SASSARI (Italy) and BURGOS (Spain) - If there was one thing that became immediately apparent in the wake of Tuesday's Play-Offs Draw, it is that both Dinamo Sassari and San Pablo Burgos are excited and apprehensive in almost equal measure about their Round of 16 series.

"This is a great challenge for us and our team will have to perform at its best to keep the Final Four dream alive. Burgos is the strongest team among the three that we could have drawn," remarked Dinamo TV commentator Paolo Citrini, who had predicted prior to the Play-Offs Draw that his team would end up facing the Spanish Basketball Champions League debutants.

"Burgos have amazing fans and they are on the fringe of the play-off spots in the Spanish league after beating Andorra in their last game. We know Bruno Fitipaldo as both a good passer and a good three-point shooter from his stints at Capo d'Orlando and Avellino.

"We know Vitor Benite because we faced Murcia when he was playing for them and he's very talented and a great shooter. Eark Clark is a former NBA player who can make a big impact and he forms a good pair in the paint with Augusto Lima.

"I see Tenerife and AEK in the Quarter-Finals, then our series as well as the one between Dijon are Nizhny are open," Citrini added, comparing Sassari's fortunes with those of the other second-seeded teams in Tuesday's Draw.

Burgos have also been paying attention to their opponents' domestic performance.

"Sassari is a very good team and they are second in the Italian league just behind Virtus Bologna and above Armani Exchange Milano, a EuroLeague team," said Burgos head coach Joan Peñarroya.

"They are a team with potential and upside and they have important players such as Curtis Jerrells, a point guard with great experience in European basketball; they have Dyshawn Pierre and Dwayne Evans, two very athletic players at the '3' and the '4', and a clear reference inside in center Miro Bilan. Good shooters Michele Vitali and Stefano Gentile are also in this group of standout players.

"It's a very complete team that we will have to study well and we will have to prepare for a very tough clash but we are also confident we can do well in this series and, hopefully, advance," the Spanish coach added.

Sassari have been here before. The Italian side took part in the inaugural edition of the BCL and knocked out Le Mans in the Round of 16, but fell in the Quarter-Finals to eventual Third-Place Game winners Monaco

The club that proudly represents Sardinia in European hoops has bigger ambitions this season. Sassari, who have Italian legend Gianmarco Pozzecco at the helm, maintained the core of the team that lifted the FIBA Europe Cup last year and finished on a 11-3 record in Group A.

Burgos on the other hand are taking part in a European competition for the first time in the club's relatively shot history. They took third place in Group C, finishing at 8-6, but their ambition matches that of their Italian opponents.

"We approach this series as a new challenge for our club. We have grown very rapidly in the space of five years and we will ask our fans once again to give us their support because their help makes everything easier," said Burgos Sporting Director Albano Martínez.

Most games in Burgos are sold out, so their fans are more than likely to fill the Coliseum arena when the series moves to Castile and Leon for the second game. In January, they were voted 'Best Fanbase in Spain' by prestigious magazine Gigantes del Basket, for the third year in a row.

"We are expecting an incredible atmosphere in the arena in Burgos and we are very excited to see it," said Viola Frongia, who handles Sassari's International Relations.