Regular Season awards: Who dominated the statistical categories?

MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) - The action in the FIBA Europe Cup reached its first major checkpoint with the 32-team field reduced in half after the completion of the Regular Season.

In our mid-season awards piece, we examine the leader boards of the main statistical categories and recognize the most outstanding performers of the Regular Season, many of which will get a chance to continue their campaigns in the Second Round.

Efficiency: Mohamed Abukar (Keravnos)

There was no match for Keravnos big man Mohamed Abukar in terms of efficiency and the 32-year-old power forward can rightfully call himself the Most Valuable Player of the Regular Season, having averaged a league-high efficiency index of 23.2.

The player averaged 22.2 points at a 60.8 percent clip from the field, while also collecting 5.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and a steal per game. He ranked second in field goal shooting and registered five consecutive 20-point games after overcoming a relative thud in the opening fixture.

Keravnos lost only once in the entire Regular Season and finished the opening phase of the competition with a 5-1 record in Group D, with their only defeat coming in overtime against Egis Kormend.

#	Player	Team	G	EFF
1.	Mohamed Abukar	Keravnos	6	23.2
2.	Michael Thompson	Istanbul BBSK	6	22.5
3.	Zoltan Perl	Falco Vulcano	6	22.0
4.	Kendrick Perry	Szolnoki Olaj	6	21.3
5.	Darrin Govens	Falco Vulcano	6	21.0

 
Points: DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell (Bakken Bears)

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell of Bakken Bears just barely held on to the Regular Season scoring crown in the last game of the Regular Season, edging the second-placed Mohamed Abukar by a single point in the rankings.

Undoubtedly the most important player on the Danish club's roster, the 24-year-old guard contributed in more than one ways on the court, averaging 22.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Bakken Bears qualified for the Second Round but only as the second seed in Group B after unexpectedly dropping the final game to Lithuanian side Nevezis 90-64, with Akoon-Purcell going for 18 points on 7-of-23 shooting from the field, an unusually low mark for the player who had converted field goals at a 49 percent clip up to that point.

#	Player	Team	G	PPG
1.	DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell	Bakken Bears	6	22.3
2.	Mohamed Abukar	Keravnos	6	22.2
3.	Darrin Govens	Falco Vulcano	6	19.5
4.	Michael Thompson	Istanbul BBSK	6	19.0
5.	Bracey Wright	Demir Insaat	6	18.2

 

Rebounds: Keith Clanton (Lukoil Academic)

There wasn't a single player to average double digits in rebounds in the Regular Season in the FIBA Europe Cup, but Lukoil Academic big man Keith Clanton was the closest to the mark with 9.7 boards per game.

The 27-year-old center registered four double-digit rebound games, the most in the competition, and finished group play with averages of 9.3 points and 9.7 rebounds, but that couldn't elevate Lukoil Academic to anything higher than a third-place finish behind U-BT Cluj-Napoca and Istanbul BBSK in Group E.

#	Player	Team	G	RPG
1.	Keith Clanton	Lukoil Academic	6	9.7
2.	Uros Lukovic	Mornar Bar	6	9.0
3.	Terrel Parks	Keravnos	6	9.0
4.	Christopher Czerapowicz	Tsmoki-Minsk	6	8.8
5.	Jeff Adrien	Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya	6	8.5

Assists: Doug Wiggins (Bakken Bears)

Bakken Bears playmaker Doug Wiggins was the top dime-dishing player in the Regular Season, leading the competition with an average of 7.3 assists in 26.9 minutes of playing time per game.

He was one of a handful players to have a double-digit assist game to his name, amassing 11 assists in a win over SL Benfica, a mark eclipsed by only two other players in the FIBA Europe Cup this season.

Having averaged 7.7 points, 7.3 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 2.5 steals, the 29-year-old Wiggins was among the elite well-rounded players in the Regular Season with contributions on both ends of the court.

#	Player	Team	G	APG
1.	Doug Wiggins	Bakken Bears	6	7.3
2.	Michael Thompson	Istanbul BBSK	6	7.0
3.	Jesse Sanders	SL Benfica	6	6.3
4.	Kenny Barker	Keravnos	6	5.8
5.	Ilari Seppala	Kataja Basket	6	5.8

Steals: Andrew Lawrence (Sigal Prishtina)

Sigal Prishtina playmaker Andrew Lawrence was one of the cornerstones of the Ahmet Kandemir-coached Kosovar side. Despite being the only true point guard on the team, the Great Britain international also took on plenty of important defensive assignments.

The 27-year-old backcourt star ran the show with 14.5 points, 5.3 assists per game and was the run-away leader in steals with an average of 2.8 takeaways per game. He was also the only player to register two 5-steal games this season.

Despite starting the season with three wins in a row, Sigal Prishtina could not turn that into a ticket to the Second Round, losing their next three fixtures and finishing third in Group G with a 3-3 mark.

#	Player	Team	G	SPG
1.	Andrew Lawrence	Sigal Prishtina	6	2.8
2.	Doug Wiggins	Bakken Bears	6	2.5
3.	Kenny Barker	Keravnos	6	2.3
4.	Sean Cunningham	Donar Groningen	6	2.2
5.	Tarik Phillip	Szolnoki Olaj	6	2.2

Blocks: Uros Lukovic (Mornar Bar)

Uros Lukovic is back in the FIBA Europe Cup and is ready to swat everything thrown his way, dominating the field with a league-high average of 2.8 blocked shots for Mornar Bar in just 23.5 minutes of playing time.

The center is also putting up 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and could very well average a double-double with a slight uptick in minutes in the Second Round.

The man in the middle of Mornar also holds the season record in blocks after swatting away 5 shots in a 76-71 win over Kataja Basket that allowed the Montenegrin side to triumph in Group C with a 4-2 record.

#	Player	Team	G	BPG
1.	Uros Lukovic	Mornar Bar	6	2.8
2.	Lis Shoshi	Sigal Prishtina	6	2.0
3.	Justin Tuoyo	Egis Kormend	6	1.8
4.	Tuommi Huolila	Kataja Basket	6	1.7
5.	Anthony King	Keravnos	6	1.5
-	Jozo Rados	Kapfenberg Bulls	6	1.5

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