Real Madrid at Khimki
Date: 1/16
Time: 6:00 PM CET
Game Preview
Round 20 kicks off with first-place Real Madrid taking on Khimki and Alexey Shved, the EuroLeague's leading scorer. Madrid is coming off a tough Round 19 loss to CSKA and will be without star forwards Anthony Randolph and Rudy Fernandez due to injury. They'll look to rally behind veteran point guard Facundo Campazzo and the resurgent Trey Thompkins, who averaged 18.0 points over the past three Rounds. Madrid will face a Khimki team that boasts one of the league's best offenses. The Russian club feature a trio of talented scorers led by Shved, three-point marksman Janis Timma, and Devin Booker, a 28-year-old center, who is shooting 61.0 percent from the floor this season. Walter Tavares, the reigning EuroLeague Best Defender, will have his hands full trying to impede Khimki's three-pronged attack. Last time these two teams met in Round 9, Tavares accomplished just this, allowing Madrid to notch a 104-76 blowout victory while helping limit Shved to 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting from the field.
Injuries
Khimki
Petr Gubanov - OUT - Undisclosed
11/30 10:12 PM IST - Gubanov is with the Russian National Team for this weekend's FIBA qualifiers and will not be available for Khimki's Round 10 EuroLeague matchup with Panathinaikos, according to euroleague.net. Gubanov averaged 17 minutes per game in Rounds 4 and 5, but he has not seen EuroLeague action since, so his absence should not affect the rotation Khimki has been using of late.
Timofey Mozgov - OUT - Undisclosed
11/6 10:12 PM IST - Mozgov (undisclosed) remains sidelined, according to Khimki's official website. Khimki is getting healthier as a team, but Mozgov continues to work his way back from his injury. A timeline for his return remains uncertain.
Egor Vialtsev - OUT - Knee
12/27 3:49 AM IST - Vialtsev (undisclosed) did not play in Thursday's loss to ASVEL. Vialtsev has occupied a spot on Khimki's active roster for EuroLeague games for a few weeks, but he still not seen EuroLeague action this season, and has played in just two games of any sort since Nov. 24.
Real Madrid
Rudy Fernandez - OUT - Undisclosed
1/13 9:45 PM IST - Fernandez didn't travel with Real Madrid to Russia this week for an undisclosed reason and won't be available for Tuesday's Round 19 game against CSKA Moscow or Thursday's Round 20 matchup with Khimki, John Askounis of Eurohoops.net reports. It's unknown whether or not Fernandez is nursing a legitimate injury, as Real Madrid could simply be giving the 34-year-old some rest after he appeared in each of the club's first 18 EuroLeague games to date, averaging 8.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.2 three-pointers, 2.0 assists and 0.8 steals in 19.8 minutes in those outings. Real Madrid will hope to have Fernandez back in action for its big matchup in Round 21 versus Anadolu Efes on Jan. 24. Both clubs enter Round 19 play tied at the top of the EuroLeague standings with 15-3 records.
Anthony Randolph - OUT - Calf
1/13 9:40 PM IST - Randolph (calf) didn't travel with Real Madrid to Russia this week and won't be available for Tuesday's Round 19 matchup with CSKA Moscow or Thursday's Round 20 matchup with Khimki, John Askounis of Eurohoops.net reports. Along with Randolph, Rudy Fernandez (undisclosed) didn't make the trip to Russia, though their absences will be offset to some degree by the returns of Sergio Llull (thigh) and Gabriel Deck (knee) from multi-game absences. Randolph -- who hasn't seen any EuroLeague action since Dec. 26 -- will turn his sights to moving past the calf issue ahead of Real Madrid's Round 21 game versus Anadolu Efes on Jan. 24.
Real Madrid Probable Starters
G - Facundo Campazzo
G - Fabien Causeur
F - Gabriel Deck
F - Trey Thompkins
C - Walter Tavares
Khimki Probable Starters
G - Alexey Shved
G - Stefan Jovic
F - Janis Timma
F - Jonas Jerebko
C - Devin Booker
Top Picks
Alexey Shved, BCK - Shved is one of the top scoring threats in the EuroLeague and the primary engine of Khimki's excellent offensive attack. On the year, he's averaging 21.3 points, 5.3 assists, 2.9 threes and 2.8 rebounds per contest.
Facundo Campazzo, RM - Campazzo is the offensive fulcrum of Real Madrid, as he's second on the team in scoring and their top passer so far this season. He is shooting just 40.8 percent from the field this season but puts up numbers on a game-by-game basis and got the job done on both ends last time these two teams met.
Janis Timma, BCK - Timma has had some injury issues this season, but he's a lethal option from behind the arc when on the court and is making 37 percent of his looks from distance this season. Overall he's averaging 13.4 points, 3.1 threes, 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
Trey Thompkins, RM - Although Thompkins' season-long line of 10.0 points and 3.7 rebounds per game isn't overly impressive, he averaged 18.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.0 assist over the past three Rounds while shooting 50.0 percent from the field in that span. He'll benefit again in Round 20 with Anthony Randolph and Rudy Fernandez still out.
Captaincy Options
Dream 11 Team
Grand League Combination
Shved, Campazzo, Thompkins, Mickey
Small League Combination
Shved, Campazzo, Thompkins, Timma
