SAMOKOV (Bulgaria) - The party has started in Samokov's Arena SamElyon, ready to feature the first glimpses of Basketball Champions League Season X action.
Three teams will find their tickets for the Regular Season, and Bulgaria will be the land of such opportunities. As of now, four teams have progressed to the Semi-Finals in the Qualification Round Tournament 2.
CSM CSU Raiffeisen Oradea 71-79 Windrose Giants Antwerp
The day started with Windrose Giants Antwerp's win over CSM CSU Raiffeisen Oradea, as Roel Moors enjoyed the first victory back with the club he brought to the Basketball Champions League Final Four at home in 2019.
The Belgians prevailed with a 30-12 run in the third stanza, pushed by Joel Murray's 20-point winning effort.
Thomas Bropleh's double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds wasn't enough for the Romanian side.
Pallacanestro Reggiana 99-87 KK Pelister Bitola
Antwerp will meet Pallacanestro Reggiana on September 21 at 13:15 CET in the Semi-Finals, as the Italians easily took down KK Pelister Bitola, controlling from the very beginning and outrebounding the opponents 45-27.
Newcomer Jaime Echenique (16 points and 11 rebounds) came off the bench to help the confirmed duo of Kwan Cheatham (22 points, 6-of-9 from deep) and Jaylen Barford (19 points).
Kevin Bracy-Davis played all 40:00 minutes and concluded with a 20-point losing effort for the North Macedonians.
Bursaspor Basketbol 81-74 Lowen Braunschweig
The third game of the day saw Bursaspor Basketbol controlling the lead since the tip-off, despite Lowen Braunschweig's multiple attempts of reducing the gap.
Ultimately, the green-and-white Turkish side had the upper hand, led by Bryant Crawford's performance of 19 points (5-of-7 from three), 6 assists, and 4 rebounds.
Joshua Obiesie also didn't start the game, but still finished with 20 points and 8 rebounds, displaying all-around capabilities.
PAOK mateco 79-67 SC Derby
It's always a black-and-white party whenever and wherever PAOK mateco play, and it was no different in Samokov on Friday. The Greeks got pulled by their fans' unconditional support to beat SC Derby from Montenegro 79-67.
They will now meet Bursaspor in the Semi-Finals on September 21 at 15:30 CET.
Ben Moore (17 points and 6 rebounds) will try to replicate his crucial performance, while last season's FIBA Europe Cup runners-up were a +28 points team when Nikos Persidis was on the court.
Returning from FIBA EuroBasket 2025, Emir Hadzibegovic tried to help his team with 15 points and 5 rebounds.
On Saturday, eight teams from Tournament 3 will take the floor in Samokov.