By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Vechta is a city with 32.000 inhabitants. In terms of population, the German city can be compared with only a couple of other Basketball Champions League Regular Season teams, ERA Nymburk and Mornar Bar. The club from the Czech Republic is flying high, but plays BCL home games at Prague, while RASTA Vechta is 4-2 in an arguably tough Group B with the fourth victory coming on Tuesday over AEK.
The mastermind behind the Gameday 6 contest was Steve Vasturia. Despite being constantly pressured by top-notch defender Howard Sant-Roos, the 23-year-old American guard from Philadelphia posted a team-high 17 points and dished a clutch assist to Max DiLeo down the stretch. The Notre Dame alumni also grabbed eight rebounds, made a total of five dimes, added one steal to his tally.
“I just tried to be aggressive” Vasturia said to Eurohoops commenting on his clutch assist for DiLeo’s three-pointer with 41 seconds left in the game. “Everybody on this team steps up to take shots. I was just trying to be aggressive and help us get a win. AEK is a great team. We just want to get better every day. That is what we tried to do today.”
Upsetting the Queen, the 2018 BCL title holder, certainly rocked the group and was orchestrated by the American guard, but he was not alone at Athens. “Team effort” he noted shortly after the conclusion before even getting to celebrate the victory with his teammates, “Everybody gave 100%. Everybody contributed. Full forty minute game.”
Getting the job done on the road
Winning away from home comes in handy. Without undermining Tuesday’s triumph, Vechta also beat EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez and Telenet Giants Antwerp on the road, has only dropped its match in Israel against Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem so far. Only at 1-1 at home means that the team still has five games to go at the RASTA Dome which makes the rest of the group stage look even more promising.
“We want to keep getting better every day” said Vasturia looking into the future, “It’s still early in the season. We got off to a good start, but we want to keep improving. We just try to take it one round at a time. We have a lot of great teams in our group. So we have to get ready for the next challenge.”
The way to Vechta
Born into a family linked with basketball and other sports, Vasturia attended Philadelphia’s St. Joseph’s Prep, before joining Notre Dame for his four-year NCAA career between 2013 and 2017. As a sophomore posted 10.1 points per game, followed up with 11.4 points and 13.1 points per appearance in his next two seasons.
Following his four-year tenure with the Fighting Irish, he tipped off his professional career in 2018 with ALBA Berlin. He went on for a full season with Palencia in Spain’s LEB Oro averaging 16.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.4 steals per appearance and afterwards returned to Germany to join Vechta.
“It’s a great place” the American guard said referring to his decision last summer holding more praise for his teammates and commenting on his team’s strive for improvement. “We have a lot of guys that believe. We just want to work hard every day.”
In the process of establishing himself among his new side’s top performers, he started his 2019-20 campaign in great pace with 14 points, 5.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals per Champions League contest so far. Apart FIBA’s premier club competition, Vasturia leads Vechta with 13.1 points per easyCredit BBL game, also has 5.9 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals per match.
Making noise in Athens
Vechta fans traveled from Germany and made themselves fell like home at OAKA Olympic Indoor Hall. “It’s great to have our fans travel. They support us every game. We really appreciate that” he mentioned after thanking the noisy fans alongside his teammates and the coaching staff.
However, the team’s run since Pedro Calles took over head coaching responsibilities in 2018 fails in comparison to the joy in Greece’s capital. Vechta earned its first promotion to easyCredit BBL in 2013, but was relegated in 2014 and 2017. Avoiding the drop from Germany’s top division for the first time last season was just the tip of the iceberg, as the Spanish head coach led his squad to fourth place in the regular season and to the playoffs semifinals, and this year making even larger waves in the Champions League.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League