The Army Men had traditional practice at USH CSKA in the afternoon and went to Istanbul by OrenAir flight. The team accomodated in the hotel with view on Bosforus and Asian side of Istanbul – close to Darussafaka arena. Unfortunately Pavel Korobkov injured his knee during the practice – he will be evaluated in GMS Clinic tomorrow. Anton Astapkovich, Mikhail Kulagin, Ivan Lazarev and Joel Freeland also stayed in Moscow.
“Our opponents have several players with many Euroleague seasons under their belts,” CSKA head coach Dimitris Itoudis said. “They are experienced and they’ve just recently signed a new player – that tells a lot about their plans and ambitions. Darussafaka plays well in the beginning of the season, especially at home so we expect a tough game. Still I like how our practices go, how the team works and we will go there in right mood.”
Important numbers
Milos Teodosic needs 5 more three-pointers to catch retired CSKA star Marcus Brown for seventh place on the all-time Euroleague charts. Teodosic enters the game with 322 career triples.
Teodosic has made at least 1 three-pointer in 27 consecutive Euroleague games.
Nando De Colo has made at least 1 three-pointer in each of his last nine Euroleague games.
De Colo has scored in double figures in each of his last eight Euroleague appearances.
Kyle Hines is closing in on a spot among the competition’s all-time top 10 in blocked shots. He enters this game tied with former CSKA forward Marcus Goree for 12th place with 120 career rejections. Nikola Vujcic (122) is 11th and Darjus Lavrinovic (123) 10th.
Cory Higgins has made 11 consecutive free throws in Euroleague action.
Andrey Vorontsevich has made at least 1 three-pointer in each of his last five Euroleague appearances.
Short dossier
Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul, Turkey
Founded: 1914
Colors: black, green
Home court: Volkswagen Arena (4,500)
Chief of the Board: Erman Yerdelen
Head coach: Oktay Mahmuti
Website: www.darussafakadogusbasketbol.com
Trophy case: 2-time Turkish champion (1961, 62), Turkish League runner-up (1960), Turkish Cup finalist (2002)
