FIBA Basketball

s.Oliver Wurzburg's time to shine in the Power Rankings

MUNICH (Germany) - The game of musical chairs at the top of the Power Rankings has carried over into the final week of the Second Round, with s.Oliver Wurzburg replacing Varese in pole position.

MUNICH (Germany) - The game of musical chairs at the top of the Power Rankings has carried over into the final week of the Second Round, with s.Oliver Wurzburg replacing Pallacanestro Varese in pole position.

The fourth different team to spearhead the leaderboard in as many weeks, the Denis Wucherer-coached Germans are now favored to enter the Play-Offs as the highest-ranked team. But can they hold on for another week?

RANK	CLUB	MOVE	COMMENT
16			It's hard to put a positive spin on Kataja Basket's 44-point defeat in Aarhus. They seemed to have achieved lift-off from the bottom of the Power Rankings, but that lopsided result grounded them once again. But at least they beat Avtodor the other week, at least there's that.
15			Dardan Berisha gave it his all with the best individual scoring performance of the Second Round with 31 points, but Z Mobile Prishtina couldn't get what would've been a massive win over Szolnoki Olaj and were pushed down to fourth place in Group I as a result.
14			Having been there or thereabout multiple times in the Second Round, Petrolina AEK put their best foot forward and finally got the long-sought first win to their tally by dominating Donar Groningen at the MartiniPlaza. They weren't that far off from leaving the stunned crowd without the head-to-head tie-breaker as well, but fell just a tiny bit short on the seemingly impossible task.
13			If you were wondering if Bulgarians are a prideful nation, Lukoil Levski's win was a fine example that they certainly are. Their Second Round performance will still go down as highly disappointing but a) at least they won't go home empty-handed; and b) they actually have an outside shot of qualifying for the Round of 16.
12			The famed 14-game winning streak at home is now just a distant memory for Donar Groningen, who have followed it up with three consecutive defeats after falling to Petrolina AEK last week. It certainly wasn't the best basketball fans at the MartiniPlaza have witnessed over the past couple of seasons.
11			Just when you thought Szolnoki Olaj were down and out of it, they reminded everyone about themselves by sneaking one past Z Mobile Prishtina to get back in the Play-Off conversation. If they reach the knock-out stages and get their full team back, they could be dangerous.
10			Worthy De Jong's show (18 points in the first half!) fueled ZZ Leiden's toe-to-toe battle with Avtodor Saratov, but unfortunately for the Dutch side it only lasted 20 minutes and was eventually overshadowed by a 36-13 fourth-quarter collapse. As things stand, ZZ Leiden are the second-best third-placed team with a 2-3 record.
9			Alba Fehervar turned to charity at a time when they probably shouldn't have, handing the previously winless Lukoil a win in Sofia, but it all worked out fine thanks to a few extra spots opening after the latest Basketball Champions League update.
8			There's the good Ironi Ness Ziona and there's the not-so-good Ironi Ness Ziona, with the latter showing its face in Botevgrad last week. They remain in pole position to finish the Second Round as the top seed in Group J, but their inconsistency will be a bit worrying for their supporters.
7			It has been proven again. There is absolutely no one coach Nebojsa Vidic and Balkan Botevgrad fear in the FIBA Europe Cup, brushing aside Ironi Ness Ziona in a one-sided display of power to lock in a spot in the Round of 16. They have been the revelation of the season and have plenty of talent to surprise people in the Play-Offs.
6			There are only two teams who have managed to beat Pinar Karsiyaka in the FIBA Europe Cup this season, but both Donar Groningen and now s.Oliver Wurzburg have done it two times each. Those losses do add up and for a club as talented as the Izmir side, a 7-4 record can be considered a mild underachievement.
5			It's been a weird Second Round for Bakken Bears. A couple of defeats here, a couple of casual 40-point wins there. "We have been missing our swag the last couple of games, but tonight we got it back," said head coach Steffen Wich after blowing out Kataja Basket by 44 points to book a spot in the Play-Offs.
4			Boris Savovic delivered a MAN-like performance to get Avtodor Saratov back on track in the FIBA Europe Cup. And by MAN-like, we obviously mean having the qualities of a truck that can pull the weight of the entire team all by himself. The club's new-old coach Evgeny Pashutin had them clicking offensively once again versus ZZ Leiden.
3			Whoever has been atop a tall ladder will tell you it's not the most stable place to be. Pallacanestro Varese lost the top spot in the Power Rankings just one week after reclaiming the top spot, with a Sardinian gust of wind making its way up the Italian boot to knock Attilio Caja's side off balance.
2			It is settled - Sardinian Pecorino is better than Gorgonzola from Varese; all because Dinamo Sassari got the head-to-head tie-breaker in Group K with a 79-69 win over their Italian rivals last week. The season series between these two teams is now tied at 2-2 after they split a game each in the FIBA Europe Cup and the domestic championship.
1			It was a long time coming, but s.Oliver Wurzburg finally captured the number one slot in the Power Rankings. The only undefeated team in the Second Round is on a six-game winning streak, achieving all but one of those wins by double figures. With the signing of Devin Oliver, they also tipped off the competition for the best team and player name combination.