By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
The 2022-23 Basketball Champions League season has tipped off as the first batch of qualification games that were held Wednesday (21/9) with a powerhouse making a statement win and some newcomers showing their teeth.
Let’s take the competition per Group.
Group A (Skopje, North Macedonia)
An upset was in place for hosts TFT Skopje as German side Niners Chemnitz prevailed with ease behind a diverse offensive performance. Five players from the Niners scored in double figures and Marko Filipovity produced the lot with 26 points.
Lachlan Anderson’s 27 points plus six rebounds weren’t enough for Skopje that will search for another European trip next season. The same applies to Leicester Riders that fell to CSO Voluntari’s tough defense and Tekele Cotton’s 19 points.
Results:
Leicester Riders – CSO Voluntari 61 – 70
TFT Skopje – Niners Chemnitz 77 – 96
Semifinals
Tofas Bursa vs CSO Voluntari (23/9, 18:00 CET)
Fribourg Olympic vs Niners Chemnitz (23/9, 21:00 CET)
Final
Semifinals winners (25/9, 20:00 CET)
Group B (Malaga, Spain)
Dutch champions Heroes Den Bosch led even by 22 points en route to defeating Siauliai and advance to the next stage. Their 21 assists are a testament to their fluid and effective offense.
Emmett Naar had 17 points plus seven assists while Verners Kohs added 17 points of his own for the winning side. Donatas Sabeckis and Kyle Mangas scored 16 apiece from the Lithuanian team.
In the other game of the Group, Miha Lapornik dropped 19 points to push Patrioti Levice past Egis Kormend.
Results:
Heroes Den Bosch – Siauliai 85 – 73
Patrioti Levice – Egis Kormend 79 – 70
Semifinals
Karhu Kauhajoki vs Patrioti Levice (23/9, 17:30 CET)
Unicaja vs Heroes Den Bosch (23/9, 20:30 CET)
Final
Semifinals winners (25/9, 12:30 CET)
Group C (Lisbon, Portugal)
Pure dominance. That’s how you can describe the way Budivelnyk entered the competition with a rout over Norrkoping Dolphins. The other match held quite the dramatic finale and a thrilling win for Swans Gmuden.
This one is exactly what it looks like. pic.twitter.com/CrS4pXXXkD
— Igor Curkovic (@IgorCurkovic) September 21, 2022
Results:
Swans Gmuden – Parnu Sadam 82 – 80
Norrkoping Dolphins – Budivelnyk 51 – 87
Semifinals
Brose Bamberg vs Budivelnyk (23/9, 19:00 CET)
Bakken Bears vs Swans Gmunden (23/9, 17:00 CET)
Final
Semifinals winners (25/9, 18:00 CET)
Group D (Belgrade, Serbia)
FMP played basically at home and they took mighty advantage of it by beating CB Breogan, one of the pleasant surprises of last season’s ACB. Paulius Valniskas scored 14 points for the unofficial hosts while Nemanja Nenadic had 14 points for Breogan.
Thanks to a spectacular second half, Benfica crushed Golden Eagle Ylli to punch a ticket to the next phase. It was one-team show after the break since the Portuguese team outplayed its opponents 50 – 25.
Terrell Carter (15 points, five assists) Jose Barbosa (15 points) were the top performers from Benfica. Muhammed Bashir Ahmed put on a major effort for the Kosovar club with 27 points.
Results:
FMP Meridian – CB Breogan 76 – 64
Golden Eagle Ylli – S.L. Benfica 67 – 92
Semifinals
Opava vs FMP Meridian (23/9, 20:00 CET)
Keravnos vs SL Benfica (23/9, 22:00 CET)
Final
Semifinal winners (25/9, 19:00 CET)
The four teams advancing will complete Group A, E, G, and H of the Regular Season. Regular season action follows in the first week of October.