spots in the group.

Meanwhile, Barcelona has won five in a row and shares first place in the group with Montepaschi Siena at 6-1. Ante Tomic recorded a double-double as one of six Barça scorers in double figures when the Spanish champs beat Fener 100-78 in the Top 16 opener in December.

Fenerbahçe boasts the Top 16’s leading scorer in Bojan Bogdanovic, who anchors the hosts’ backcourt alongside speedy point guard Bo McCalebb and Romain Sato.

That trio will face a strong Barcelona backcourt, which stars scoring king Juan Carlos Navarro. In the paint, Barcelona leans heavily on the trio of Tomic, Nate Jawai and Erazem Lorbek. David Andersen, who reached the Euroleague Final Four with Barcelona in 2009, has been on a hot streak lately for Fener. He is joined by Mike Batiste, Oğuz Savaş and Kaya Peker in a deep frontcourt for coach Simone Pianigiani.

On the other end, Barcelona guard Sarunas Jasikevicius will face his former team, Fenerbahçe Ülker, where he won the Turkish title two seasons ago. When they last met, Barcelona thoroughly dominated the boards (34-18) and had nearly twice as many assists (23-13) in cruising to victory.