Fighting for a top spot in BasketballCL: Burgos vs. AEK Athens
In Round 12 of Basketball Champions League, San Pablo Burgos will try to get a win against AEK Athens and get their revenge after the loss suffered in Greece, 74-66. Both teams need that win because there are only 3 rounds remaining and every game is very important. Currently, Burgos is on 3rd place with a 6-5 record, while AEK is 2nd with a 7-4 record.
In their last game in BCL, Burgos travelled to France where they were beaten by Elan Bearnais 80-76 after a very close match and a very good 4th quarter made by the French team. In their last Spanish league game, they received the visit of Joventut in another tough match for them. Everything was balanced until the last quarter when Burgos scored 32 points with 66% shots made from the field. The main contributors for them were: Jasiel Rivero (15 points and 7 rebounds), Ferran Bassas (14 points and 9 assists) and Earl Clark (13 points and 5 rebounds). The main strength of the team is the roster and its depth. Coach Joan Perranoya had many good players at his disposal and everybody that come from the bench can contribute and score. In the game against Joventut, 10 players were used and any of them scored at least 5 points in the contest.
For AEK everything is very good when we look at the Greek League were they won the last 10 games in a row, including a huge home win against Panathinaikos. But, in BCL they lost their last 2 games, mostly because they relaxed a little bit thanks to their good record. Now, after 2 defeats, they should pay more attention to those games and with a win here they secure the qualification for the next stage. In their last league game, they receive the visit of Ifaistos Limnou and, after a very good 3rd quarter, they took a 74-68 win. The main contributors were: Keith Langford (25 points and 4 rebounds), Linos Chrysikopoulos (14 points and 3 rebounds) and Jonas Maciulis (8 points and 11 rebounds).
This game should be very balanced and very tough, but I expect a win from Burgos here because they are in front of their home fans and need this win to increase their chances to qualify further. For AEK, this will be another long trip, will face another good opponent and despite their huge roster’s experience, will be very tough to get a win here.
Photo: Basketball Champions League
Bogdan Vasile Tirc
