04 October, 2022
14 May, 2023
22 Jamarr Sanders (SIG)
06/12/2022
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Week 8 - Wednesday Games Preview

MIES (Switzerland) - Week eight of the Basketball Champions League continues on Wednesday December 7 with four more games from Groups A and B, as some spots are up for grabs in the Round of 16, while others could be eliminated from the competition.

Here's a look at the four games on Wednesday:

Game 1: Falco Vulcano Szombathely (1-3) v Tofas Bursa (1-3) - Group A

Where: Szombathely, Hungary

When: 18:00 CET

In their last game, Szombathely lost to UCAM Murcia 81-74, while Tofas lost to SIG Strasbourg 79-75. Szombathely would be eliminated with a defeat and Tofas, meanwhile, would also be eliminated with a defeat by 28 points or more.

  • Szombathely have won just two of their last 10 games in the BCL with those two wins happening at home; Szombathely lost the last game by 27 points (90-63), their biggest defeat ever in the BCL.
  • Szombathely have allowed their opponents to grab 16.8 offensive rebounds per game in the BCL this season, more than any other team, and consequently have only grabbed 57.1 percent of the rebounds available on their defensive basket, fewer than any other team.
  • Raymond Cowels scored 20 points in the last game against Tofas, the most of any Szombathely player in that game, making six three-pointers in that game; however, he scored a total of only 18 points in his other three BCL games combined.
  • Tofas have won just one of their last seven games in the competition, and it was against Szombathely in the last game (90-63); Tofas have lost their last five away games in the BCL, after winning seven of the previous 10.
  • Tofas' Rob Gray is one of the three players to have scored more than 25 points in multiple BCL games this season, including in his last outing, against SIG Strasbourg (27).

Game 2: Pinar Karsiyaka (2-2) v Telekom Baskets Bonn (3-1) - Group B

Where: Izmir, Turkey

When: 18:00 CET

In their last game, Karsiyaka lost to UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia 74-70, while Bonn defeated AEK 80-72. Bonn would advance to the Round of 16 with a win over Karsiyaka, but they also need AEK to defeat Reggio Emilia.

 

  • Karsiyaka have been alternating between wins and losses in their most recent nine games in the BCL, losing their most recent game 74-70 at UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia; their two wins this season happened at home.
  • Karsiyaka have made more than 10 three-pointers in each of their last three home games in the BCL, as often as in their previous 24 home games; in 2022, they have scored 47 percent of their attempts from behind the arc when playing at home in the BCL and only 33 percent when playing away.
  • Errick McCollum was Karsiyaka's best point scorer in each of their four games in the BCL this season; in fact, he finished as the best scorer in three of those games but the only one an opponent player scored more points than him was against Bonn (TJ Shorts II, 28 points).
  • Bonn have won their last three games in the BCL, their longest winning streak ever in the competition; this will be their third BCL trip to Turkey, where they are yet to win a game in the league.
  • Bonn's TJ Shorts is the only player to have scored more than 25 points in each of the first four gamedays this season; he is the only player to have combined more than 25 points, more than 5 rebounds and more than 5 assists in a single BCL game this season, it was precisely against Karsiyaka (28 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists).

Game 3: AEK (1-3) v UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia (2-2) - Group B

Where: Athens, Greece

When: 18:30 CET

In their last game, AEK lost to Bonn 80-72, while Reggio Emilia defeated Karsiyaka 74-70. AEK would be eliminated with a defeat, if Karsiyaka can also defeat Bonn.

 

  • AEK have won just one of their last six games in the BCL, with the lone win being against Reggio Emilia in the last game (84-73); the Greek side have lost their two most recent games at home in the BCL but have never lost more consecutively.
  • AEK have made 10+ three-pointers in three of their four BCL games played in 2022, already as often as in their 14 games played in the competition in 2021; they made 11 three-pointers in the last game against Reggio Emilia, their best tally in their seven encounters with Italian teams in the BCL.
  • AEK's Janis Strelnieks  has scored at least 15 points in three of his four BCL games, all as a bench player, however, he had his lowest tally of points in his previous game against Reggio Emilia (8 points); he made multiple three-pointers in each of his four games in the competition.
  • Reggio Emilia won their most recent game in the BCL (74-70 v Karsiyaka) but are yet to win consecutive league games; the team leading at half-time ended up winning each of Reggio Emilia's four games in the competition.
  • Reggio Emilia's Andrea Cinciarini recorded his most points (16) and assists (11) in a BCL game during the last game against AEK; he made 10+ assists in each of his two away games in the BCL.

Game 4: SIG Strasbourg (3-1) v UCAM Murcia (3-1) - Group A

Where: Strasbourg, France

When: 20:00 CET

In their last game, Strasbourg defeated Tofas 79-75 while Murcia defeated Szombathely 81-74. Strasbourg would advance to the Round of 16 with a win by three or more points and Murcia, meanwhile, would advance to the Round of 16 with a win.

 

 

  • Murcia (24) and Strasbourg (19.3) are the two teams making the most free-throws per game in the BCL this season; in fact, Murcia are scoring 29.1 percent of their points from the free-throw line, more than any other team this season.
  • Strasbourg have won three of their four games in the BCL this season, with their sole defeat happening against Murcia in the last game (80-78); Strasbourg are one of the four teams in the BCL this season to have won multiple games despite being trailing at the start of the fourth quarter.
  • Strasbourg's Matt Mitchell has scored 20+ points in each of his last three games in the BCL after reaching that mark in only one of his previous 16 appearances in the competition; he had his best total of points in a BCL game during the last game against Murcia, scoring 26 points.
  • Murcia have won 21 of their last 25 games in the BCL, with the four losses in that span happening while playing on the road; Murcia's four games this season ended with margins of eight or fewer points.
  • Murcia's Nemanja Radovic has scored six points or fewer in each of his last two BCL games but has never scored fewer than 10 points in three games in a row in the competition; he scored only four points in the last game against Strasbourg, his lowest tally in a game where he spent more than 20 minutes on the court.