MUNICH (Germany) - PAOK BC came through an epic Semi-Final battle with UCAM Murcia to book a return to the FIBA Europe Cup Finals, with defending champions Surne Bilbao Basket also completing the job.
Murcia came close to booking an all-Spanish Finals clash, but they came up just short despite a record-breaking performance from David De Julius.
Key Storylines
Bilbao protect homecourt and beat Szombathely to advance again;
PAOK edges Murcia to set up a Finals repeat.
Weekly Highs
Efficiency: David De Julius (UCAM Murcia) - 43 Points: David De Julius (UCAM Murcia) - 41 Rebounds: Ben Moore (PAOK BC) - 9 Assists: Multiple players - 6 Steals: David De Julius (UCAM Murcia) - 4 Blocks: Emanuel Cate (UCAM Murcia) - 3
PAOK withstand De Julius and Murcia to reach Finals again
PAOK BC held on in a thrilling Semi-Final series, losing 89-85 to UCAM Murcia in the second leg but winning the tie 164-162 on aggregate to set up a repeat of last season's FIBA Europe Cup Finals.
In a game where there were 15 lead changes, it was who could keep their composure. David De Julius led the Murcia charge late on - scoring 17 fourth-quarter points - which gave them the lead overall four minutes into the final quarter.
But PAOK held their nerve down the stretch, led by Breein Tyree, who had 29 points for the Greek side. De Julius ended with a mammoth 41 points for Murcia in a heartbreaker.
Bilbao return to Finals with win over stubborn Szombathely
Surne Bilbao Basket will be gunning to become the first team to retain the FIBA Europe Cup crown after beating Falco Vulcano Engeria KC Szombathely 95-88 in the second leg of the Semi-Finals for an overall 193-169 success.
Already holding a 17-point lead overall, the odds were stacked against the Hungarian side, and they did make life tough against their Spanish counterparts in the beginning.
But once Bilbao took the lead, six minutes into the first quarter, they were comfortable. Szombathely made the game competitive in the latter stages of the fourth, and even trimmed Bilbao's second-leg lead to 86-83.
However, led by Martin Krampelj's 16 points and Melwin Pantzar's 15, they eased into the Finals.
Zoltan Perl had 16 for Szombathely as their campaign came to an end.
Results
Surne Bilbao Basket 95-88 Falco Vulcano Energia KC Szombathely (Bilbao win 193-169 on aggregate) UCAM Murcia 89-85 PAOK BC (PAOK BC win 164-162 on aggregate)
FIBA