By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Dealing with injuries and early-season roster adjustments did not create a nice look for Promitheas Vikos Cola. But here we are with the team based in Patras reaching the Round of 16 of the Basketball Champions League.
In a necessary reminder, Promitheas advanced to the Round of 16 and from there to the Quarterfinals of the 2023-24 edition of the Champions League. Back in 2018-19, the first continental campaign in team history, the run concluded in the Round of 16. This season is far from a groundbreaking success, but considering misfortunes from the top of the season, the current journey is more than capable of overshadowing the rest.
Rewind a few weeks, back to the end of the Regular Season, Promitheas avoided elimination with a win on Gameday 6, the finale of the six-game double-legged round-robin schedule, against previously undefeated ERA Nymburk in Kralovka Arena.
Perhaps, some luck was necessary to counter setbacks, such as meeting Karsiyaka on the heels of several players departing the Izmir outfit due to financial issues. Despite entering the Play-Ins as the third seed of Group D, the depleted opponent seemingly paved the way to return to the Round of 16 but it was not an easy task to complete a two-game sweep. Behind improved defense after the break, the lead grew and settled in a win by a margin of 16 points. Over team history in the BCL, it was the second-highest margin of victory, trailing only a 49-point win versus Opava early in the 2023-24 season.
A familiar foe
The Round of 16 resurfaces yet another battle with domestic rival AEK Betsson. In last season’s Group L, Promitheas ranked second in a three-way tie with UCAM Murcia and Hapoel Holon to advance to the Quarterfinals behind a 4-2 W-L tally, including two wins over the Queen. The next continental collision is in Group I, specifically in Gameday 1 in Sunel Arena on January 28. Alongside the Greek clubs, FIT/ONE Wurzburg Baskets and Bertram Derthona Tortona are the two remaining contenders for the Quarterfinals tickets.
“The way that we played the last month or so, the effort, the unity, the togetherness that we played with, I think we can expect more of that,” 28-year-old Kenny Williams, a former AEK player, projected the upcoming challenges after helping his side eliminate Karsiyaka on Wednesday, “Throughout the season, you want to be getting better every single day and play your best basketball in the Playoffs or a Play-In series like today. Every day we come in to work and get better. The results show on the court.”
Furthermore, recent signings Jordan Davis and Sotiris Oikonomopoulos are expected to be registered to the BCL squad. Both were ineligible for the best-of-three Play-In series due to Promitheas exceeding the limit of allowed changes to the continental roster. With two additional adjustments available before the Round of 16, Davis and Oikonomopoulos emerge as natural fits, after previously reinforcing the team coached by Ilias Papatheodorou in Greece’s Stoiximan GBL.
“It’s a totally different year for us, a totally different season,” the 49-year-old Greek tactician compared the previous and ongoing BCL campaigns, “We had a lot of adversities all these months. At the beginning of the season, we missed main players. We replaced some of them. We did not start well in the BCL. We lost the first game. Until the end of the Regular Season, nobody believed in us.”
“Even if we had all these adversities, we are in the Top 16,” he added grandly, “We are really proud of the team. I have to congratulate the players, above all, for the result. Second, the people around the team, the coaching staff, the management, and also the fans today for their support. It means a lot for a team like Promitheas to be for a second year in a row in the best 16 teams in the BCL because the level of the league is really high every season.”
Milestone for Chrysikopoulos
A regular in the Champions League, including the last two years with Promitheas, Linos Chrysikopoulos become the second player after Tim Abromaitis to reach a total of 100 appearances. Earlier in his career, he was featured in the BCL with fellow Greek clubs PAOK, AEK, and Peristeri.
List of players with the most appearances in the BCL
| Player | Games Played |
| 1. Tim Abromaitis | 106 |
| 2. Linos Chrysikopoulos | 100 |
| 3. Bruno Fitipaldo | 99 |
| 4. Vojtech Hruban | 93 |
| -. Vassilis Xanthopoulos | 93 |
Photo Credit: FIBA