By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Unicaja decided to part ways with head coach Fotis Katsikaris, the team announced Sunday. Spanish Ibon Navarro will replace him, per Diario Sur.
Under the guidance of the Greek tactician, the team based in Malaga advanced to the Basketball Champions League Round of 16 and currently sits at 1-1 in Group K, while being limited to 7-11 in Spain’s ACB. Yesterday, Saturday, Unicaja lost to Casademont Zaragoza, 93-82, to conclude Katsikaris’ run.
Back in the Champions League following his previous experience as the Tenerife boss in 2017-18, he led Unicaja to a 4-2 record in Group C of the Regular Season. His side dropped the away games versus JDA Dijon and Lavrio Megabolt but sweeping Nizhny Novgorod and taking down the French and Greek sides at home clinched first seed, thus direct qualification to the Round of 16. From there and following the opening round loss to Romania champion U-BT Cluj Napoca at home, rolling Filou Oostende improved the W-L tally to 1-1 early in the latest double-legged round-robin schedule.
Lead assistant Angel Sanchez Canete will take over as interim head coach, as noted in the press release. Next up on the schedule, facing Ukraine champion Prometey on the road Tuesday. Domestically, Real Madrid is set to visit Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena next Sunday.
Navarro, 45, is expected to take over in time for the clash against the Whites. Previous head coaching jobs stretch from the recent stint at MoraBanc Andorra to Baskonia, Manresa, and UCAM Murcia.
Katsikaris, 54, assumed the head coaching role at Unicaja just over one year ago, midway through the 2020-21 season. Previous stints in Spain handed him the task of leading Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Murcia, Bilbao, and Valencia. Other jobs include an assistant role at the Utah Jazz and guiding Greece and Russia at the international level.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League