NIZHNY NOVGOROD (Russia) - There is only one game on the Thursday schedule but it could turn out to be the most important game of the season so far for one of the teams involved.

Nizhny Novgorod (3-0) vs. AEK (2-1) -- Group K, 17:00 CET

• Nizhny will secure a place in May's Final 8 if they win this game. That would be their second trip to the Quarter-Finals stage since they joined the BCL. The first time was the 2018-19 season, when they fell to Telenet Giants Antwerp.
  
  
• Nizhny are coming off a 96-82 win over Turk Telekom at home on Tuesday, behind 32 points from Kasey Shepherd who went 8 for 9 from behind the arc.
  
  
• AEK on the other hand are coming off a 91-73 loss at SIG Strasbourg on Tuesday, despite 18 points from Keith Langford. The Greek team traveled from France straight to Russia on a charter flight.
  
  
• Nizhny are riding a four-game win streak in the BCL, their longest in competition history. The Russian team have in fact won seven of their last eight BCL games, with their only defeat in that stretch being a 98-92 overtime loss to Casademont Zaragoza at home.
  
  
• AEK have lost three of their last four road games in the BCL and gave up 90 or more points in the two most recent ones. The Greek team has never given up 90 or more points in three games in a row in its five-year history in the competition.
  
  
• Nizhny are the second-leading team in the league in made three-pointers, averaging 12.3 made threes per game. They've made 10 or more triples in eight of their nine BCL games so far this season. The Russian side had never averaged more than 9.0 made triples per game in any of their previous campaigns in the competition.
  
  
• Kasey Shepherd is the league's leading scorer as a sixth man, as he has tallied 158 points in the eight games he came off the bench (19.8 points per game). Shepherd is averaging 25.7 points per game in the Play-Offs, after averaging 15.7 points per game in the Regular Season.
  
  
• AEK's Keith Langford has scored in double digits in each of his nine BCL games this season. Langford is averaging 22.8 points per game on the road and 17.0 points per game at home.