By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Article D.1.3. of the Official Basketball Rules rarely extends beyond a tie between two or three teams, especially in four-team groups.
However, all four participants of Group F in the Basketball Champions League Regular Season finished at 3-3. It went down to the overall point differential.
A crazy Wednesday evening for all four teams.
| Higher game points difference of the games between them. |
| Higher number of game points scored in the games between them. |
| Higher game points difference of all games in the group. |
| Higher number of games points scored in all games in the group. |
The first and third as well as the second and fourth criteria were essentially the same.
Sharing balanced 3-3 records was a first in the Champions League, following 44 four-team challenges in the group play of the Regular Season and Round of 16 since changing the competition format in the 2020-21 season. Naturally, the preceding 17 groups of eight teams did not produce eight-way ties.
In this case, defending champion Telekom Baskets Bonn earned the top seed and a direct ticket to the Round of 16 thanks to an overall point differential of +24. Moving into the Play-Ins, Hapoel Holon ranked second with +7 and Rio Breogan sat third with +3. Bursaspor Info Yatirim fell short in the four-way tie with -34.
Identical 3-3 W-L tallies across the board but entirely different situations coming out of Gameday 6 of the BCL Regular Season.
Bittersweet feelings in Bonn
Besides the unprecedented situation in the final standings and nail-biters emerging in both Gameday 6 affairs, Bonn and Breogan went into overtime. Before the five extra minutes, head coach Roel Moors and his players were certainly informed of Bursaspor edging out Holon in Riga and therefore understood they would clinch the top seed with a loss by a margin of 17 points or less.
“We just did not show the fight that we needed to close a game out like that. We talked about it after the game. It just felt like they wanted it a little bit more,” admitted Harvard product Noah Kirkwood.
The German club was on an 11-game winning streak across BCL contests away from Bonn, including prevailing over the remaining contenders in the 2023 Final Four in Malaga. An entirely different team compared to the championship run, but the streak was extended to 11 games before the loss in Spain and more or less built up a favorable tiebreaker after the completion of the double-legged round-robin schedule.
“In a competition like this, you get what you deserve at the end,” Moors reacted to the four-way tie across all four teams of the group, “Maybe we deserved the position that we have.”
Bonn will resume action in late January. Placed in Group J alongside JDA Dijon, the remaining teams battling for a spot in the Quarterfinals will be the winners of the best-of-three Play-In series featuring MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg against Darussafaka Lassa and Bertram Derthona Tortona versus Galatasaray Ekmas.
Missed opportunities
Bonn alternated between wins and losses through the Regular Season, but Holon was up to 3-1 before dropping two straight games in Riga. “It is on us, we have nobody to blame,” pointed out head coach Amit Sherf.
Playing home fixtures outside of Israel was necessary but also deprived a genuine homecourt advantage. “We finished this group second with everything we have been through,” Sherf described the success.
Relocating to the capital of Latvia at the continental level was initially met with a narrow win over Breogan. The next two similar home games saw Bonn and Bursaspor earn wins. The losing streak can create doubts heading to the Play-Ins with a homecourt advantage.
“We play against Oostende and one of the great coaches in the competition,” Holon’s play-caller referred to the best-of-three series versus Filou Oostende and longtime boss of the Belgium champions Dario Gjergja, “We will do everything we can to qualify to the Top 16.”
Joy in Lugo
From finally reaching the Regular Season of the Champions League to earning a second opportunity to advance to the Round of 16 dramatically. Sports movies in Hollywood would struggle to capture the improbable run of Breo.
“It was a tough and important game for us,” explained Croatian tactician Veljko Mrsic, “We wanted to go in the next round.”
Apart from a massive rebuild to the roster, constant injury woes have slowed down the team based in Lugo throughout the 2023-24 season. Perhaps a 4-10 record in Spain’s Liga Endesa better demonstrates issues. But the continental campaign stretching into the Play-Ins set up a best-of-three series versus Pinar Karsiyaka. “We hope we will go further,” mentioned Martynas Sajus.
“It was a very important game for us. We had to win this game,” shared the Lithuanian center after matching his career-high 24 points in the overtime win against Bonn, “It was a very tough game, but we showed our character and we made tough shots in the end, played good defense, and that was it.”
At the wrong end
In contrast to the remaining teams in Group F of the BCL Regular Season, Bursaspor was eliminated. Digging its way out of a 12-point hole and defeating Holon in the last Gameday was not enough. But the cards were indeed stacked against the Turkish team with multiple unfavorable potential scenarios, including the established four-way tie.
“We had nothing to lose. They had pressure,” said Slovenian head coach Jure Zdovc focusing on the game before the conclusion of the other Group F thriller.
“Coach kept telling us to keep believing,” added Anthony Brown after paving the way for the Crocodiles with 19 of his game-high 26 points in the second half.
Looking for multiple players to recover from injuries, the team based in Bursa focuses on improving the 6-6 record in Turkiye Sigorta Basketbol Super Ligi.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League