As the 2024-25 EuroCup heads into the knockout rounds, we reflect on what happened in the past
A history of single-game elimination ties in the EuroCup
Article
5 Mins read
Just 66 of the 4,602 games in BKT EuroCup history (1.43%) have been single-game elimination showdowns, and some of them provided some of the most thrilling moments in competition history. We are taking advantage of the long break to look back at some of them.
As many as 13 finals were played in a single-game format. Four others were played in a two-way format in 2003, 2014, 2015 and 2016, and the rest were best-of-three playoff series in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2024. In five of those 13 seasons, the final was the only single-game elimination round showdown. All of those five championship games were played at the same arena: the Spiroudome in Charleroi, Belgium.
The first-ever single-game final took place on April 13, 2004, and it was one for the ages. Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem topped heavy favorite Real Madrid 73-82 behind 22 points from Kelly McCarty in the first of four consecutive championship games played at the Spiroudome. In 2005, Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius held off Alfa Makedonikos's comeback to grab a 78-74 win. Dynamo Moscow bested Aris Midea Thessaloniki 60-73 in 2006, and Real lifted the trophy in 2007 after downing Rytas 75-87 behind an unstoppable Charles Smith.
The EuroCup Final returned to the Spiroudome in 2013 as Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar and Bilbao Basket battled for the title. Lokomotiv prevailed, beating Bilbao 64-75. Richard Hendrix led five Lokomotiv players in double digits with 14 points, earning final MVP honors.
From 2008 to 2012, the EuroCup tried a bigger format with more drama. A Final Eight format was chosen in 2008 and 2009, played in Turin, Italy. Joventut Badalona won the 2007-08 EuroCup, downing Valencia Basket, Galatasaray Istanbul and Akasvayu Girona in knockout games. Rudy Fernandez earned Final Eight MVP honors. A year later, Rytas went all the way, topping Benneton Treviso, Hemofarm Vrsac and a star-studded Khimki Moscow Region to lift the trophy for the second time. Marijonas Petravicius earned Final Eight MVP honors, scoring 20 points on 8-of-9 two-pointers.
The competition scaled down to a Final Four format from 2010 to 2012. Valencia conquered its second title in 2010, downing Panellinios Athens 92-80 in the semifinals and thrashing ALBA Berlin 44-67 in the final, smashing all sort of records. UNICS Kazan went all the way in 2011, defeating Cedevita Zagreb (87-66) and Cajasol Sevilla (92-77). Khimki won the trophy in 2013, becoming the first team in EuroCup history to win a single-game final on its home court. It beat Spartak St Petersburg 77-73 in the semifinal and Valencia 77-68 in the final.
After nine years without single-game elimination showdowns, they returned in style in the 2021-22 season. A change to the EuroCup format saw all playoff games become do-or-die showdowns in 2022 and 2023. Virtus Segafredo Bologna and Frutti Extra Bursaspor made it to the 2022 final. Virtus beat 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys and ratiopharm Ulm at home before downing Valencia on the road. Bursaspor grabbed road wins against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana and MoraBanc Andorra to storm into the final. Virtus prevailed at home in the title decider, 80-67, and Milos Teodosic earned Finals MVP honors.
In 2023, Dreamland Gran Canaria had home-court advantage in all potential series and made the most of it. The Spanish side turned Gran Canaria Arena into a fortress, consecutively beating Bursaspor, Paris Basketball, Joventut and Turk Telekom Ankara to lift the trophy for the first time.
Starting last season, best-of-three series were introduced for the semifinals and finals, reducing single-game elimination showdowns from 15 to eight. Two teams managed to win two of these games in both the eighthfinals and quarterfinals: the London Lions and Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul.
Some 38 single-game elimination showdowns have taken place in the last three seasons, with the home team winning 26 times (68.4%). Remarkably enough, teams coached by Dusan Alimpijevic stole five of those 12 road wins: Bursaspor won three times in 2022, and Besiktas prevailed against Gran Canaria and Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv last season.
Coach Alimpijevic has the chance to make more history in the coming weeks as his Besiktas squad takes on Cedevita in the Slovenian capital in one of the last-16 games. Elsewhere, Gran Canaria takes on Umana Reyer Venice, Turk Telekom hosts Buducnost VOLI Podgorica, and Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius welcomes U-BT Cluj-Napoca. Bring on the excitement!