Crvena Zvezda - Hapoel Tel - Aviv

Two sides that lost their opener, but they lost them in very different ways. Zvezda went down 83-77 at home to Zalgiris in a game they were in until the closing minutes, which is a long way from a hiding. Hapoel were beaten by Bayern in their own opener and that one reads a lot more worryingly, particularly for a team that is not playing its home fixtures in Israel this season and therefore spends the whole campaign on the road in one form or another. Belgrade is exactly the wrong place to turn up looking for a settled environment. The arena is as loud as anywhere in the competition and Zvezda have historically turned that into a real edge rather than just atmosphere. Nikola Djurisic being unavailable is a dent, though Hapoel are without Tomer Ginat, so neither side comes in whole. Backing the hosts at a shade over even money in a game they badly need is the straightforward read.