MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) - In our group-by-group preview of all FIBA Europe Cup teams, we start with Group A which features a relatively new face in Belgian basketball Brussels Basketball, the historic SL Benfica club, four-time Hungarian champions Alba Fehervar and last year's FIBA Europe Cup third-place winners Elan Chalon.

Brussels Basketball in new territory
Having only joined the Belgian topflight three seasons ago, Brussels Basketball will be breaking new ground in the club's history in the upcoming season with a momentous international debut in the FIBA Europe Cup.

Serge Crevecoeur's side caused somewhat of a stir in last year’s Belgian Basketball League Play-Offs, upsetting second-seeded Spirou Charleroi in the Quarter-Finals and coming close to another surprising performance against Okapi Aalstar in the Semi-Final.

The club from the Belgian capital was a late addition to the field of FIBA Europe Cup teams and look like a possible dark horse in the group.

Brussels Basketball started their 2016-17 campaign on a positive note, picking up two victories in the first two rounds of the Belgian Basketball League against last year’s Play-Off rivals Okapi Aalstar and Spirou Charleroi.

The team's newcomer Jeremy Simmons, who arrived to Belgium from Basket Givova Scafati in Serie A2, has been thoroughly impressive in the first two of games, scoring 19 and 26 points respectively.

SL Sporting hoping to add to historic legacy
The most successful club in Portuguese basketball, SL Benfica carries in its name the prestige and glory that few other FIBA Europe Cup teams can match. Having racked up 26 domestic titles, 21 national cups and many other trophies over the course of a history spanning almost 90 years, the Eagles will be most titled team in Group A as well.

SL Benfica participated in the Basketball Champions League (BCL) Qualification Round, but transferred to the FIBA Europe Cup after falling short in an extremely close tie against Openjobmetis Varese (ITA) 145-144 on aggregate.

Coached by Portuguese basketball and club legend Carlos Lisboa, considered the country’s best basketball player of all time,  Benfica will have its sights set not only a good performance in the FIBA Europe Cup, but also regaining the LPB crown after seeing a four-year winning streak snapped by FC Porto last season.

The SuperCup tie last weekend offered Lisboa's men a shot at redemption against Porto, but Benfica had to concede defeat once again after a poor second half.

Benfica took part in the FIBA Europe Cup last year, but didn’t make it out of the Regular Season after going 2-4 and finishing third in Group B.

New wave of optimism for Alba Fehervar
After a couple of disappointing seasons in a row, four-time Hungarian champions Alba Fehervar gave fans of the team some inspiration last year by winning silver in the Hungarian League and qualifying for the FIBA Europe Cup.

Not much time has passed since Alba’s last league title in the 2012-13 season, but with results on a steep decline, the Finals appearance against Szolnoki Olaj was a much-needed breath of fresh air for the club and has generated plenty of excitement before the new campaign.

Coached by Branislav Dzunic, the club returns to the international stage after a two-year break and will mesh together a group of recently graduated Americans from NCAA and some homegrown players.

One of the key additions during the off-season was the arrival of Hungarian national team big man Akos Keller, who made solid contributions to the country securing a FIBA EuroBasket 2017 berth this summer.

Elan Chalon hope to improve on third place
There are many from the inaugural season of the FIBA Europe Cup returning to the competition this year as well, but among the ones remaining Elan Chalon undoubtedly has all available bragging rights.

The French side lost only four games last season and finished third in a Final Four they hosted in Chalon sur Saone, blowing out Enisey Krasnoyarsk 103-72 in the bronze-medal fixture.

However, the end of the season did not go as planned for coach Jean Denys Choulet, who saw his side fall 2-0 against ASVEL in the First Round of the LNB Pro A Play-Offs after finishing fourth in the Regular Season.

Elan Chalon will be a name to look out for in the upcoming season, particularly with the addition of sharpshooter Lance Harris from Pau-Lacq-Orthez, who has been spectacular in the first rounds of action in the domestic championship in France.

Last season, only one team in the FIBA Europe Cup managed to beat Elan Chalon at home and the French side promises to be an equally tough nut to crack at the Colisee this year as well.

FIBA