MIES (Switzerland) - A lot was on the line for this Wednesday's action in the Basketball Champions League Round of 16; three teams could have been eliminated already.
Following AEK Betsson BC's early qualification for the BCL Quarter-Finals, there was another contender to join the Greeks: La Laguna Tenerife. It was a good Wednesday night for the two-time BCL champs.
Pallacanestro Reggiana 74-84 La Laguna Tenerife
Black-and-gold has always been one of the best-suited pairs of color when it comes to winning features in the Basketball Champions League history: AEK and Tenerife had to keep the tradition alive even in the 9th season of the competition. And they kept their word.
Following the Greek powerhouse's home scoring outburst to book an anticipated ticket for the upcoming BCL Quarter-Finals, the two-time champs celebrated Txus Vidorreta's 100th BCL win with another blast.
The legendary coach was there for Tenerife during both of their title runs, and is, of course, the first coach to reach 100 wins in the Basketball Champions League.
It was done in true Tenerife fashion, with a remontada (comeback) from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter. It was their third such win in BCL history, and their 13th win when entering the fourth quarter in a losing position.
The only club with more wins coming from behind in the fourth? AEK, with 18.
Tenerife led for just about four minutes in Reggio Emilia, suffering Pallacanestro Reggiana's solidness, pushed by their home fans, the black-and-gold team from the Canary Islands clinched another participation among the best eight teams of the year.
They did so with what may look like an exaggerated 10-point margin (84-74), considering how the game progressed with time passing by against the red-and-white Italians.
Up until halfway through the ultimate quarter, the guests couldn't take down Reggiana's defensive and mental efforts.
But something switched: David Kramer (25 points, 7-of-9 from three) and Marcelinho Huertas (22 points and 8 assists) immediately scored back-to-back-to-back three-pointers, and the momentum of the game changed.
For the first time since tip-off, the hosts had to put themselves back in contention, but this time tired as never before and overwhelmed by Tenerife's endless experience.
Things ultimately didn't work out for Reggiana, who scored only five points in five minutes while Txus Vidorreta's players were still fresh as they were attending the morning's shootaround.
"Reggiana were really better than us for 20 minutes of the game. Coach Priftis made a really tough plan. They were absolutely better tactically and physically than us. Especially with the different defenses, he could control the rhythm of the game," Tenerife's head coach first explained.
"Then we were 10 points down but in a situation that was dangerous for us, we had to think about the 22 points (differential). During the second half, we changed our pace, we defended a lot better, and from our defense, we came back in the third quarter. The fourth quarter was probably our best in the BCL this year. This is the only explanation for us coming back," Vidorreta added.
Kenneth Faried and Momo Faye combined for 24 points and 14 rebounds but weren't enough as the home side's rim cornerstones.
Thanks to Aliaga Petkimspor's first victory in the Round of 16, beating BAXI Manresa in Türkiye, Tenerife not only booked a spot in the following stage but also gained homecourt advantage securing the 1st place in Group K.
Manisa Basket Divissa 98-75 Rytas Vilnius
Following last week's Rytas Vilnius 24-point triumph over Manisa Basket Divissa in Lithuania, Manisa's playcaller Kazys Maksvytis must have been worried: in a matter of a few days, he would have had to twist things around against his countrymen in order to avoid an early elimination in the Round of 16.
Well, as they say, things work out over time, as a week was necessary to defy the odds and put on a completely different spectacle in Türkiye; with the 98-75 victory, Manisa stayed alive.
Even without Saben Lee on the court, the Turkish side seemed to regain the stunning form they showed at the dawn of the season when they started their first-ever BCL campaign with a 2-0 record.
Manisa's performance against the reigning LKL champions brought optimism back to the hosts.
Fabian White Jr. couldn't extend his 15+ points and 5+ rebounds streak to six consecutive games in the BCL, but still delivered with a team-high 25-point night over 11-of-13 from the field.
The backcourt composed of Chris Chiozza (14 points and 11 assists) and Hugo Besson (22 points and 8 rebounds) was also on a roll, farming dishes to the dominant Jo Lual-Acuil (20 points and 13 rebounds) at the rim.
Rytas, who had 17 points from RJ Cole, will go up against Galatasaray in next week's action, with both teams tied at 2-2 and fighting behind Unicaja. The race for the Quarter-Finals is opened widely in Group J.
Promitheas Patras BC Vikos Cola 60-82 Bertram Derthona Basket
Entering this Wednesday of action in the BCL Round of 16, Manisa weren't the only team in danger of being already eliminated from contention despite having two games left to be played on the calendar.
Promitheas Patras BC Vikos Cola and Falco-Vulcano Szombathely also had only one possible outcome to stay alive and keep praying about extending their 2024-25 International campaign: respectively winning over Bertram Derthona Basket and UCAM Murcia.
Keep scrolling to see what happened in Spain. But first, focus on the Italians getting a significant victory in Group I, entering an 11-0 run in the second half to escape with the 82-60 win.
Promitheas' fourth consecutive loss in the competition after getting through the Play-Ins occurred also because of Justin Gorham, who was unstoppable at 21 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
"We knew we had to come out and fight because they would give us their best shot. We just executed on offense and got some defensive stops and that led to the big run," he commented.
Walter De Raffaele followed his forward in the post-game press conference.
"This is a group of guys that really love each other and they have no jealousy of each other," Derthona's head coach first commented.
"They really fight, now is the moment of the season where everybody saw the goals of our home league or the Champions League. Nothing is about my minutes - it's about a team goal."
Following this victory, Derthona are now tied with FIT/One Wurzburg Baskets at 2-2 in Group I. One of these two will join AEK in the Quarter-Finals, and the other will follow Promitheas back to one game per week.
UCAM Murcia 85-63 Falco-Vulcano Szombathely
Where were we? Oh, yes: Falco needed a big win away from home to not only break their three-game losing streak but also make a last-minute appearance in the picture for the BCL Quarter-Finals.
Just like it happened in Greece, the underdogs looked prepared for the battle as they found an 8-0 run in the second quarter to take an unexpected lead.
However, going out of the locker rooms at halftime, Murcia showed their supremacy, increasing the gap more and more as time passed by. In the end, they won by 22 points (85-63).
Dylan Ennis (18 points over 10-of-10 at the line) and Rodions Kurucs (17 points and 5 rebounds) took the spotlight on Wednesday for the winning side.
Free throws were crucial for Sito Alonso's team: they scored 32 times at the line, the most in a BCL game since Opava in December 2023 (33 FTM); their 42 attempts from the line are the most in a BCL fixture since November 2021 (Cluj Napoca, 44 FTA).
On the eliminated side, the team's captain Zoltan Perl concluded the BCL campaign with a 12-point losing effort.
At this point, it's a likely battle between UCAM and ERA Nymburk to win the group, as they are tied at 3-1. They cannot relax for one moment, as Nanterre 92 are right there next to them at 2-2.