MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) - The first week of the new FIBA Europe Cup season sizzled, with down-to-the-wire action.

The fans were treated to an unusual double-double by Keravnos guard Kenny Barker and a first-quarter explosion by Coty Clarke of Avtodor Saratov, while Falco Vulcano's did something previously only accomplished by the two champions of the competition.

Continuing last year's tradition, every week we will be taking a look at the most interesting events of the gameday through the lens of the numbers and getting you up-to-speed on all of the record-breaking performances.

0

The game of basketball is not all about points. Kenny Barker of Keravnos registered a highly unusual double-double, going scoreless with 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 68-58 season-opening win over Basic-Fit Brussels. The 31-year-old veteran attempted just two field goals and clearly did not have his priorities set on scoring points. What makes Barker's performance even more remarkable is that he committed just one turnover.

6

Bakken Bears high-flyer DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell put on a dunk fest in Saratov, finishing the game with six spectacular throw-downs. He finished the game with 17 points on 8-of-20 shooting, 4 rebounds and a pair of assists. Having put one defender on skates with a crossover and another one on a poster, Akoon-Purcell also earned the best play of the week.  

7

Antywane Robinson is proving to be a magnificent addition for SL Benfica, collecting a game-high 27 points to lead the Portuguese side to an 88-83 win over the visiting BC Nevezis. The former Elan Bearnais man seems to benefiting from the move himself, setting his FIBA Europe Cup personal bests both in points and three-pointers made. Having connected from downtown 7 times, he also tied Trabzonspor guard Osiris Eldridge for the competition season-high.

11

There is a new dime-dishing sheriff in Minsk. After enjoying the passing of Dru Joyce last season, Tsmoki fans were treated to some assists wizardry by newcomer Filip Adamovic, who became the second player in the competition to hit double-digits in assists this season, with a season-high 11 dimes against Proximus Spirou.

15

Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya strongman Jeff Adrien continued to punish his opponents on the glass, registering already his second 15-rebound game in the early season against Alba Fehervar on the way to securing Top Performer honors in the opening week of action in the Regular Season. He hit the mark for the first time against BM Slam Stal in Qualification Round 1. On both occasions, he was just one board shy of matching the season record of 16 rebounds set by KR big man Jalen Jenkins.

17

Kataja Basket set a new FIBA Europe Cup season-high with 17 steals in the Group C opener in Austria against Kapfenberg Bulls, which tied Elan Bearnais for the second-best defensive display in the competition ever. The all-time record still belongs to Slovenian side Tajfun, who registered 18 steals against Hibernia in the 2015-16 season.

It is certainly no coincidence that Kataja's opponents from Kapfenberg ended up with what also turned out to be a season-high 25 turnovers. Bogic Vujosevic had a particularly tough evening handling the ball, with 6 turnovers, while Ilari Seppala stood out for the Finns with a game-high 5 takeaways.

18

Coty Clarke was simply unstoppable in the first quarter of Avtodor Saratov's game against Bakken Bears, collecting 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting in the first eight minutes of play before checking out to the bench. While he collected just 6 more points the rest of the way, he still finished the contest as top-scorer across both teams.

29

Despite playing in their third game in five nights, 38-year-old Bosna guard Cory Bradford did not seem like a tired man on the court against Telenet Antwerp Giants, scoring 29 points in just over 20 minutes of action in the home loss.

"I think this was perhaps our best game so far of the season," said Bradford after the game. "It seems every time we should have taken the game, they would score a three-pointer. We played great defense in some moments, but it was not good enough for the win."

While this was the best scoring display in the first week of the Regular Season, the 36-point game from CSM CSU Oradea big man Nemanja Milosevic in Qualification Round 1 remained safe for the time being.

32

Falco Vulcano came close to handing Nizhny Novgorod an upset in their Group H opener, but eventually fell short in overtime. One of the main reasons why the Srecko Sekulovic-coached Hungarians performed so well in Russia was their aggressive play on the offensive end, which resulted in 32 points from the free-throw line.

Having connected on 32-of-37 shots from the stripe, Falco matched the FIBA Europe Cup all-time record for most free-throws made in a single game. The two teams that have done that in the past? The elite company of Nanterre 92 and Fraport Skyliners – the champions of the first two editions of the competition.

FIBA