© Alfonso Cannavacciuolo
Finally back home: After five away games in just 14 days, the Bayern basketball team returned to Munich on Sunday night and is looking forward to two home games this week. The sixth EuroLeague double-week begins on Wednesday (January 15) against third-place AS Monaco, followed 48 hours later by a match against the in-form team of Virtus Bologna, which has won four of its last six games.
Both games will start at 8:30 PM (MagentaSport live), and the SAP Garden, with 11,200 spectators for each game, is already sold out. The next BBL home game at the
Clearly Outplayed in the First Leg
After three recent defeats against EuroLeague title contenders (Panathinaikos, Real, and Olympiakos), the next candidate steps onto the court this Wednesday: Monaco (13:7), which led the standings until last week. The French champions, coached by new head coach Vassilis Spanoulis, lost 84:98 (41:45) at home to FC Barcelona. In the first leg before Christmas, Monaco secured a convincing 93:74 (46:40) victory, with Bayern struggling offensively after halftime.
"It’s great to be back in our arena and play in front of our amazing fans. But Monaco has an incredible amount of individual talent. In the first game at their place, we had issues dealing with their physical defense and athleticism," head coach Gordon Herbert said about the visitors. "We will only stand a chance if we focus on defense and approach the battles with determination."
Waiting on da Silva and Weiler-Babb
Herbert has not yet given up hope for the return of playmaker Nick Weiler-Babb (thumb) and national player Oscar da Silva (ankle) this week. Their potential involvement will only be decided on game day. According to plan, captain Vladimir Lucic will return to team training this week. Monaco is expected to be at full strength, as forward Alpha Diallo (12.1 PPG) made his comeback last weekend in the league during their 81:73 away win in Nanterre after several weeks out.
For the favorites, alongside the American, other double-digit scorers include his compatriots Mike James (15.0 PPG, 5.8 APG), Jordan Loyd (10.3 PPG), and Elie Okobo (13.3 PPG). Compared to the first leg, EuroLeague’s all-time assist leader Nick Calathes (2,092 assists in 360 games) is also back, joining 2023/2024 MVP James (4,899 points in 302 games) as a standout player. Against the second-best offense (87.5 PPG; FCBB: 85.6 PPG), Bayern will need to give everything to extend their strong home record (8:1).