FIBA EUROPE CUP – ranking the best 4 teams of the competition
Yesterday, after the 2nd leg of the Quarterfinals, the best 4 teams of the FIBA EUROPE CUP qualified to the next stage. I will try here to analyze each team’s chances to win the trophy in April:
4. Medi Bayreuth – has the last chance to win the competition because they will meet the most dominant team, Pinar Karsiyaka. The Turkish club has an amazing roster that cannot be defeated by average teams. In the absence of a miracle that can save them, the German squad will be hammered without mercy in this semifinal.
3. Bakken Bears – the Danish team is the revelation of the season and I bet that nobody would have expected them to arrive at the semifinals. Maybe they can do a surprise in the series against Bahcesehir and enter the final stage, but it will be very difficult for them to win the competition.
2. Bahcesehir – from the beginning, I saw them as a title contender club in this European competition. They were destroyed already by Pinar Karsyiaka this season in Fiba Europe Cup but let’s not forget they are between the 3 teams that have beaten Pinar in the Turkish League. First, the Turks will have a tied encounter with Bakken in the semifinals and who knows if they can stop this fresh team.
1. Pinar Karsiyaka – the main favourite to win Fiba Europe Cup since summer where they started to build an impressive team with the largest quality rotation, including experienced foreigners (Amath M’Baye, Tony Taylor, Tony Crocker, D.J. Kennedy, Jordan Morgan, Brandon Triche) and national team level Turkish players. They are led by Ufuk Sarica, one of the best coach in Turkey during the last decade. Till now they won almost all their games in the Europe Cup by a huge margin and that’s their best recommendation letter. In the domestic league, they destroyed Fenerbahce, Galatasaray, Darussafaka and so on.
Photo: Fiba Europe Cup
Gratian Cormos
