U-Banca Transilvania has the first chance against Enisey Krasnoyarsk
The last round of the group G will oppose two of the best teams in Fiba Europe Cup. Both U-Banca Transilvania and Enisey Krasnoyarsk are true title contenders in this competition together with Pinar Karsiaka. The derby for the top spot of the group will take place tomorrow in Cluj-Napoca and I think the host team will start the encounter with the first chance because:
- in the last games played in VTB League against Tsmoki-Minsk and in Fiba Europe Cup at Sodertalje Kings, Enisey was without Darius Morris, one of their main players. Enisey won both games, even without him, but now at U-Banca Transilvania, they will have a more difficult test. Morris’ absence can mean a lot for their rotation and we have to remember that they have lost the first game of the group, at Balkan Botevgrad because of this.
- Enisey travelled a lot to reach the capital city of Transilvania, there is a long distance between Krasnoyarsk and Cluj-Napoca, made even worse by the bad flight connections
- U-Banca Transilvania will try to win the game and the group and they have the home-court advantage which will count a lot. In Russia, in the first encounter, they were affected by the long trip and they started the game very badly, but in the fourth quarter, they came back and almost steal the win. Enisey eventually won that game with 10 points margin with an excellent concentration in the last minutes.
- The host team has a great squad and they are at their best, winning all the games in the domestic league and playing better and better. In the last matches, the Romanian team didn’t give any chance to their opponents, having 13-1 overall this season.
If Bahcesehir will win the other group and CSM Oradea will finish second, this game between U-Banca Transilvania and Enisey has another special meaning. The winner will be in the next group stage of the Fiba Europe Cup along with CSM Oradea, an easier opponent than Bahcesehir.
Photo: Fiba Europe Cup
Gratian Cormos
