May 7, 2014 - Valencia sets several Eurocup Finals records
On
its way to a competition-record third Eurocup title, Valencia Basket
Club set a number of records both on defense and offense in the second
leg of the Eurocup Finals series against Unics Kazan on Wednesday. By
hitting 12 of 24 attempts from behind the arc, Valencia collected the
most three-point shots made in a finals game ever. The previous record
of 10 three-pointers shot made was set by Real Madrid in 2007. Rafa
Martinez led the way for the new Eurocup champions by landing 4 of his
5 attempts from downtown. On defense, Valencia also set a new mark for
the fewest points allowed in a quarter in a Eurocup Finals game by
holding Unics to just 4 points in the first quarter of Game 2. The
previous record was held by Joventut Badalona, which limited Akasvayu
Girona to 6 points in the second quarter of the 2008 title game. Read
more here.
Nobody
across the 4,000 kilometers between Valencia, Spain and Kazan, Russia
had any doubt when the series ended on Wednesday with Valencia Basket
Club as champion who exactly had to be the Eurocup Finals MVP. That
honor was signed, sealed and delivered in the name of forward Justin
Doellman after he led Valencia to a 73-85 victory to sweep the two-game
series and win his team's unprecedented third Eurocup title. Doellman
needed less than 25 minutes on court Wednesday to turn in another of
the best performances in Eurocup Finals history. His 26 points tied for
the fourth-most in any final game in the 12-year history of the
competition. And his performance index rating of 34 was the fourth-best
ever. His 4 steals tied the record for most in a final, too. In both
cases, Doellman's own performance in Game 1 ranked slightly ahead of
his Game 2 show. His 28 points in Game 1 tied the all-time scoring mark
in a finals game and his performance index rating of 35 in the series
opener was the third-best ever, behind only a pair of former Valencia
stars. Read more here.
May 7, 2014 - Dominant Doellman leads Valencia to third Eurocup crown
Valencia Basket Club has won its competition-record
third Eurocup title after beating Unics Kazan 73-85 in Game 2 of their
two-game finals series. Valencia swept the series with a 140-165
aggregate score to win the trophy it previously raised in 2003 and
2010, and also earn a Turkish Airlines Euroleague berth for the 2014-15
season. Valencia never trailed at any point of either finals game, and
it dominated Game 2 behind another brilliant performance from Eurocup
Finals MVP Justin Doellman, who finished the return leg with 26 points,
5 assists and 4 steals. Valencia played it to perfection on defense,
limiting Unics to a Eurocup finals record 4 points in the first
quarter. Sam Van Rossom and Doellman made it 4-16 after 10 minutes
before 4 consecutive three-pointers – a pair from each Pablo Aguilar
and Rafa Martinez – extended the difference to 10-29 in the second
quarter, which translated into 32-point series advantage. Read more here.
May 7, 2014 - Eurocup Finals, Game 2: the ultimate battle!
An
extraordinary 2013-14 Eurocup season, arguably the toughest and most
exciting in competition history, comes to an end with Game 2 of the
Finals. Valencia Basket Club holds a 13-point lead from Game 1 and
looks for its third Eurocup title, which would set a new competition
standard. Valencia would also become the second team in European
competitions to win a title after surviving four two-way series without
home court advantage – Aris Thessaloniki did that in 1997-98. It will
not be an easy task, however, as Unics is undefeated at home this
season in all competitions and hopes to become the first Russian team –
and just the third ever – to win the Eurocup twice. Valencia registered
an 80-67 home win in Game 1, but Unics used a final 10-30 run to
overcome a critical situation and return to the series. Read more here.
May 6, 2014 - Valencia opens home court to fans for Game 2 in Kazan
Not one, but two arenas will be entertaining big
crowds for the last battle of the Eurocup season on Wednesday as
Valencia Basket Club has announced plans fill its home court with fans
- even though the game will be held more than 4,000 kilometers away in
Kazan, Russia! Valencia leads the two-way Eurocup Finals after winning
Game 1 last Thursday 80-67 over visiting Unics Kazan before a sellout
crowd of 8,500 at Pabellon Fuente de San Luis, better known locally as
La Fonteta. For Game 2 from Kazan on Wednesday, Valencia is opening up
La Fonteta and placing giant TV screens inside so that its fans can
spend the last night of the Eurocup as they did so many before it –
together. Read more here.
May 2, 2014 - Finals Game 1 MVP: Justin Doellman, Valencia Basket Club
With
one of the best performances by a player in Eurocup Finals history,
Justin Doellman of Valencia Basket Club helped his team take a step
towards a Eurocup title while claiming Eurocup Finals Game 1 MVP
honors. As Doellman starred in the opening clash of the two-game
series, Valencia beat Unics Kazan 80-67 and will take a 13-point
cushion into the return leg next week in Kazan, Russia. Doellman's
performance index rating of 35 was the fourth-best all time in the
Eurocup finals; Nik Caner-Medley in 2012 and Dejan Tomasevic in 2003,
both with Valencia, share the highest mark with 38. Doellman finished
Game 1 with 28 points on 8-of-11 for two point shooting, 2 for 5 from
behind the arc, and 6 of 7 from the free throw line. Read more here.
May 1, 2014 - Game 1
Valencia Basket Club 80 - 67 Unics Kazan
Valencia
Basket Club led from start to finish in taking the upper hand in the
Eurocup Finals with an 80-67 win over Unics Kazan in Game 1 of the
two-leg series on Thursday in Valencia. Behind Justin Doellman’s 28
points, Valencia played a fantastic three quarters and led by as many
as 33 points, but a strong finish for Unics with a 2-18 run to end the
game cut the margin to 13 points by the final buzzer. The 2014 Eurocup
champion will be crowned on Wednesday, May 7 after Game 2 in Kazan,
Russia, where Valencia will need a win, or a loss by up to 12 points,
to become Eurocup champion for the third time. Valencia, in its fourth
Eurocup Finals appearance, took a big lead very early in the first leg
of the finals. Doellman scored 12 first-quarter points as the hosts led
27-12 lead after 10 minutes. Three consecutive triples at the start of
the second opened a 24-point cushion. Read more here.
