Cholet win eliminates Leiden with seven tickets punched from Qualifiers

MUNICH (Germany) - Kalev/Cramo, Cholet Basket, Hapoel Haifa and Sporting CP all claimed Qualifying Tournament victories on Friday as seven teams advanced to the FIBA Europe Cup 2022-23 Regular Season.

The four winners were joined by three 'lucky losers' determined from the runners-up with Rilski Sportist, SCMU Craiova and Telenet Giants Antwerp all continuing their campaigns despite defeats.

Cholet Basket confirmed their place in the Regular Season for the first time after overcoming ZZ Leiden 71-59 behind 18 points from Dominic  Artis. The Qualifying Tournament D hosts used a 23-5 spell in the fourth to seal a convincing victory as the 12-point margin proved costly for Leiden as they were eliminated.

The last place went down to the wire as Telenet Giants Antwerp trailed by as many as 26 points in their eventual 98-85 loss against Sporting CP in Mitrovica. Marcus LoVett fired in a 32-point haul for the victors, but Antwerp were able to stave off the threat of elimination.

Reggie Upshaw and Darryl Woodson both scored 19 points for the Belgian side as five players reached double figures with Maurice Watson adding a double-double of 12 points and 11 assists.

Earlier, Kalev/Cramo were the first team to make sure of their spot after holding off a fightback from SCMU Craiova to win 84-79 in Jonava. Martins Meiers went 9-of-10 from the field for a joint team-high 19 points alongside Alterique Gilbert with Wesley Van Beck adding 15 points.

Craiova had rallied from a 19-point deficit to tie the game at 77-77 late in the fourth and despite coming up short down the stretch, the Romanian side would still advance as Dimitrije Nikolic putting up 23 points.

Hapoel Haifa also ensured there was to be no repeat of last season when they missed out on the Regular Season with a Final defeat, as they started strong on their way to beating Qualifying Tournament C hosts Rilski Sportist 68-61 in Samokov.

Anthony Hickey starred in the win with 24 points, 7 assists and 5 steals as his side led by as many as 17 points inside the second quarter.

The ranking of the four runners-up was as follows:

The seven qualified teams have been placed into their pre-determined groups with the Regular Season set to get underway on October 12, 2022.

FIBA