March 28, 2012 - Eurocup Finals matchups clarification
In order to avoid any misunderstanding because of a
mistake in the Format section of www.eurocupbasketball.net Euroleague
Basketball would like to clarify that the Eurocup Finals 2012 Khimki
matchups as stated in the Eurocup official By-Laws are:
Semifinal A: Valencia Basket - Lietuvos Rytas Semifinal B: BC Spartak St. Petersburg - BC Khimki Moscow Region
Euroleague Basketball would like to apologize for the misunderstanding
but would also like to point out that the correct matchups are the ones
appearing in the Eurocup official By–Laws that were approved during
this summer and sent to all participating clubs before the beginning of
the season.
March 28, 2012 - Quarterfinals, Game 2 MVP: Yotam Halperin, Spartak St. Petersburg
Spartak
St. Petersburg reached the Eurocup Finals by sweeping its two-way
series against CEZ Nymburk and one of its players registered the best
individual performance of all winning squads in Game 2 of the
Quarterfinals. Yotam Halperin helped Spartak to beat Nymburk 86-71 with
19 points on 3-of-4 three-pointers and 6-of-6 free throws. He added 3
rebounds, 7 assists, a steal, a block and 6 fouls drawn for a 31
performance index rating. In that game, Tre Simmons had a 32 index, but
in a losing effort, making him uneligible in the MVP race. Simmons had
22 points on 4-of-5 triples and 4-of-4 free throws, 7 rebounds and 10
fouls drawn. Ali Traore of Lokomotiv-Kuban had 22 points, 6 rebounds
and 7 fouls drawn to amass a 24 index in his team's 81-77 home win
against BC Khimki - but it was not enough for Loko to get to the
Finals. Read more here.
March 27, 2012 - Quarterfinals Game 2
Valencia Basket 85 - 63 KK Buducnost Voli
Valencia
overpowered Buducnost 84-60 to grab a spot in the Eurocup Finals in
Khimki, Russia, on April 14 and 15. Valencia lost the opener to
Buducnost and needed to win this game by more than 4 to move on. It
exceeded that total early in the first quarter and maintained a
double-digit lead throughout, reaching a 31-point advantage early in
the final quarter. The hosts used a balanced attack, led by Victor
Claver’s 13 points, including 3 of 4 from three-point range, while
Andrew Ogilvy, Vitor Faverani and Nik Caner-Medey contributed 11 points
apiece. Bojan Dubljevic paced the losers with 17 points and Jermaine
Anderson added 13. Read more here.
BC Donetsk 80 - 78 Lietuvos Rytas
Lietuvos
Rytas is back in the Eurocup Finals and will play on seeking its third
title after surviving the Eurocup Quarterfinals, despite losing Game 2
on the road to BC Donetsk 80-78. Rytas won Game 1 by 11 points, which
allowed it to move on in the two-game total points series. After
falling behind 8-10 early in the first quarter, Donetsk trailed by as
many as 12 until the fourth quarter when Ramel Curry led a rally that
gave the hosts a 33-24 scoring differential in the final 10 minutes,
enough to grab the narrow victory, but not enough to threaten the
series outcome. Curry scored 26 points, including 4 of 6 from downtown,
to pace the winners, while Vule Avdalovic bagged 14, Viacheslav
Kravtsov contributed 12 and Ivan Radenovic 10 along with 8 rebounds.
Read more here.
Lokomotiv Kuban 81 - 77 BC Khimki
BC
Khimki will play the Eurocup Finals on its home court after advancing
Tuesday in Krasnodar, despite losing 81-77 to Lokomotiv Kuban in Game 2
of the quarterfinals. Khimki won the opener 81-72 to win the total
points series by 5. An 18-4 run to finish the second quarter gave to
the visitors a 33-46 lead at halftime, but Lokomotiv climbed back in
the third quarter and finished its comeback early in the fourth by
taking the lead on a three-pointer from Jeremiah Massey, 66-64. Loko
came close to the needed 9-point margin at 78-71 with 80 seconds left,
but Khimki iced its qualification by being perfect from the foul line.
Ali Traore combined for 22 points and 6 rebounds for Lokomotiv, Massey
added 19 with 8 boards and Vlado Ilievski scored 11 and Maxim Sheleketo
10 for Lokomotiv. Read more here.
Spartak St. Petersburg 86 - 71 CEZ Nymburk
Spartak
St. Petersburg is the first team in the Eurocup Finals! The Russian
team defeated CEZ Nymburk also in Game 2 of the quarterfinal series by
86-71 and punched its ticket for the final event of the season, to take
place in Khimki, Russia, on April 14 and 15. Spartak had also won Game
1 in the Czech Republic by 64-68. The rival of Spartak in Khimki will
be thewinner of the series between Valencia Basket and KK Buducnost
VOLI, to be played later today. Good accuracy from the three-point line
helped Spartak build and keep a safe lead in the first half, and it
only increased little by little in the second half as the hosts secured
the win. Read more here.
March 26, 2012 - Quarterfinals, Game 2: it's decision time!
