By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Firing up the Basketball Champions League Final Four week, the remaining teams are putting the finishing touches to make respective championship cases in Bilbao Arena.
Two out of Baxi Manresa, Hapoel U-NET Holon, Lenovo Tenerife, and MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg will end up playing for the championship on Sunday. After Hapoel Holon and lasting BCL original Tenerife resolve differences in the first 2022 Final Four semifinal, Ludwigsburg and Manresa will battle it out for the second spot in the Final.
Radebaugh vs. Moneke
In a closer look into the second semifinal, Jonah Radebaugh and Chima Moneke pop out as the players with the largest impact on their respective sides. Making it this far in a highly-competitive field can’t be achieved behind a solid effort of one single player. However, one can only wonder if Ludwigsburg and Manresa would still be around lacking the aforementioned players and attached brilliant breakout campaigns.
Radebaugh, 24, has scored at least 15 points in five of his last six Champions League showings, including all three games of the best-of-three series opposite U-BT Cluj-Napoca. The Northern Colorado product averaged 14.3 points per game heading to the Final Four and Ludwgisburg prevailed in six of his eight efforts packing 15 or more points. Besides offense, he is among the influential players on the defensive end as well.
Moneke, 26, has logged 13.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game so far in his first BCL campaign. Ramping up his efforts after the tip-off of the Round of 16, he has scored 17.8 points per contest over his last eight appearances. Alternating between the starting five and a bench role, all six starts for the explosive forward have been combined with a win for the Catalonia outlet.
Experienced tacticians
Skipping John Patrick or Pedro Martinez would be a huge misstep looking into the matchup. The American head coach, in charge of Ludwigsburg since 2013, was the mastermind behind the Final Four berth in 2018 and of the team’s growth into a contender in recent editions of the German league. On the opposite end, Martinez, backed by booming stints in multiple ACB clubs, returned to Manresa in 2019 lifting the team to its biggest success since being crowned Spain champion back in 1998.
All four surviving teams of the Basketball Champions League have deep squads and experienced head coaches at the helm in common. However, Manresa averaging 40.2 points per match leads the BCL and accounts for 47% of the total team points. Head coach Martinez extracting the maximum effort from every available player is the trademark of his side. It is more than likely to also be key in potential additional success through crunch time of the 2021-22 season.
Points generated from offensive rebounds were a big part of Ludwigsburg clinching a Final Four berth. The league-high 14.5 offensive rebounds per game registered have led to yet another league-high of 14.6 second-chance points per contest. Determined to make things happen even after missed shots certainly paired with solid defense certainly shape a demanding assignment for any team dealing with the Giants.
Besides exceeding initial expectations and making it all the way to the Final Four, both Ludwigsburg and Manresa have excelled at the domestic level as well. Solid campaigns including away wins against teams the likes of Alba Berlin and Real Madrid have secured a Playoffs berths in respective leagues with several games in hand. But the postseasons of Germany’s easyCredit BBL and Spain’s Liga Endesa will be the next challenge, after the one in Bilbao starting with their first-ever BCL collision. Exciting times are ahead for both clubs.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League