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Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season - Round 9 co-MVPs: Nick Calathes, Panathinaikos OPAP Athens and Luke Sikma, ALBA Berlin

At the end of an action-packed Round 9 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, two players shared MVP honors: Nick Calathes of Panathinaikos OPAP Athens and Luke Sikma of ALBA Berlin, each with a PIR of 32. Calathes led Panathinaikos to a crucial 85-86 road win against Zalgiris. His 19 points and 12 assists marked his fourth double-double this season, and his 5 three-pointers were a personal best in his 192nd EuroLeague game. He hit 2 of 3 two-point shots and 5 of 7 from downtown, adding 5 rebounds and 4 fouls drawn to his tally. Sikma was the driving force in ALBA's 93-80 home win over Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade. He had 19 points on 5-for-6 two-point, 1-for-1 three-point and 6-for-8 free throw shooting to go with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks and 7 fouls drawn. He's the first MVP of the Round for ALBA since Alex Renfroe in April 2015. Scottie Wilbekin of Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv had a PIR of 28 in his team's road loss against AX Armani Exchange Milan. Wilbekin scored 28 points, including 7 three-pointers, and 5 assists. Renfroe (27 PIR), now with of Zenit St Petersburg, Sergio Rodriguez of Milan (26) and Rokas Giedraitis of ALBA (26) completed the top individual performances in Round 9.

Individual highs: Jordan Mickey, Real Madrid, 4 blocks

Wilbekin was the top scorer in Round 9 with 28 points. Despite not playing in Round 9, Nando De Colo of Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul is the overall top scorer of the competition with 20.9 points per game. Bojan Dubljevic of Valencia Basket led all Round 9 rebounders by pulling 11, his new career high, in a home win against Zenit St Petersburg. Tonye Jekiri of LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne leads all rebounders with 10.9 per night. Calathes dished 12 assists to lead the weekly standings, and is also first overall at 9.6 per game. Four players – Toko Shengelia of KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, Vladimir Lucic and Greg Monroe of FC Bayern Munich, and Facu Campazzo of Real Madrid – collected 3 steals each in Round 9. Campazzo and Vasilije Micic of Anadolu Efes Istanbul lead the overall standings at 1.9 steals per night. Jordan Mickey of Real Madrid had 4 blocks against his former team, Khimki Moscow Region. His teammate Edy Tavares leads the blocks table at 1.8 per game. Two players, Calathes and Rodriguez (18 points, 11 assists), registered double-doubles in this round.

Euroleague Basketball (EB) is a global leader in the sports and entertainment business, devoted to running the top European competitions of professional basketball clubs under a unique and innovative organizational model. Owned and administered by some of the most successful and historic clubs in the world, EB manages and organizes the continent’s two premier men’s basketball competitions, the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the 7DAYS EuroCup, as well as the sport’s premier under-18 showcase, the EB Adidas Next Generation Tournament.

The EB competitions bring the elite of European basketball to all five continents and to the entire sports community through the OTT platform EuroLeague TV. EB also organizes a series of community and educational programs. Its ground-breaking corporate social responsibility program One Team features all EB clubs that have already made a difference in the lives of over 19,000 participants. Its Sports Business MBA trains future professionals in sports management.

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