Basketball Champions League: It’s Champions time

By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net

“We’re really enthusiastic to build on last year’s inaugural edition,” said Patrick Comninos, the Basketball Champions League Chief Executive Officer. “The excitement for our second season has been growing across Europe ever since the Final Four weekend in Tenerife back in April, which was very well received. We are now looking to build on the success of the very first season and demonstrate the impact of the Basketball Champions League.”

The second season of this very exciting basketball league will feature 32 teams from 14 different European countries led by the defending champion Iberostar Tenerife. Teams will be divided into four groups of 8 teams which are the following.

Group A: AS Monaco (FRA), Hapoel Holon (ISR), UCAM Murcia (ESP), Enisey Krasnoyarsk (RUS), Dinamo Sassari (ITA), EWE Baskets Oldenburg (GER), Juventus Utena (LTU), Pinar Karsiyaka (TUR)
Group B: Gaziantep (TUR), Elan Chalon (FRA), Iberostar Tenerife (ESP), Neptunas Klaipeda (LTU), Ventspils (LAT), PAOK (GRE), MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg (GER), SikeliArchivi Capo d’Orlando (ITA)
Group C: AEK (GRE), Umana Reyer Venezia (ITA), Petrol Olimpija (SLO), medi Bayreuth (GER), Banvit (TUR), SIG Strasbourg (FRA), Movistar Estudiantes (ESP), Rosa Radom (POL)
Group D: Sidigas Avellino (ITA), Besiktas Sompo Japan (TUR), Stelmet Zielona Gora (POL), Oostende (BEL), CEZ Nymburk (CZE), Aris (GRE), Nanterre 92 (FRA), Telekom Baskets Bonn (GER)

With eight fewer clubs in the Regular Season, the top four in each of the four groups will advance to a Round of 16 and the clubs that prevail in those showdowns will move on to the Quarter-Finals.

Both the last 16 and the last eight will be home-and-away ties with the aggregate score deciding the winner.

The Final Four will be staged May 4 and May 6.

On the first day of the new season, there will be 9 matches. The opening game will be held in Lithuania as the Neptunas will face French team Elan Chalon at 18 CET. The home side is in way better mood as they started their season with 5 victories and just one loss in their domestic league led by Juan Palacios who is averaging 16,6 points per game and 5.8 rebounds. On the other side, Chalon is still winless as they have a 0-3  record in the French league.

On Tuesday there will be two more matches in the group B. Greek powerhouse PAOK will try to overcome MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in the Germany as the Turkish side Gaziantep will host Orlandina Basket (ITA).

Perhaps the most interesting matchups on Tuesday night will be in group C. In Athens, AEK will have hard time trying to win the game against historical Spanish team Movistar Estudiantes and strong Turkish side Banvit will travel to Italy to meet Umana Reyer Venezia. Rosa Radom team that have booked their ticket to Champions legaue through Qualifying rounds will have a tough matchup as they are facing medi Bayreuth. The team from Germany is in top form as they have won all of their matches in Bundesleague.

The first night of the season is bringing to us just one game from the group A. Monaco will have to beat Juventus if they want to open the season with a victory. The French side is currently 2-1 in ProA mostly because of the experienced center Elmedin Kikanović who is scoring 15 points per game. When it comes to Lithuanian team they still didn’t taste the smell of the victory. In their first five matches in LKL they lost all of them.

The leader of the Czech Republic NBL league CEZ Nymburk will be hosting the first game in the group D against Nanterre 92 and after that Telekom Baskets Bonn will face Oostende.

Fasten your seatbelts because the Champions league is starting!

BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – Week one schedule