Sassari, Bakken Bears dethrone Varese at the top of Power Rankings

MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) – There were major changes across the Power Rankings after an action-filled Week 3 of the Regular Season, headlined by Dinamo Sassari overtaking Pallacanestro Varese in pole position.

RANK	CLUB	MOVE	COMMENT
32			There is usually more movement at the bottom of the Power Rankings, but Steaua Bucuresti might be stuck there for good. The previously winless Cherkaski Mavpy came away with an easy 90-64 win against the Romanian side.
31			Owners of the worst-ranked defense in the FIBA Europe Cup at 101.3 points allowed per game, BK JIP Pardubice ended up on the wrong side of a 111-77 blowout against Ironi Ness Ziona and fell to a 0-3 mark in Group D.
30			In a group featuring Balkan Botevgrad, Tsmoki-Minsk and Petrolina AEK, Belfius Mons-Hainaut are yet to register their first win.
29			Rilski Sportist had their chance against FC Porto, but came up cold down the final stretch. They're still undefeated in the domestic championship in Bulgaria at 0-4, but the story could not be more different in the FIBA Europe Cup, where they're 0-3 after the first three gamedays of the Regular Season.
28			Yes, Dnipro are 0-3 in Group G. But don't sleep on them to turn things around. You will surely have heard the news of Kyrylo Fesenko boosting the team's frontcourt. A FIBA Europe Cup Finalist with Avellino last season, he began the season on the TV commentary crew for Dnipro games, but decided it's time to bring his expertise to the court. Making it out of the Group Phase might still be a long shot, but anything is possible with Kyrylo the Great.
27			Close, but no cigar. Conner Washington went off for 21 points in 23 minutes in Hungary, but Leicester Riders fell to an 82-79 defeat against Szolnoki Olaj.
26			Vladimir Veremeenko's homecoming did not include a win for Petrolina AEK. The veteran big man from Belarus turned in a solid 12-point and 8-rebound performance against Tsmoki-Minsk, but the Cypriot title holders came up short 87-75, dropping to a 1-2 mark.
25			Chris Cokley double-doubled with 26 points and 10 rebounds to lead Cherkaski Mavpy to their first win in the Regular Season. A 90-64 win over Steaua Bucuresti puts them right back in the race, with a hugely important home fixture against Z Mobile Prishtina coming next.
24			Falco Vulcano followed up a 15-point win over Leicester Riders with a heavy 104-69 loss to Dinamo Sassari. A do-or-die against Szolnoki Olaj awaits.
23			The adapted version of the famous nursery rhyme describes the situation perfectly for the under-performing Istanbul BBSK. Istanbul BBSK sat on a wall, Istanbul BBSK had a great fall; All the king's horses and all the king's men Couldn't put Istanbul BBSK together again. They did get a morale boost with a buzzer-beating win in the Turkish Super League, but things are looking bleak for the Istanbul side in the FIBA Europe Cup at 0-3 and a point differential of -53.
22			After going to overtime against Alba Fehervar and pushing Pallacanestro Varese to a last-minute drama, FC Porto finally got on the board in Group F with an 88-81 triumph over Rilski Sportist in Bulgaria. Yup, another close one for Ramon Suarez's men but with a happy ending at last.
21			Could've; should've; would've. In the end, solid play for New Heroes Den Bosch but a heart-breaking 97-93 defeat against the visiting Saratov Avtodor.
20			Kristopher Richard put CSM CSU Oradea back in the race for the Second Round with a dagger three-pointer against Sakarya BSB. At 1-2, the much-needed win for the Romanian title holders puts them just one win behind the Group B leaders, s.Oliver Wurzburg and ZZ Leiden.
19			After three games in the FIBA Europe Cup, the struggling Aris have just the lone win in their tally. Averaging just 63.7 points per game, they are last in points scored in the entire competition. They do allow just 69.0 points themselves (third-best in FIBA Europe Cup), but that's still 5.3 points in the red.
18			Z Mobile Prishtina lost connection in Denmark and proved to be the inferior side to Bakken Bears in the clash of two previously unbeaten teams in Group E, which ended in a 108-84 defeat. Running up the score against Cherkaski Mavpy and Steaua Bucuresti is one thing, facing Bakken Bears in their territory is a very different experience.
17			An underwhelming FIBA Europe Cup campaign for Sakarya BSB continued with a narrow road defeat in Romania after late drama. In the second half of the Group B table, they have some catching up to do in the remaining three games of the Regular Season.
16			Vitali Liutych and Stefan Moody carried Tsmoki-Minsk past Petrolina AEK to a 2-1 mark in Group A. There were some interesting developments off the floor as well, with Devon Saddler replacing Darrin Govens.
