Game of the Week preview: Peristeri bwin v Rytas Vilnius
The week seven Game of the Week is set for Wednesday November 30 between two Group E teams, Peristeri bwin (2-1) and Rytas Vilnius (1-2), as Peristeri look to get some redemption for their only loss.
PERISTERI (Greece) - The week seven Game of the Week in the Basketball Champions League is set for Wednesday November 30 between two Group E teams, Peristeri bwin (2-1) and Rytas Vilnius (1-2), as Peristeri look to get some redemption for their only loss of the season.
Where: Peristeri, Greece (Andreas Papandreou Indoor Peristeri)
When: 18:30 CET
In the first meeting between these two teams on November 1, Rytas defeated Peristeri 89-64 behind Marcus Foster's 25 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
🏠 That's one way to get your first #BasketballCL win - @RytasVilnius with authority, blowing out previously unbeaten @peristeribc in front of a capacity crowd at home! pic.twitter.com/r7lniQhi0r
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) November 1, 2022
This will be the fourth BCL game between Peristeri and Rytas – the Lithuanians won the last game 89-64 after the Greek side won both games in 2020-21 (106-88 in October 2020 and 81-74 in January 2021); the team leading at the end of the first quarter won each of the three previous matchups. Peristeri are on a three-game winning streak at home, their longest in the BCL; the Greeks have scored more than 80 points in each of their last three games at home in the competition, as many times as in their previous 10 games. Sylvain Francisco has scored 16+ points in each of his three BCL games with Peristeri, as many times as in his previous 14 games in the competition, all with BAXI Manresa; the French international has made 50 percent of his attempted three-pointers this season (9-of-18) and has made exactly three threes in each of those games. Rytas have won just two of their last 10 away games in the BCL - however, seven of those 10 games ended with margins of seven or fewer points. Rytas conceded 89 or more points in their two away games this season. Marcus Foster scored more than 20 points in his three games with Rytas in the BCL but has never had a longer streak of games scoring 20+ points in league history; Foster has also made more than five assists in each of his last two games, as many times as in his previous 18 league encounters. [/unordered]
Foster has made his mark for Rytas in his three BCL games this season, averaging 23.0 points per game (the fourth highest in the league) and an efficiency rating of 24.3 (the sixth highest in the league).
Peristeri are getting key contributions from a couple notable familiar players including guard Sylvain Francisco and center Miro Bilan. Both players played in the BCL last season, but with different teams, as Francisco was with BAXI Manresa and Bilan with Prometey.
The two are currently the only players for Peristeri to have an average efficiency rating in double figures (Bilan, 17.7 and Francisco, 16.7) and so far, the team's success has been pretty dependent on how these guys perform.
Not only are these two teams separated by one game in the BCL standings, but they also have similar records and spots in the standings in their respective domestic leagues. Rytas are currently 7-3 and in fourth place in the Lithuanian Basketball League, while Peristeri are 5-2, also good for fourth place in the Greek Basket League.
Team comparison by the numbers:
|
Peristeri |
Stat Category |
Rytas |
|
50 |
2-point FG % |
48.3 |
|
33.3 |
3-point FG % |
41.8 |
|
42 |
Overall FG % |
46 |
|
76 |
Free throw % |
76.2 |
|
21 |
Defensive rebounds |
24 |
|
13 |
Offensive rebounds |
14 |
|
34 |
Total rebounds |
38 |
|
9 |
Steals |
5 |
|
17 |
Assists |
17 |
|
11 |
Turnovers |
13 |
|
2 |
Blocks |
1 |
|
18.3 |
Points from Turnover |
14.0 |
|
33.3 |
Points in the Paint |
31.3 |
|
33.7 |
Points from the Bench |
25.3 |