19 September, 2017
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31/10/2017
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Wednesday Preview: Who will reach the midway point of the Regular Season on a positive note?

MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) - The bar was raised pretty high by the four-game slate on Tuesday, but there is plenty more to be excited about in the FIBA Europe Cup this week with 12 more contests lined up for Wednesday.

The Game of the Week will feature the Bulgarian and Romanian neighbors Lukoil Academic and U-BT Cluj-Napoca, which will have fans in both countries looking forward to the big clash.

Elsewhere, Sigal Prishtina will have a chance to be the first team to improve to a 4-0 record against old rivals Demir Insaat in Istanbul, while Group C and Group D action will pit the undefeated group leaders against each other – Kataja Basket will host Mornar Bar, while Egis Kormend will take on Keravnos.

Group E: Istanbul BBSK (1-1) v Dinamo Tbilisi (0-2)

Time: Wednesday, 15:00 CET
Key Matchup: Michael Thompson v Lavell Boyd
Last Game: After a big loss in Cluj, Istanbul BBSK bounced back with an 81-69 win at home against Lukoil Academic, while Dinamo Tbilisi could not stop their downward momentum, as they picked up their second loss in a row by losing 87-73 to U-BT Cluj-Napoca.
Domestic Form: Istanbul BBSK defeated Yesilgiresun 99-87 in the Turkish Basketball Super League to rise to 6th place in the standings with a 2-2 record. Dinamo Tbilisi are still unbeaten in the Georgian Superleague after taking care of Sokhumi 89-81 over the weekend.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group C: FC Porto (0-2) v Kapfenberg Bulls (0-2)

Time: Wednesday, 16:00 CET
Key Matchup: Marcus Gilbert v Brian Oliver
Last Game: FC Porto put on a good fight against Kataja Basket on the road in Finland but came up short 88-84, while Kapfenberg Bulls could not take advantage of their home court, falling to the visiting Mornar 75-69 in Austria.
Domestic Form: After starting their domestic season with three losses on the trot, FC Porto bounced back with back-to-back wins against Terceira and Lusitania, 81-75 and 93-84 respectively. They are now 9th with a 2-3 mark. Kapfenberg improved to a 4-1 record in the Austrian championship after defeating Oberwart Gunners 71-58 on Sunday.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group B: BC Nevezis (1-1) v Bakken Bears (1-1)

Time: Wednesday, 17:00 CET
Key Matchup: Malcolm Grant v DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell
Last Game: The Lithuanians from Kedainiai registered an 84-83 upset over Avtodor Saratov on their floor last week, while Bakken Bears also inscribed their first win of the season by downing SL Benfica 95-76 at home in Denmark.
Domestic Form: Nevezis celebrated a 76-73 upset over Lietuvos Rytas in the Lithuanian championship to advance to a 2-4 record. Meanwhile, Bakken Bears lost for the first time in Denmark, coming up short 89-81 in a home game against Horsholm.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group G: Demir Insaat (1-1) v Sigal Prishtina (3-0)

Time: Wednesday, 17:00 CET
Key Matchup: Bracey Wright v Dardan Berisha
Last Game: Somewhat surprisingly, Demir Insaat suffered an 84-79 loss against Belfius Mons-Hainaut last week. Meanwhile, Sigal Prishtina celebrated two victories in the FIBA Europe Cup last week, defeating Khimik in a double-header. They won the first game 76-65 and triumphed 78-59 in the second of the two fixtures.
Domestic Form: Demir Insaat lost their third straight game in the Turkish Basketball Super League, suffering a 94-75 defeat against Anadolu Efes. They share the bottom of the table with four other teams who also have a 1-3 mark. Sigal Prishtina hammered Borea 112-43 in Kosovo to maintain their perfect 5-0 record.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group C: Kataja Basket (2-0) v Mornar Bar (2-0)

Time: Wednesday, 17:30 CET
Key Matchup: Damier Pitts v Derek Needham
Last Game: Both of the teams improved to a 2-0 mark last week with single-digit wins. Kataja Basket defeated FC Porto 88-84 at home, while Mornar Bar topped Kapfenberg Bulls 75-69 on the road.
Domestic Form: Kataja Basket improved to a 3-3 mark in Finland after defeating Pyrinto Tampere 85-67 on the road. This puts them in 6th place in the Korisliiga standings. Mornar celebrated an 80-70 win over Zadar in the Adriatic League for their second win in a row that puts them in 8th place with a 3-3 record.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group E: Lukoil Academic (1-1) v U-BT Cluj-Napoca (2-0)

