Should you believe in some upsets during Play-Off Round 1?
MUNICH (EuroCup Women) – Those teams who want to compete in EuroCup Women into 2018 will have to make sure they excel in Play-Off Round 1 but will there by any upsets?
With the top 8 ranked clubs having jumped straight to the Round of 16 – can any of the lower seeds cause a surprise and join them? Here are some of the reasons to believe some upsets might be possible in the five most uneven ties on paper:
[24] Elfic Fribourg v [9] Basket Landes
- Just over a year ago, Elfic Fribourg posted one of their greatest ever European nights when they beat Landes 62-54 during the Regular Season. They then did even better, when they won the subsequent road trip too, to complete a double over their French rivals.
- Angelina Williams has been a rock for Fribourg but she can also take things up a gear in any game situation. She is sinking more than 55 percent from two-point range.
[23] ACS Sepsi v [10] Olympiacos
- You need to believe in the capacity of ACS Sepsi fan power to make their opponents crumble, since even veteran players can sometimes find it tough against a partisan home crowd.
- Sepsi also have Tyaunna Marshall who is the third highest scorer in the tournament with almost 19 points per game and could do some serious damage for the ambitious Romanians.
[22] MBA Moscow v [11] Mersin
- MBA can turn the defensive switch when they need and rank in the top 5 in the competition for steals with more than 10 per game.
- Team work makes the dream work and MBA Moscow have six players who are all within a two-point range in efficiency and that makes them hard to stop. They don't have one big danger like many other clubs so there is no real lock down scenario for Mersin and the chemistry of Moscow is impressive too.
[21] CMB Cargo Uni Gyor v [12] KSC Szekszard
- There is a familiarity factor for Gyor as KSC Szekszard are domestic rivals in the Hungarian League so they will know exactly what it is going to take.
- Four of the usual starters are averaging double digits in points and can all combine nicely, including Hungarian national team trio Zsofia Simon, Tijana Krivacevic and Cyesha Goree - plus Canadian star Nirra Fields who was MVP at the FIBA Women's AmeriCup 2017.
[20] Enisey Krasnoyarsk v [13] Namur
- Enisey took the scalp of an even higher seed in Mersin during the last game of the Regular Season.
- Jacinta Monroe is almost averaging a double-double for the Russian side with more than 15 points and 9 boards per outing. She is very much a game-winner in waiting.
Elsewhere in Play-Off Round 1, Artego Bydgoszcz will be looking to shrug off a domestic wobble of late when they go to DVTK Miskolc, Umea Udominate will be confident of a home win against Basket 90 Gdynia and 16th seeds Saint-Amand will have no fears when they host 17th seeds TSV 1880 Wasserburg.
You can follow all of Thursday's ties via Live Updates. Two games take place on Wednesday.
FIBA