May 1, 2014 - Eurocup Finals, Game 1: The party starts in Valencia!
The
Eurocup Finals 2014 are here! The two-game, home-and-away series tips
off Thursday when Valencia Basket Club hosts Unics Kazan. The series
winner, based on aggregate score difference when both games are
finished, will be crowned Eurocup champion, and with it, earn a pass to
the Turkish Airlines Euroleague next season. This is the first time
since the inaugural 2002-03 ULEB Cup season that the competition's
winner will be decided in a two-game series. It is a clash of the
titans, the two former Eurocup champions, in the final series of the
season. On one side, Unics owns best record this season, 20-2, while on
the other, Valencia is historically the most successful team in the
competition, with titles from 2003 and 2010 as it makes a record fourth
Eurocup Finals appearance. Read more here.
April 30, 2014 - 2013-14 Eurocup MVP: Andrew Goudelock, Unics Kazan
Whenever
Unics Kazan needed a basket this season, the team with the best record
in the Eurocup turned to Andrew Goudelock. Time and time again, the
shooting guard stepped up and delivered, leading Unics to the Eurocup
Finals. For his many spectacular performances in taking Unics to the
brink of the title, Goudelock has been chosen as the Eurocup Most
Valuable Player for the 2013-14 season. A rookie in European
basketball, Goudelock put up big numbers all season long. He started 21
of his team's 22 games prior to the Eurocup Finals and scored in double
figures in every one. Goudelock finished fourth in the competition in
scoring, with 19.1 points per game, ranked ninth in three-pointers made
per game (2.4) and sixth in free-throw accuracy (90.5%). A statistical
analysis of Goudelock's season shows that he didn't just pile up stats
in blowout wins, either. Read more here.
April 25, 2014 - 2013-14 All-Eurocup First, Second teams named
The
new and expanded 2013-14 Eurocup basketball season had even more action
and drama than ever before. As it does every season, Euroleague
Basketball is pleased to honor 10 deserving stars as members of the
All-Eurocup First and Second Teams, players that excelled on the court
throughout the season and led their respective teams in deep runs in
the tournament. This year’s selection is loaded with familiar faces.
Some are previous All-Eurocup selections with multiple Eurocup or even
Turkish Airlines Euroleague seasons under their belt. The only rookie
among the First Team honorees is guard Andrew Goudelock of Unics Kazan.
He is joined on the All-Eurocup First Team by guard DeMarcus Nelson of
Crvena Zvezda Telekom Belgrade, forwards Dijon Thompson of Nizhny
Novgorod and Justin Doellman of Valencia Basket Club, and center
Vladimir Golubovic of Aykon TED Ankara Kolejliler. Read more here.
April 24, 2014 - Eurocup Coach of the Year: Andrea Trinchieri, Unics Kazan
Euroleague
Basketball is pleased to announce that the 2013-14 Eurocup Coach of the
Year is Andrea Trinchieri of Unics Kazan. In his first season on the
Kazan bench, Trinchieri has led the club to next month's Eurocup Finals
with the best record in the competition by playing the best defense in
Eurocup history. In fact, the 64.4 points allowed by Unics over 22
games this season is not only 8 points fewer per game than the
next-best defense this season, it's also the best points-against
defense by any team in Eurocup history. It has been a stellar season
for Trinchieri and Unics alike. Unics started with a perfect regular
season and stretched its winning streak to a competition record 13
games - dating back to a Game 2 win in last season's quarterfinals -
before suffering its first loss in Round 3 of the Last 32. Read more here.
April 24, 2014 - 2013-14 Eurocup Rising Star Trophy winner: Bojan Dubljevic, Valencia Basket
Euroleague
Basketball is pleased to announce Bojan Dubljevic of Valencia Basket as
the back-to-back winner of the Eurocup Rising Star Trophy. The
22-year-old center is the first man to win this award twice, after
posting career numbers this season and helping Valencia become the
first club in competition history to reach the Eurocup Finals four
times. The Eurocup Rising Star Trophy recognizes the most outstanding
player in the competition who was younger than 22 years of age on July
1 of the summer before the season started. Dubljevic, who turned 22 on
October 24 of last year, missed a month during the regular season with
a dislocated left shoulder, but was instrumental before and after the
injury with an inside-outside game that opened up opportunities for his
teammates while displaying a veteran’s poise in clutch moments. Read
more here.
April 11, 2014 - Eurocup Finals Analysis: Unics Kazan vs. Valencia Basket
By
all metrics, it’s clear that Unics Kazan and Valencia Basket represent
worthy foes to meet in the Eurocup Finals. While Coach Andrea
Trinchieri’s Unics squad has dominated on the defensive side of the
ball, Coach Velimir Perasovic’s Valencia has been one of the most
prolific offenses. Unics boasts the best record in the Eurocup this
season, 20-2, and has by far and away been the best defensive teams in
the competition. Unics has allowed the fewest points (64.4 ppg.) and
the lowest index (59.9), three-point shooting percentage (30.8%) and
true shooting percentage (44.0%). On offense, Unics has taken good care
of the ball and ranked fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.49 to 1).
Valencia has gone about dominating teams all season; its smallest
margin of victory in its 13 wins was 9 in Game 1 of the Eurocup
semifinals. Read more here.