01 September, 2016
30 April, 2017
Ironi Nahariya v Tsmoki-Minsk,
06/10/2016
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Bakken, Nahariya, Oradea and Usak clinch last four Regular Season spots

(Basketball Champions League) – The last four tickets to the Regular Season of the Basketball Champions League met their rightful holders on Thursday night as Denmark’s Bakken Bears Aarhus, Israel’s Ironi Nahariya, Romania’s CSM Oradea and Turkey’s Muratbey Usak Sportif emerged triumphant from the second-leg games of the four final ties in Qualification Round 2.

They join Kataja Basket, KK Mornar Bar, Juventus Utena and Pallacanestro Varese, the four teams that had prevailed in the first four match-ups in Qualification Round 2, last week. Meanwhile the European dream is not over for the likes of BC Tartu, Tsmoki Minsk, Lukoil Academic Sofia and U-BT Cluj-Napoca, the four teams that fell in Thursday’s second-leg action, as they will continue their campaign in the FIBA Europe Cup.

Bakken Bears and Ironi Nahariya will both compete in Group A of the Regular Season, where Aris Thessaloniki, AS Monaco, Banvit, Fraport Skyliners, CEZ Nymburk and Helios Suns Domzale already await. Bakken coupled their wins over BC Tartu on Thursday as they prevailed 83-70 at home, two days after winning 75-67 in the first leg. Nahariya meanwhile defeated Tsmoki-Minsk at home by a four-point margin, 71-67, just as they had done in Belarus on Tuesday when they clinched a 70-66 success.


CSM Oradea came into the Thursday second-leg clash with Lukoil Academic with the task to overcome a three-point deficit from the first game and pulled it off courtesy of a 70-58 victory. The Romanian side will play in Group B and go up against Avtodor Saratov, Umana Reyer Venezia, Kataja Basket, Maccabi Rand Media, Khimik, Pinar Karsiyaka and Le Mans Sarthe.


Usak stormed past U-BT Cluj-Napoca 85-66 behind an impressive late burst and advance with two wins in as many games in Qualification Round 2 and a 21-point differential on aggregate. Usak take the remaining spot in Group C and will face off with EWE Baskets Oldenburg, Openjobmetis Varese, PAOK, Neptunas Klaipeda, Rosa Radom, ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne and Ventspils.