By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net
It’s here, the last Gameday of Basketball Champions League regular season and while 12 teams secured their spot in the playoffs, four more tickets are available.
Two spots are up for grabs in Group A with three teams – Avellino, Nizhny, Le Mans – chasing it. In Group B there is one spot left and Nanterre and Holon will fight directly for it. Group C has it all figured out while there is space for one more team from Group D and it will be Oostende, Neptunas or Strasbourg.
Eight games will be played on Tuesday (5/2, Groups A&B) and eight on Wednesday (6/2, Groups C&D).
Day 14 Preview
Group A
| Position | Team | % Victory | GP | GW | GL | PTS + | PTS – | GA |
| 1 | UCAM Murcia* | 92.31 | 13 | 12 | 1 | 994 | 874 | 1.1372 |
| 2 | Banvit* | 69.23 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1078 | 987 | 1.0921 |
| 3 | Sidigas Avellino | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1058 | 1071 | 0.9878 |
| 4 | Nizhny Novgorod | 46.15 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 1032 | 1018 | 1.0137 |
| 5 | Le Mans | 46.15 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 969 | 987 | 0.9817 |
| 6 | Ventspils | 38.46 | 13 | 5 | 8 | 1036 | 1076 | 0.9628 |
| 7 | Anwil Wloclawek | 30.77 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 1024 | 1076 | 0.9516 |
| 8 | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 23.08 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 976 | 1078 | 0.9053 |
Nizhny and Ludwigsburg start the show and the Russian team must win this game if they want to the playoffs. However, they also need Le Mans to lose otherwise it will all be for nothing.
Le Mans holds their future in their own hands. If they win against Anwil, they advance to Round of 16. The French are in a good form but Anwil squad won their first clash.
Avellino will secure their third place in Group A and the playoffs with a win over Ventspils but in case they lose and both Nizhny and Le Mans win their games, the Italian team won’t advance.
Lastly, the game between two top teams in the group but with the least pressure as Murcia and Banvit secured their spots.
Group B
| Position | Team | % Victory | GP | GW | GL | PTS + | PTS – | GA |
| 1 | Iberostar Tenerife* | 84.62 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 1079 | 868 | 1.2430 |
| 2 | Umana Reyer Venezia* | 69.23 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1098 | 1034 | 1.0618 |
| 3 | PAOK* | 61.54 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 1050 | 951 | 1.1041 |
| 4 | Nanterre | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1085 | 984 | 1.1026 |
| 5 | Hapoel Holon | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1083 | 1043 | 1.0383 |
| 6 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 46.15 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 1049 | 1108 | 0.9467 |
| 7 | Fribourg Olympic | 23.08 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 995 | 1112 | 0.8947 |
| 8 | Opava | 7.69 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 879 | 1218 | 0.7216 |
One ticket left in Group B with Holon and Nanterre fighting for it directly. Both squads are in fairly good shape and while Nanterre has had one day more to rest, Holon played and won against none other than Maccabi Tel Aviv.
PAOK will host Tenerife which secured the first place while the Greeks can finish third or fourth depending on other results. PAOK arrives of a big loss to Promitheas while Tenerife managed to win against Barcelona in teh domestic league.
Venezia and Fribourg also have their spots set. Venezia will finish second and Fribourg seventh whatever happens. Still, both squads will try to end the regular season with a win.
The last Tuesday duel will be between Opava and Bonn. The Czech team has had tough three weeks as they lost by record-big margins and will look to regain some honor against Bonn.
Group C
| Position | Team | % Victory | GP | GW | GL | PTS + | PTS – | GA |
| 1 | Hapoel Jerusalem* | 84.62 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 1180 | 1010 | 1.1683 |
| 2 | AEK Athens* | 84.62 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 1056 | 958 | 1.1022 |
| 3 | Brose Bamberg* | 61.54 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 1074 | 1065 | 1.0084 |
| 4 | Antwerp Giants* | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1044 | 1022 | 1.0215 |
| 5 | Lietkabelis | 30.77 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 988 | 1029 | 0.9601 |
| 6 | Dijon | 30.77 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 975 | 1033 | 0.9438 |
| 7 | CEZ Nymburk | 30.77 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 1026 | 1105 | 0.9285 |
| 8 | Fuenlabrada | 23.08 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 1004 | 1125 | 0.8924 |
AEK will host Antwerp and need the win in order to secure the first spot in Group C while Antwerp finishes fourth either way. Both squads won four out five last games in all competitions and this will be a good test for both sides in front of the playoffs.
Hapoel will travel to France for a clash with Dijon. The Israeli team is in a good form and in case of a win (and AEK’s loss), they will take over the first spot.
Bamberg and Nymburk will clash in Germany. Bamberg is safe at the third spot while Nymburk can still qualify for the FIBA Europe Cup in case of a win.
Fuenlabrada vs. Lietkabelis is the last matchup of this group and while the Spaniards can’t move from the eighth spot, Lietkabelis can finish 5th-7th. The first clash belonged to the Lithuanians.
Group D
| Position | Team | % Victory | GP | GW | GL | PTS + | PTS – | GA |
| 1 | Virtus Segafredo Bologna* | 69.23 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 1105 | 1008 | 1.0962 |
| 2 | Besiktas S.J.* | 61.54 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 1008 | 989 | 1.0192 |
| 3 | Promitheas* | 61.54 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 1052 | 1052 | 1 |
| 4 | Neptunas | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1083 | 1057 | 1.0245 |
| 5 | Strasbourg | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 990 | 991 | 0.9989 |
| 6 | BC Oostende | 53.85 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 977 | 1019 | 0.9587 |
| 7 | Medi Bayreuth | 38.46 | 13 | 5 | 8 | 1011 | 1009 | 1.0019 |
| 8 | Petrol Olimpjia | 7.69 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 974 | 1075 | 0.9060 |
Oostende will host Strasbourg and this is the crucial game in the playoff race. Oostende controls their own destiny and if they win, they qualify for the Round of 16. In Strasbourg’s case, a win here is not enough as they also need Bayreuth to win against Neptunas.
However, Neptunas is hosting Bayreuth and they are in a far better form than the German squad. They’ve won four out five last games while Bayreuth has only one win in that span.
Besiktas awaits Olimpija in Turkey and will be much closer to the first spot in case of a win. They would also need Promitheas to beat Bologna by 3-34 point-margin.
Bologna is the host of the clash with Promitheas and a win secures them the first place. The Greek team needs a win by 11 points or more and Besiktas to lose against Olimpija in order to take over the top of the group.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League