The Cup is still the competition of surprises

It sounds like a cliche but it’s the biggest truth and I wrote about this in my book “How to bet on basketball”. I dedicated there a few pages to the idea that the championship and the cup are 2 different competitions. The examples are everywhere. FC Barcelona was about to be eliminated yesterday by the very underdog, Unicaja Malaga. They had a great comeback, you should bet on it, but it was not that easy as it seemed before the game.

But maybe the best example to illustrate the wheel of fortune in the National Cups was the game between Dinamo Sassari and Carpena Prosciutto Basket Pesaro. Sassari was the big favourite and they had a big lead and everybody thought that the game was finished. Then things turn around and in the end, their coach Pozzeco was eliminated. But still, Dinamo Sassari remained the favourite, since Tyler Cain and Justin Robinson, two key players of Pesaro were eliminated with 5 personal fouls. After a couple of lucky threes from both sides, teams entered the overtime, where another player of Pesaro, Ariel Filloy was as well eliminated. It had to be an easy win for Sassari in those circumstances, but they eventually lost. Because this is the cup! Any squad can win, it’s just a game! Do-or-die! That’s why is better as always to hit the huge odds.

Image: Basketball Champions League