15			It wasn't necessarily pretty, but Kataja Basket got the job done against Dnipro, 84-77, to reach the halfway point of the Regular Season with a strong 2-1 record that puts them in second place behind Lukoil Levski in Group G. The not-so-positive part of the story is Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson picking up an injury that will leave him sidelined at least until the end of the Regular Season.
14			A one-possession win over Leicester Riders at home in Hungary did not add value to Szolnoki Olaj's stock.
13			ZZ Leiden turned into ZZZ Leiden for a short period of time last week, snoozing through a game-breaking 14-0 run by s.Oliver Wurzburg en route to their first defeat. Nothing to panic about yet, but things are heating up in Group B.
12			Despite securing their third win in a row with a 78-66 defeat of Belfius Mons-Hainaut, Balkan head coach Nebojsa Vidic wasn't particularly happy with his team's play. "The only thing I am satisfied with is the win, everything else no," he said. We wouldn't be that harsh, but they are the lowest-ranked 3-0 team in the Power Rankings at #12.
11			After two memorable wins over Turkish opposition in Group C, Donar Groningen spiraled out of control against Spirou Basket in Charleroi and came home with a hefty 92-64 defeat. One to forget for coach Erik Braal and his team. They tumbled down nine spots in the Power Rankings following the one-sided result.
10			In pole position in Group E midway through the Regular Season, Alba Fehervar scored a major upset against the previous Power Rankings pace-makers Varese. Peter Lorant flirted with a triple-double, Marko Filipovity nearly broke the rim with a high-flying dunk and Rodney Bullock served up a no-look assist to remember.
9			No Rasko Katic? No problem. Spirou Basket put Donar Groningen on skates with a 24-1 opening at the Spiroudome to send the rest of Group C a message: "Don't you dare overlook us!" In the end, an impressive 92-64 win over the Dutch champions saw the Charleroi side make another huge leap in the Power Rankings. Having been all the way back at #21 a couple of weeks ago, they've moved into the Top 10.
8			Either last week's weather forecast did not include a three-point shower in Ness Ziona or BK JIP Pardubice forgot their umbrellas in Czech Republic. After putting a competition season-best 111 points past the unprepared visitors, the Nadav Zilberstein-coached Ironi Ness Ziona got their second win in a row and moved to a 2-1 mark in Group D.
7			s.Oliver Wurzburg dressed down the previously undefeated Group A leaders ZZ Leiden on the road, taking their spot at the top of the standings with a 2-1 mark. They got a big road win against Ludwigsburg in the Bundesliga to complete a successful week of basketball.
6			Ilkan Karaman had his fingerprints all over in the all-Turkish battle against his former side Istanbul BBSK, as Pinar Karsiyaka got back on track with a 26-point win after a surprising defeat to Donar Groningen the week before. Conceding just 67.0 points per game, the Izmir side are the top-ranked team on the defensive side of the floor in the competition.
5			Nothing lasts forever, especially in the Power Rankings. It would be unfair to say that Varese's defeat to Alba Fehervar in Hungary came out of the blue after they did show some signs of struggle against FC Porto the week before, but it was still quite an upset that not many people saw coming. Shooting just 31.5% from three-point range three games into the Regular Season, Attilio Caja's players will have to do better to regain the lost ground.
4			If there is one team that should not run out of gas in the FIBA Europe Cup, it's probably Lukoil Levski. Although Petrolina AEK or Szolnoki Olaj might quibble with the statement, early evidence suggests that the Bulgarian title holders can buckle in for a long international campaign. A favorable schedule had Levski playing the first three games at home, but they cleaned up appropriately and have a tidy 3-0 in the record column. Three road games will show how tough the Sofia team really are.
3			One of six undefeated teams in the FIBA Europe Cup, Avtodor Saratov stayed idle in the Power Rankings after squeaking out a close one against New Heroes Den Bosch on the road in the Netherlands. If the idea behind the Halloween thriller in Den Bosch was to give the club's fans a little spook, it worked out well. Especially taking into consideration the happy – someone else might call it lucky – ending.
2			It looks like last year's Danish fairy tale has another chapter in it, with the Bakken Bears getting off to a dream start to the Regular Season. Their third triple-digit scoring display in a row inserted them in the conversation with the other big names of the competition. If you thought last year's run to the Semi-Finals was just an accidental blip on the radar, think again and start to fear the bears.
1			The King is dead, long live the King! Pallacanestro Varese lost the top spot in the Power Rankings, but passed on the torch to a fellow Italian side Dinamo Sassari, who registered their third consecutive win in Group H by steamrolling Falco Vulcano by 35 points last week. It's far from a one-man show in the island of Sardinia, but the team's leader Scott Bamforth deserves a special mention for putting up 15.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.2 rebounds per game and shooting at a ridiculous 65.1% clip from the field.