March 26, 2015 - Quarterfinals, Game 2 MVP: James White, Unics Kazan
The
feat accomplished by Unics Kazan this week has to be one of the most
memorable moments in Eurocup competition. After having lost Game 1 of
the quarterfinals at home by 9 points against powerhouse Lokomotiv
Kuban Krasnodar, the team from Kazan regrouped and won on the road in
Game 2 by 21, more than enough to claim the series and advance to the
semifinals. The main pillar of this recovery was guard James White, who
deservedly earned MVP honors this week. White led Unics with a
performance index rating of 38, the highest in his Eurocup career and
also the highest among all winning players this week. White scored 29
points (also a career record for him), pulled 8 rebounds (another
personal record), dished 2 assists and drew 8 fouls in his best Eurocup
performance ever. Following him was Banvit Bandirma's Sammy Mejia, who
had a performance index rating of 28 to lead his team into semifinals
by defeating Paris Levallois. Read more here.
March 24, 2015 - Eurocup Quarterfinals, Game 2: Survival tests all around
Return games in the eight home-and-away Eurocup
Quarterfinals series this week will determine four semifinalists that
will continue to battle for Eurocup glory. A pair of home teams enter
their respective Game 2 with advantages from last week, but all four
series are still open and promise plenty of excitement. Return legs
start on Tuesday with a clash between Banvit Bandirma and Paris
Levallois, and continue with three more games on Wednesday. Read more here.
Here is the schedule for Game 2:
Quarterfinal A
Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar vs. Unics Kazan 58-79
Quarterfinal B
Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir vs. Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas 74-75
Quarterfinal C
Banvit Bandirma vs. Paris Levallois 75-71
Quarterfinal D
Khimki Moscow Region vs. Valencia Basket 76-61
March 20, 2015 - Quarterfinals, Game 1 co-MVP's: Tyrese Rice of Khimki and Krunoslav Simon of Lokomotiv
The
defining moments of the season are approaching at a fast pace and as
such, the first game of the four quarterfinals series is in the history
books. After all the dust settled in the battles, two players emerged
as the best this week among the winning players: Tyrese Rice of Khimki
Moscow Region and Krunoslav Simon of Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar. Both
managed to rack up a performance index rating of 27 to become co-MVP's
of the week. Rice helped his team survive a late Valencia Basket late
combat for a 1-point win thanks to his 27 points, 5 assists and 2
steals. On the other side, Simon lifted Loko to a valuable road win
over Unics Kazan thanks to his 18 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 6
drawn fouls. Vladimir Dragicevic of Banvit Bandirma was in the third
place this week with a performance index rating, albeit his team lost
on the road to Paris Levallois by 2 points. Read more here.
March 17, 2015 - Quarterfinals, Game 1: Hot teams open sizzling series
The eight teams are left in the 2014-15 Eurocup
season will play the first half of their two-game series starting this
week as the Eurocup Quarterfinals get underway. Two of those
quarterfinals series pair former Eurocup champions, and the two other
series feature three that have never before made it this far in the
competition. The quarterfinals open on Tuesday with battle of the
reigning champion Valencia Basket against the 2012 champ Khimki Moscow
Region, and continue with three more games on Wednesday.
Here is the schedule for Game 1:
Quarterfinal A
Unics Kazan vs. Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar 78-87
Quarterfinal B
Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas vs. Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir 76-66
Quarterfinal C
Paris Levallois vs. Banvit Bandirma 67-65
Quarterfinal D
Valencia Basket vs. Khimki Moscow Region 75-76
March 16, 2015 - Inside the quarterfinals
Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas vs. Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir
Meeting for the first time ever, and traveling more
than 4,000 kilometers to do so, Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas and
Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir will look to extend their best-ever seasons in
the competition and make their way to a place they have never been
before – the Eurocup Semifinals.
Hard to beat
In its ninth campaign in the competition, Herbalife Gran Canaria Las
Palmas is enjoying its best-ever Eurocup season. Head coach Aito Garcia
Reneses's men have won 17 out of 18 games this season, and five in a
row after opening the season with a 12-0 record. Gran Canaria has
reached the quarterfinals once before, in the 2009-10 season, when it
was ousted by Panellinios. Tomas Bellas and Oscar Alvarado are two
players still left on the roster from that team, and now will have a
chance to help Gran Canaria battle for a historic semifinal berth. Read
more here.
Paris Levallois vs. Banvit Bandirma
For the first time ever
in the Eurocup quarterfinals, Banvit Bandirma and Paris Levallois
square off knowing the winner will claim a place in the semifinals and
write a new chapter in its club’s history.
Exploring the unknown
Two clubs are hoping to reach Eurocup heights they have never reached
before. Banvit Bandirma and Paris Levallois are both first time Eurocup
quarterfinalists and one of them will make more of its club history by
reaching the semifinals. Paris only made its Eurocup regular season
debut last season, and coming into this series has a 14-14 all-time
Eurocup record. On the other hand, this is Banvit’s fifth Eurocup
campaign in as many years and only one team has played more Eurocup
games in the past five seasons than Banvit. Read more here.
Unics Kazan vs. Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar
Unics Kazan won the
Eurocup in 2011. Lokomotiv Kuban won it two years later. Unics reached
the finals last season. Lokomotiv is undefeated this season. Both are
serious title contenders. But one will be going home soon.
How did we get here?
Unics Kazan started the season in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague
Qualifying Rounds. After knocking off Stelmet Zielona Gora, Hapoel
Jerusalem and ASVEL Lyon Villeurbanne, Unics advanced to Group A of the
Euroleague regular season. Things did not go well at the start as Unics
dropped four of its first five games. However, with its back to the
wall – and after a coaching change – Unics won four straight games and
had a shot to reach the Top 16 before falling at the hands of Nizhny
Novgorod in the regular season finale. Read more here.
Valencia Basket vs Khimki Moscow Region
Two of the Eurocup’s great dynasties clash for a
ticket to the semifinals. Defending champion Valencia Basket has won
the competition a record three times; Khimki Moscow Region beat
Valencia in the 2012 championship game for its first crown.
How did they get here?
After winning the Eurocup last season, Valencia started the current
campaign in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague. Though Valencia played
well against some strong teams – it lost twice to Olympiacos Piraeus by
a combined 4 points, defeated two current Top 16 teams and had a
winning record at home (3-2) – its inability to win on the road cost
the team a chance at advancing. Instead, Valencia came to the Eurocup
to defend its title starting from the Last 32. Things did not go well
at first; Valencia was 1-2 at the midway point in Group N, but won its
next two games to clinch second place and then routed FC Bayern Munich
in the eighthfinals. Read more here.