Time: Wednesday, 17:30 CET
Key Matchup: Hristo Nikolov v Zeljko Sakic
Last Game: Lukoil Academic suffered their first defeat of the season in FIBA Europe Cup as they came up short 81-69 in Turkey against Istanbul BBSK, while U-BT Cluj-Napoca added an 87-73 victory against Dinamo Tbilisi to their resume.
Domestic Form: Lukoil Academic delivered a 63-point beating to Cherno More to improve to a 2-1 mark with an impressive 131-68 scoreline. However, the Bulgarian champions find themselves in a lowly 6th position. Meanwhile, Cluj suffered their first loss in the Liga Nationala after three wins, falling 84-83 to CSU Sibiu.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group F: Alba Fehervar (0-2) v Tsmoki-Minsk (1-1)

Time: Wednesday, 18:00 CET
Key Matchup: Kasey Hill v Filip Adamovic
Last Game: Alba Fehervar dropped their second game at home last week in a 72-60 defeat to Proximus Spirou, while Tsmoki-Minsk got their first win by topping Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya 69-63 on the road in Israel.
Domestic Form: Alba Fehervar got their leader Peter Lorant back in action, but it wasn't enough to overcome Szolnoki Olaj, as the Szekesfehervar club picked up a 70-60 defeat. They are second to last in the Hungarian championship with a 1-4 record. Tsmoki edged Parma 66-65 in the VTB League for their second win in a row and improved to a 2-2 mark.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group H: Szolnoki Olaj (1-1) v Nizhny Novgorod (2-0)

Time: Wednesday, 18:00 CET
Key Matchup: David Vojvoda v Ivan Strebkov
Last Game: Szolnoki Olaj came up short 84-74 in the all-Hungarian clash against Falco Vulcano, while Nizhny Novgorod kept their unbeaten record by trouncing Karposh Sokoli 101-67 in spectacular fashion.
Domestic Form: Szolnoki Olaj defeated fellow FIBA Europe Cup side Alba Fehervar 70-60 and stayed atop the Hungarian Division A standings with an untarnished 5-0 mark. Nizhny Novgorod couldn't do anything to stop Lokomotiv Kuban in the VTB League, losing 94-64 on the road in Krasnodar to fall to 1-2 in the table.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group B: SL Benfica (1-1) v Avtodor Saratov (1-1)

Time: Wednesday, 19:30 CET
Key Matchup: Antywane Robinson v Coty Clarke
Last Game: SL Benfica came out flat on the road in Denmark, ending up on a double-digit 95-76 defeat against Bakken Bears. Avtodor Saratov also did not have luck on their side last week, losing 84-83 against Nevezis away from home.
Domestic Form: SL Benfica remained unbeaten in the Portuguese Basketball League, inscribing an 81-70 win over Galitos to improve to 5-0 in the table. Avtodor clipped Kalev/Cramo 82-77 at home in Saratov to improve to 2-1 in the VTB League.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group D: Egis Kormend (2-0) v Keravnos (2-0)

Time: Wednesday, 20:00 CET
Key Matchup: Eric Fanning v Cade Davis
Last Game: Egis Kormend moved to a 2-0 record in the standings with a 74-61 win over Basic-Fit Brussels, with Keravnos joining them at the top with an identical record after blowing out BC Balkan 88-69.
Domestic Form: Kormend had a good weekend, downing DEAC 110-70 in Hungary to improve to a 4-1 record, which puts them in 2nd place. Keravnos defeated Apollon 75-68 and improved to 2-1 in the Cypriot championship, which puts them even with APOEL just below league leaders Petrolina AEK.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group A: Telenet Giants Antwerp (1-1) v Donar Groningen (2-0)

Time: Wednesday, 20:30 CET
Key Matchup: Hans Vanwijn v Evan Bruinsma
Last Game: Telenet Giants Antwerp stood no chance against ESSM Le Portel last week, picking up a 94-79 loss on the road in France. Donar Groningen used the chance to move up to the Group A table with a 72-43 win over Bosna and they're the only team in the group still with a perfect record.
Domestic Form: Antwerp defeated Belfius Mons-Hainaut 93-90 in overtime to improve to 4-0 in the Belgian EuroMillions Basketball League. After dropping a game in the Dutch Basketball League, Donar bounced back with an energetic 76-49 performance against BAL Weert to improve to a 3-1 mark.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group D: Basic-Fit Brussels (0-2) v BC Balkan (0-2)

Time: Wednesday, 20:30 CET
Key Matchup: Aleksandar Lichodzijewski v Igor Kesar
Last Game: Basic-Fit Brussels were overpowered by Egis Kormend in Hungary, as they were handed a 74-61 defeat, while BC Balkan had an even more difficult time in Cyprus, losing 88-69 to Keravnos.
Domestic Form: Brussels continued to struggle in Belgium, with a 78-52 loss to Oostende bringing them down to 1-4 in the win and loss column. Balkan defeated Academic Bultex 85-78 to maintain a perfect record at 3-0 in the Bulgarian NBL.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

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