Tuesday
will prove to be the decisive night for the eight teams alive and
battling for Eurocup glory. The four Eurocup Quarterfinals series will
all play the return legs on the home floor of the Last 16 group winners
with the winners of the two-game, home-and-away, total points series
heading on to the crowning weekend of the competition, the 2012 Eurocup
Finals next month at Khimki, Russia. After the first games of the
series turned up three home winners and a 4-point victory for the
visitors in the other, everything is open heading into Games 2. The
first series likely to be decided tips off at 17:00 CET when Spartak
St. Petersburg hosts CEZ Nymburk. Patrick Beverley starred with 19
points and Vladimir Dragicevic added 18 as Spartak won last week 64-68,
but Tre Simmons rallied Nymburk from 13 down in the fourth quarter to
keep the Czech champs’ chances alive going into the return leg. One
half-hour later, Lokomotiv Kuban faces BC Khimki in an all-Russian
duel. Read more here.
Quarterfinals, Game 2
TUESDAY, MARCH 27
Spartak SPB vs. CEZ Nymburk 86:71
Lokomotiv Kuban vs. BC Khimki 81:77
BC Donetsk vs. Lietuvos Rytas 80:78
Valencia Basket vs. Buducnost Voli 85:63
March 21, 2012 - Quarterfinals, Game 1 MVP: Bojan Dubljevic, KK Buducnost VOLI
In
what probably was the most surprising result of the first leg of the
Eurocup Quarterfinals, Bojan Dubljevic of KK Buducnost Voli led his
team to a home win over Valencia Basket by 75-71 and earned weekly MVP
honors in the process with an index rating performance of 25. Dubljevic
scored 15 points, pulled 8 boards, had 3 steals and drew 6 fouls to
rack up the best perfoemance among the winning teams in Game 1. The
player with the highest index rating was CEZ Nymburk's Tre Simmons with
29, but his team lost to Spartak SPB at home. Read more here.
March 19, 2012 - Quarterfinals Game 1
Lietuvos Rytas 76 - 65 BC Donetsk
Lietuvos
Rytas opened its drive for the Eurocup Finals on the right track by
defeating BC Donetsk 76-65 at home on Tuesday in the first game of
their two-game, total-points quarterfinals series. Steponas Babrauskas
scored 15 points, making 3 of 6 shots from downtown, and Jonas
Valanciunas produced a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for
the winners. Rytas will advance to the next stage with a win in next
week’s deciding fixture – or a loss by fewer than 11 points. Trailing
the entire game, Donetsk pulled to within 22-20 in the second quarter
and 63-59 in the fourth, but Rytas always had the answer. The hosts
tallied more rebounds, two-point attempts and assists, adding up to
overall dominance. Read more here.
KK Buducnost Voli 75 - 71 Valencia Basket
Buducnost
Voli rallied from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat Valencia
Basket 75-71 and keep its hopes of reaching the Eurocup Final alive.
The Montenegrin champs went on a 13-0 run and took the lead on a
three-pointer from teenager Nikola Ivanovic to the delight of the local
fans. Buducnost will punch its tickets to the next stage for the first
time in club history if it wins the return leg of the two-game,
total-points series next week in Valencia – or if it loses by fewer
than 4 points. The game featured lots of back and forth action. Twice
Valencia built double-figure leads only to see the hosts storm back to
take the lead. Bojan Dubljevic paced the winners with 15 points and 8
rebounds, Jermaine Anderson also scored 15 – including a three at the
final buzzer to increase the final difference. Read more here.
BC Khimki 81 - 72 Lokomotiv Kuban
BC
Khimki took an 81-72 win over Lokomotiv Kuban, on Tuesday, in the first
game of their two-game, total points quarterfinals series. Coach Rimas
Kurtinaitis's men will reach the next stage with a win in Game 2 next
week or a loss by fewer than 9 points. Lokomotiv, which led early, tied
the score at 71-71 with 5:20 left to play, but Khimki finished stronger
capped by a three point-play from Vitaly Fridzon to take the win.
Thomas Kelati led the way with 20 points on an amazing 6-for-7 shooting
from downtown. Fridzon added 17 with great accuracy, Alexey Zhukanenko
drilled 13 and Sergey Monya 10. KC Rivers and Jeremiah Massey were the
main contributors for Lokmotiv Kuban with 14 points each, while Ali
Traore bagged 13 points plus 8 rebounds. Lokomotiv’s downfall was 17
turnovers. Read more here.
CEZ Nymburk 64 - 68 Spartak St. Petersburg
Spartak
St Petersburg took a step closer to the Eurocup Finals with a 64-68
road win at CEZ Nymburk on Monday in the first game of their two-game,
total-points quarterfinals series. Patrick Beverley scored 19 points
and Vladimir Dragicevic 18 for Spartak, which improved to 12-1 in the
Eurocup this season. Coach Jure Zdovc’s men will reach the next stage
with a win in next week’s deciding fixture – or a loss by fewer than 4
points. Nymburk rallied from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to
within 4 to leave itself a chance in game 2. The major difference in
the game was shooting accuracy: Nymburk made 19 of 40 two-pointers
(47.5%) and 4 of 14 threes (28.6%) compared to Spartak’s 21 of 35
two-pointers (60%) and 7 of 18 triples (38.9%). Read more here.
