The teams have much different histories and similar builds, but only one will advance to the quarterfinals
Wolves, Cluj to share the spotlight in eighthfinals opener
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All eyes will be on Vilnius on Tuesday, March 4 when the BKT EuroCup postseason tips off. Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius will host U-BT Cluj-Napoca in the first of four single-game eighthfinal matchups. The remaining three will be played on Wednesday, leaving Wolves and Cluj alone to bask in the glory of being the only high-level playoff game of note anywhere in the world that day.
Both Wolves and Cluj are teams with lofty goals who are more than capable of shining in the spotlight. Wolves was, quite literally, built for it. Founded in 2022 when it took over the license of Dzukija Alytus, from the start the plan was to create a top-tier European club in the capital of Lithuania. Former EuroLeague stars Darjus and Ksistof Lavrinovic joined as ambassadors and in the first season, former EuroLeague champ Jeffery Taylor joined the project.
Wolves, which played its debut season in Alytus, made waves in its debut season and joined the EuroCup last season, the club's second campaign. Only one win separated Wolves from a spot in the 2024 postseason. This season, Wolves not only qualified but earned the home-court advantage for its first game.
The opponent will be the Romanian champion, Cluj, whose history dates back to 1947. Only in recent years has it started to stand out. The first of Cluj's nine league championships came in 1992, and it has now won four in a row. Before debuting in the EuroCup in 2022, Cluj had reached the Champions League quarterfinals in four of the previous six seasons, while starting to bring massive crowds to its games at Bt-Arena.
After finishing second-to-last in its regular-season group in its first EuroCup run, Cluj turned heads last season when it went 13-5 to finish second in its group and earn an automatic big for the quarterfinals, where it ran out of steam against the London Lions. On Tuesday, it will play a EuroCup postseason game on the road for the first time.
The make-up of the team's rosters has some similarities, too. They are led by their playmakers, who have been among the best in the league this season. Cluj's Zavier Simpson was the regular-season leader in assists (7.5 apg.) and ranked third in both scoring (17.7 ppg.) and PIR (21.0). His counterpart, Anthony Cowan, ranked third in assists (5.7 apg.), fifth in PIR (19.1) and sixth in scoring (15.9 ppg.).
Alongside Cowan is Andrew Andrews, who carried Frutti Extra Bursaspor to the 2022 EuroCup Finals. Simpson's passes can tee up D.J. Seeley, who has been to the EuroCup Quarterfinals three times.
Both teams have wily veterans on the wings; Wolves' 35-year-old Taylor spent seven EuroLeague seasons with Real Madrid. Cluj's 34-year-old Lithuanian forward Gediminas Orelik is in his 10th EuroCup season and played for the last team from Vilnius to reach the postseason, Rytas Vilnius.
The numbers can be twisted to tell many stories about this game. Cluj plays at a faster pace, is the more accurate shooting team and has better offensive rebounding numbers. Wolves takes better care of the ball, locks down its defensive glass and led the EuroCup in free-throw accuracy (80.3%). It almost doesn't matter.
This game could very well end up being decided by things that stats cannot always measure or predict. Like who wants the 50/50 balls more. Or as cliché as it sounds, by who plays with more heart. Because after all, it's the start of the postseason and the dream for EuroCup glory starts here.