By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
After the Week 3 of the Basketball Champions League Round of 16, full of postponed matches due to the earthquake that devastated both Turkey and Syria, Week 4 had a mix of encounters between Gamedays 3 and 4 to set even field in games played for all participants.
In Group I, Hapoel Jerusalem and SIG Strasbourg won the respective Israeli and French derbies against Hapoel Holon and JDA Bourgogne Dijon. The purple-and-yellow side, which arrived at the 2022 Final Four, is now eliminated after losing every game in this stage.
In Group J, BAXI Manresa and Bahcesehir recovered their postponed matchup in a rollercoaster of emotions, as Jerrick Harding banked in the decisive three-pointer to give to the Catalan side another win. The Turkish side, winless, is now eliminated. At the same time, Telekom Baskets Bonn advanced to the quarterfinals after dominating against Rytas Vilnius in Javontae Hawkins’s return.
Group K’s doubleheader between Unicaja and Galatasaray Nef settled at a split with both sides winning at home from Tuesday to Thursday, effectively creating a three-way race for the two berths in the Quarterfinals with Limoges CSP dropping out of the race. The third remaining candidate, AEK used defense to earn a third win and send the French side packing.
Finally, in Group L, the reigning BCL champions of Lenovo Tenerife officially qualified for the quarterfinals after producing a crazy comeback in the Spanish derby against Surne Bilbao. The same thing happened to Darussafaka, which won the absurdest game of the BCL week against UCAM Murcia after two OTs with Matt Mooney on fire off the bench.
The BCL Round of 16 Groups and Gameday 3-4 results
Group I
1. Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem 7 (3-1)
2. SIG Strasbourg 7 (3-1)
3. JDA Dijon 6 (2-2)
4. e-Hapoel Atsmon Holon 4 (0-4)
Gameday 4
Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem – Hapoel Atsmon Holon 77-65
SIG Strasbourg – JDA Dijon 86-67
Group J
1. y-Telekom Baskets Bonn 8 (4-0)
2. BAXI Manresa 7 (3-1)
3. Rytas Vilnius 5 (1-3)
4. e-Bahcesehir Koleji 4 (0-4)
Gameday 4
Telekom Baskets Bonn – Rytas Vilnius 99-72
Group K
1. Unicaja 7 (3-1)
2. AEK 7 (3-1)
3. Galatasaray Nef 6 (2-2)
4. e-Limoges CSP 4 (0-4)
Gameday 3
Unicaja – Galatasaray NEF 81-76
Gameday 4
Limoges CSP – AEK 63-69
Galatasaray NEF – Unicaja 72-67
Group L
1. y-Lenovo Tenerife 8 (4-0)
2. UCAM Murcia 6 (2-2)
3. Surne Bilbao 5 (1-3)
4. Darussfaka Lassa 5 (1-3)
Gameday 3
Darussafaka – UCAM Murcia 105-104
Gameday 4
Surne Bilbao – Lenovo Tenerife 72-74
-The top two teams of each group advance to the Quarterfinals
-The top team of each group earns home-court advantage in the Quarterfinals best-of-three series
y-clinched a Quarterfinals berth
e-eliminated
PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League