By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Four groups of eight teams each are set for Basketball Champions League Regular Season Gameday 10. The first 2020 action in FIBA’s premier club competition will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday in 16 different venues stretched across Europe.
Plenty of fresh faces attribute a new look to the field. Teams looked to strengthen their playoff bid through the break. Ultimately only four sides from each group will advance to the Round of 16 with seeds determining the teams with the home-court advantage in March.
Below the preview of Basketball Champions League Regular Season Gameday 10.
Group A
1. Dinamo Sassari 16 (7-2)
2. BAXI Manresa 15 (6-3)
3. Turk Telekom 15 (6-3)
4. SIG Strasbourg 13 (4-5)
5. Filou Oostende 13 (4-5)
6. Lietkabelis 13 (4-5)
7. UNET Holon 12 (3-6)
8. Polski Cukier Torun 11 (2-7)
Zeljko Sakic leads BCL forwards with 178 points to date. His Lietkabelis at 4-5 will further its Group A run with an away game versus Turk Telekom. Burak Goren’s side is 6-3 overall and 3-1 at home, also carries a 7-8 Super Ligi W-L tally. The hosts improved to 11-6 in Lithuania’s LKL after beating Zalgiris Kaunas.
Top rebounder of the competition so far, Shevon Thompson hopes to add more boards and help Filou Oostende past Dinamo Sassari. At 4-5, his side will face the leading Italian club that sits at 7-2. Domestically, the team coached by Dario Gjergja is 8-3 in the EuroMillions Basketball League and Gianmarco Pozzecco’s club 13-3 in LBA Serie A.
No team has scored more points than Polski Cukier Torun, but Sebastian Machowski’s club is in a tough position at 2-7. UNET Holon comes to visit at 3-6. Two straight PLK defeats dropped Torun to 12-3 in the Polish league, while recently appointed head coach Stefanos Dedas has guided his team to 7-6 in the Super League.
At 6-3, BAXI Manresa will welcome SIG Strasbourg at the Pavello Nou Congost. Pedro Martinez’s side won its last four ACB games jumping to 7-9 in the process. Vincent Collet’s team is 4-5, while three straight losses in Jeep Elite Pro A dropped his squad to 8-9.
Gameday 10 schedule:
Tuesday
Filou Oostende – Dinamo Sassari
Wednesday
Turk Telekom – Lietkabelis
UNET Holon – Polski Cukier Torun
BAXI Manresa – SIG Strasbourg
Group B
1. AEK Athens 16 (7-2)
2. Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem 15 (6-3)
3. Anwil Wloclawek 14 (5-4)
4. San Pablo Burgos 14 (5-4)
5. RASTA Vechta 14 (5-4)
6. Teksut Bandirma 13 (4-5)
7. Telenet Giants Antwerp 11 (2-7)
8. EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez 11 (2-7)
Group B leader AEK will take on Telenet Giants Antwerp at the Lotto Arena. Totally different situations arise with the Greek club 7-2 and its next rival 2-7, but the “W” remains the target for both sides. Coming off the victory over Panathinaikos OPAP, Ilias Papatheodorou’s club jumped to 10-4 in the Basket League. Christophe Beghin’s team shares first place of EuroMillions Basketball League with its 8-3 W-L tally.
Averaging 22.6 points per match, Justin Dentmon understands that EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez has no more space for error ahead of the home match opposite to Anwil Wloclawek. Down 2-7, the French team really needs the “W”. EBPLO is also 7-10 in Jeep Elite Pro A, while upcoming foes are 5-4 in the group and 11-4 in PLK.
RASTA Vechta and Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem will collide in Germany. At 5-4 and 6-3, respectively, both teams aim for the playoffs. A win here will likely do wonders for any team. Pedro Calles’ side is 8-6 in easyCredit BBL, while Oded Kattash’s squad is 12-1 in Israel’s Super League.
Another interesting matchup comes with San Pablo Burgos hosting Teksut Bandirma. The hosts carry a 5-4 W-L tally against the 4-5 of the visitors. Joan Penarroya’s team is 8-8 in the ACB as well. Hakan Demir has led his team to 9-6 in Super Ligi.
Gameday 10 schedule:
Tuesday
RASTA Vechta – Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem
San Pablo Burgos – Teksut Bandirma
EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez – Anwil Wloclawek
Wednesday
Telenet Giants Antwerp – AEK