March 19, 2012 - Quarterfinals, Game 1: Quarterfinals start on lower-seed home courts!
After
three long weeks of anticipation, the Eurocup Quarterfinals are finally
upon us. The best eight teams from the 32 that started the season will
square off in four two-game, home-and-away, total-points series that
begin this week with tickets to the 2012 Eurocup Finals at Khimki at
stake. The quarterfinals field is an impressive one with two former
competition champions and two resigning domestic champions among those
still alive. The 2012 quarterfinals begin with a lone game on Monday in
the Czech Republic, where CEZ Nymburk hosts Spartak Saint Petersburg at
19:00 CET. Nymburk is in the quarterfinals for the second time in three
seasons. Spartak is favored in the series after winning 11 of 12 games
so far this season. The remaining three series tip off on Tuesday. Read
more here.
March 16, 2012 - Quarterfinals analysis: BC Donetsk vs. Lietuvos Rytas
BC
Donetsk arrives in the Eurocup Quarterfinals on a three-game winning
streak, which it used to win Last 16 Group J. In fact the team is 10-2
this season and undefeated at home with an average margin of victory of
11.3 points per game. Lietuvos Rytas marched through the regular season
undefeated and like Donetsk, has lost only two games this season,
though it finished second in Group L on a tiebreaker. The series
features two of the top three rebounding teams in the Eurocup – Rytas
is first with 38.3 boards per game and Donetsk this at 36.6.
Capitalizing on the home games could be the key to the outcome, as both
teams have been very strong on their home courts. Read more here.
March 14, 2012 - Quarterfinals analysis: Valencia Basket vs. KK Buducnost Voli
Two-time
Eurocup champion Valencia Basket enters the quarterfinals on a tear
after running through the Last 16 with a perfect record, despite a
coaching change that brought in Velimir Perasovic two games into the
stage. Valencia was the Last 16 leader in average performance index
rating (87.8 per game) and its biggest strengths have been on the
defensive end. The team also led the Last 16 in steals (11.5 spg.) and
blocks (4.3 ppg.) and allowed the second-fewest points (64.5 ppg.).
Montenegrin powerhouse Buducnost Voli punched its quarterfinals ticket
on the final day of the Last 16 with a victory over Krka Novo Mesto to
finish Group K in second place with a 3-3 record. This marks the first
time Buducnost has survived until the round of eight in this
competition. Read more here.
March 12, 2012 - Quarterfinals analysis: Lokomotiv Kuban vs. BC Khimki
Lokomotiv
Kuban arrives in the Eurocup Quarterfinals after winning Group L with a
4-2 record. BC Khimki is tied for the best record in the Eurocup this
far at 11-1, but finished second in Group J on a tiebreaker.
Lokomotiv’s highly balanced team stands out in very few categories, but
ranks among the top half in the Eurocup in nearly every major
statistical category. Likewise the team’s points allowed per game (70.9
ppg.) is among the top quarter in the competition. Khimki has impressed
this season and leads the Eurocup in average index rating (90.1 per
game), three-point accuracy (40.4%), free throw shooting (80.4%) and
assists (20.2 apg.) and is top five in scoring (fifth, 78.8 ppg.),
three-pointers made (third, 91), steals (fourth, 8.4 spg.) and blocks
(fourth, 3.5 bpg.). Read more here.
March 8, 2012 - Quarterfinals analysis: Spartak SPB vs. CEZ Nymburk
Spartak
St. Petersburg has been among the best teams in the Eurocup all season
and enters the Eurocup Quarterfinals with a combined 11-1 record to
date – its only loss having come in the last game of the Last 16 after
it had already clinched first place in Group K. CEZ Nymburk, which went
5-1 in the Eurocup Regular Season, slumped during the Last 16, but won
its final game on the road by 30 to wind up second in Group I with a
3-3 record. Spartak has benefitted from an experienced lineup that buys
into team basketball. Accordingly the team is ranked second in the
Europe in assists (16.9 apg.) and leads the competition is two-point
shooting (57.0%) and fewest turnovers committed (12.1 TOpg.). Read more
here.
On Tuesday the eight teams that will play in the
four Quarterfinals series were known. Take a peek at each of them less
than three weeks before the start of the next phase, last hurdle before
the Eurocup Finals in April!
Valencia
Basket returns to the quarterfinals with great momentum after going 6-0
record in the Last 16. Led by Nando De Colo and Nik Caner-Medley, the
2010 Eurocup champs are more than ready to fight for a spot in the
Eurocup Finals in Khimki next month. De Colo recorded the most
steals(14) and assists (30) in the Last 16 and was fourth in points
scored (95). His contribution was key for Valencia to get huge wins in
the first leg of the phase, especially against CEZ Nymburk in which he
scored 32 points. Caner-Medley leads the team in scoring this season
(13.6 ppg) and Rafa Martinez is also contributing 10.7 points per game
on a team with the quality and experience to advance to the Eurocup
Finals and even go all the way. Read more here.