Four games take place on Tuesday and the remaining six are played on Wednesday
At a glance: The final round before the mid-season break
Makale
8 Dk okuma
The final set of games before a mid-season break will provide plenty of motivation for teams across the continent to triumph in Round 8 of the BKT EuroCup. Here’s your guide to the action.
Tuesday, November 12
Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius vs. Dolomiti Energia Trento (18:00 CET)
Red-hot Wolves (4-3) will try to make it five straight wins when it hosts Trento (3-4). The Italian team is looking for a second consecutive win after last week’s remarkable comeback victory over Joventut, which saw Anthony Lamb score 8 points in the last 2 minutes in his sixth consecutive double-digit scoring night. Wolves showed physicality and strong defense to gain a prestigious road win over Gran Canaria last week, with 3 offensive rebounds from Regimantas Miniotas contributing towards a team total of 21. Leading scorer Anthony Cowan (15.3 points per game) has scored in double digits in every game, so stopping him is a defensive key for Trento.
Trefl Sopot vs. Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv (19:00 CET)
Trefl (0-7) continues its search for an elusive first win continues with a visit from Hapoel (4-3), which is eager to get back to winning ways in this first-ever meeting between the teams. Hapoel will look for more power in the paint from Bruno Caboclo, who had a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) in last week’s loss at Bahcesehir, including 4 off the offensive glass. Star man Patrick Beverley will also look to stay hot after netting 18 points in that game. Trefl can call upon in-form forward Andy Van Vliet, who has averaged 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in the last three games, but the team needs improved defense after allowing an average of 89.7 points per night.
Veolia Towers Hamburg vs. Aris Midea Thessaloniki (19:30 CET)
Hamburg (1-6) will look to climb off the bottom of Group B as it welcomes Aris (2-5). The Greek team gave a good fight to no avail against Valencia last week with the usual scoring heroics from sharpshooter Vassilis Toliopoulos, who leads the competition with 3.4 triples per game. But Aris also needs to find offensive effectiveness from elsewhere after averaging only 74.7 points per night – lowest in the league. Hamburg is only slightly better with an average of 74.9 points, but it does pose a long-range threat through Osaro Rich with at least 10 points in four of his last five games.
Valencia Basket vs. Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (20:30 CET)
Valencia (6-0) is hoping to stay perfect with a visit from faltering Cedevita (4-3). It is sure to be an emotional occasion as Valencia plays its first home game since the tragic flooding that devastated the region, but Cedevita will attempt to put sentiment aside as it hopes to end a two-game losing slide. Expect plenty of scoring: Cedevita is always an offensive threat with the likes of Jaka Blazic, who scored 23 in last week’s loss to Bourg and ranks sixth in the EuroCup’s all-time scoring charts. Valencia’s loaded roster, meanwhile, will be led by rising star Jean Montero, who ranks third in the competition with 6.2 assists per game.
Wednesday, November 13
U-BT Cluj-Napoca vs. 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys (18:00 CET)
Cluj (3-4) will attempt to get back in the winning groove as it hosts a Lietkabelis team (2-4) which has the motivation of attempting to climb into the all-important top six as it seeks a first road win. The Lithuanian team leaned on a personal-best 22 points from young guard Mantas Rubstavicius to easily beat Hamburg last week, but must improve its three-point shooting accuracy after only making 26.1% so far – worst in the competition. Cluj, conversely, is the second-most effective two-point shooting team (60.6%), so will keep on feeding big man Zach Hankins (11.1 points per game on 66.7% two-pointers) inside.
Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul vs. Dreamland Gran Canaria (18:00 CET)
A big battle in Group A will see Besiktas (4-3) attempt to wrestle second place away from Gran Canaria (5-2). The Spanish team will look to recover its offensive fluency after being held to just 66 points in last week’s home loss to Wolves, and needs offensive leader Nico Brussino (10.3 points per game) to rediscover his range after making just 1-of-7 field-goal attempts in that game. Besiktas, which has won three of the last four, had no such problems as it piled on 100 points against Trefl last week, and shooting star Yigit Arslan will look to stay hot after averaging 3.5 three-pointers over the last four games.
ratiopharm Ulm vs. Bahcesehir College Istanbul (19:00 CET)
Group A leader Bahcesehir (6-1) will look to keep on rolling as it travels to a dangerous but inconsistent Ulm (4-3). The Turkish team’s latest triumph, against Hapoel last week, saw 15 assists from offensive leader Jaleen Smith as he orchestrated an all-round team effort that included a personal-best 23 points from Sehmus Hazer, whose dynamic play epitomizes Bahcesehir’s success so far. Ulm’s recent defensive problems continued in on overtime loss at Buducnost, when 25 points from Justinian Jessup weren’t enough to prevent defeat as the German team allowed its opponent to convert 66.6% of two-point attempts – a clear point of emphasis this week against Bahcesehir’s fast-paced offense.
Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem vs. Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse (19:00 CET)
The tie for second place in Group B will be broken as Jerusalem (5-2) meets Bourg (5-2) for a game which could go a long way towards deciding seeded status in the playoffs. Jerusalem will be feeling confident after sinking 94 points to easily overcome Reyer last week, partly thanks to a huge 45 rebounds led by 7 from Jeremy Morgan – who will be playing against his former club after helping take Bourg to last season’s title game. And this could be a high-scoring shootout because Bourg is also firing on all cylinders offensively, netting 90 points to overcome Cedevita last week led by 16 from all-round threat Xavier Castaneda.
Umana Reyer Venice vs. Turk Telekom Ankara (20:00 CET)
Turk Telekom (4-3) will look to consolidate its position in the top six with a trip to a Reyer team in search of consistency (2-5). The visitors could give a debut to new backcourt signing Speedy Smith, who averaged 7.8 points and 5.2 assists during his six games with previous team Hapoel Jerusalem. He should form a dangerous combination with Round 7 MVP Anthony Brown, whose confidence could not be higher after he drained a career-high 39 points – the most of any player this season – to down Cluj last week. Reyer needs to boost its own morale after being thrashed by 28 points against Jerusalem in Round 7, and hopes to follow the hustling example set by Carl Wheatle, with multiple steals in four straight games.
Joventut Badalona vs. Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (20:30 CET)
Struggling Joventut (2-5) will aim to emerge from its four-game losing slump with a visit from direct rival Buducnost (3-4) in a key matchup on the fringes of the playoffs places. The Spanish side, which has lost Kaiser Gates to injury, needs to take better case of the basketball after committing 16 turnovers in last week’s morale-damaging late collapse at Trento. Conversely, Buducnost’s game-winner from Round 7, Yogi Ferrell, who had 17 points in that game, is just one of the offensive weapons available for the Montenegrin team, and Joventut will try to slow down the rhythm of offensive leader McKinley Wright IV, who averages 10.1 points per night.