What to watch out for as Bourges and Reyer face off for EuroCup Women glory

BOURGES (France) - The 2022 EuroCup Women title game has a lot to live up to after two sensational contests in the Semi-Finals that proved to be an exciting advert for the competition and female hoops in general.

The Final will see host club Tango Bourges trying to win the silverware for a second time, having been crowned champions in 2016. They find themselves in the showpiece game having come back to beat Galatasaray 69-67 in the Semi-Finals.

Meanwhile Umana Reyer are searching for their first title having lost in both of their previous Final appearances, in 2018 and last year. The Italian club also showed a lot of heart in their Semi-Final clash by overturning a 16-point deficit against CBK Mersin Yenisehir Bld. 

Making the case for Tango Bourges

 

Defense, defense and more defense

Because Tango Bourges have racked up so many points in the competition this season and especially on their home floor, it's fair to say that their defensive power has been overlooked.

Yet having been locked down themselves scoring-wise by Galatasaray in their Semi-Final game, it was their own defense that got them back into the game in the final seven-eight minutes and ultimately, won them the game.

The decisive play was the defensive stand by Elin Eldebrink with five seconds remaining and while Bourges did make some big triples on the offensive end, the way that their veteran players in particular handled Galatasaray in the closing minutes was vital.

A case of déjà vu

Tango Bourges fans will be feeling a touch of deja vu and will recall the thrilling times they experienced  six years ago, when their team won this piece of silverware for the first time.

The 2016 Final was also played on their home court and that means there will be a strong feeling that with the loud home support, Bourges can go for a repeat and use the fact they are playing at home to their advantage.

Bourges have won each of their eight home games in this EuroCup Women campaign and didn't give up more than 67 points in any of those encounters.  Dodging a bullet against Galatasaray in Tuesday also meant of course that they protected their unbeaten record and the status of 'Le Prado' as a fortress.

Iliana Rupert, the present and the future

Quite rightly, Bourges have won rave reviews for their disciplined team basketball and credit must go to head coach Olivier Larfargue for the way that he has found such a winning formula in a team without any massive global stars - the kind of which some other teams have.

Yet within their ranks, the 20-year-old Iliana Rupert is on course to becoming exactly that - one of the leading lights in the global game. The center missed a few good looks in the Semi-Final but was immense with 8 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 blocks.

Rupert's incredible level of maturity for her age shone through and she is proving that she is not only the future, she is very much the present and MVP honors are not out of the question for her if Bourges get it done. 

Making the case for Umana Reyer

Yvonne Anderson is looking unstoppable right now

There are few players in Europe and indeed the global game (taking into account her MVP status at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2022 Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade recently) that are on fire like Anderson.

The Reyer guard has been doing everything for her team, averaging  24 points and 5.5 assists on 57 percent three-point shooting over the last two EuroCup Women games and, above all, she is providing leadership. During their toughest moments, she dug them out of a massive hole in the Semi-Final by scoring and going to work.

Then, down the game stretch it was more about composure, good choices, executing and finding her teammates, alongside defense. It has just been super guard play and her experience has been telling.

Anderson is quick, hard to stop and smart enough to have confidence in her teammates if you overplay her. A Final Four MVP candidate for sure if Reyer win their first title as she has the added motivation of playing against her old club, although Astou Ndour and Kayla Thornon might have something to say about that.

Control, control, control

If there is one big difference between the way Reyer play now compared to earlier in the season, it is their control offensively.

They only committed 10 turnovers  against a stacked Mersin backcourt in the Semi-Final, and such a small number in a very heated and important game highlighted this.

Reyer might shoot really badly in some games, but it is very rare they throw the ball away consistently or force too much one on one, something hugely important in a Final.  

That level of control which comes throughout the team and is essentially set by Anderson, Beatrice Attura and Debora Carangelo in the backcourt, means Reyer will be a tough nut to crack. 

Third time lucky and redemption after 2021

All Final defeats are usually painful, but the way that Umana Reyer suffered last year with an agonizing last-gasp defeat hurt a lot.

Losing in the last second of the title game to Valencia is not something that can probably truly be forgotten until they redeem themselves by making history with a maiden title.

Having also lost to Galatasaray in 2018 in the Final, it's going to be a case of third time lucky, surely?

FIBA