Wednesday preview: Who will claim the six final spots in the Second Round?

MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) - The final tickets to the Second Round will be handed out on Wednesday in the FIBA Europe Cup, with the nail-biting action going down to the wire in four of the groups.

There are only six places remaining in the next phase of the competition: Telenet Giants Antwerp and Donar Groningen will joust for second place in Group A, Mornar Bar and FC Porto will indirectly lock horns in Group B, while three teams each in Groups F and G are still alive as well.

Group E: Dinamo Tbilisi (0-5) v Istanbul BBSK (4-1)

Time: Wednesday, 16:00 CET
Key Matchup: Lavell Boyd v Michael Thompson
Head-to-head: Istanbul BBSK +20 (72-52)
Permutations: Already qualified for the Second Round, Istanbul BBSK can finish first in the standings if they win against Dinamo Tbilisi and U-BT Cluj-Napoca lose to Lukoil Academic; Dinamo Tbilisi are guaranteed to finish fourth no matter what.
Domestic Form: Dinamo Tbilisi defeated Kutaisi 84-76 in the Georgian championship to improve to a league-best 6-0 record over the weekend; Istanbul BBSK upset Darussafaka in Turkey, inscribing a 75-72 win to move to 4-5 on the table.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group H: Nizhny Novgorod (4-1) v Szolnoki Olaj (4-1)

Time: Wednesday, 17:00 CET
Key Matchup: Ivan Strebkov v David Vojvoda
Head-to-head: Szolnoki Olaj +26 (97-71)
Permutations: Nizhny Novgorod and Szolnoki Olaj are both qualified for the Second Round; the winner of the game will claim the top spot in the standings.
Domestic Form: Nizhny Novgorod lost 84-75 to fellow FIBA Europe Cup side Avtodor in the VTB League, dropping to 2-4, which puts them in 8th place; Szolnoki Olaj restarted the Hungarian championship action with a 79-67 win over KTE-Duna to improve to a league-best 8-1 record.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group D: BC Balkan (0-5) v Basic-Fit Brussels (2-3)

Time: Wednesday, 17:30 CET
Key Matchup: DeVaughn Washington v Jeremy Simmons
Head-to-head: Basic-Fit Brussels +3 (81-78)
Permutations: Basic-Fit Brussels are guaranteed to finish third in Group D, with BC Balkan locked at the bottom of the table.
Domestic Form: Balkan suffered their first loss in the Bulgarian NBL, coming up short 70-67 against Levski on Saturday; Basic-Fit Brussels continued to struggle in Belgium, losing to Proximus Spirou 86-74 and dropping to 1-8 in the standings.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group F: Tsmoki-Minsk (3-2) v Alba Fehervar (3-2)

Time: Wednesday, 17:30 CET
Key Matchup: Filip Adamovic v Kasey Hill
Head-to-head: Alba Fehervar +9 (73-64)
Permutations: Tsmoki-Minsk and Alba Fehervar can qualify for the Second Round as the top seed in Group F with a win; the team that loses qualify as the second-placed side, but only if Proximus Spirou lose to Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya.
Domestic Form: Tsmoki came up short against Lokomotiv Kuban 67-56, with the loss putting them at 3-5 for the season. Alba Fehervar have not played in Hungary following the completion of the international break.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group F: Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya (1-4) v Proximus Spirou (3-2)

Time: Wednesday, 17:30 CET
Key Matchup: Jeff Adrien v Rasko Katic
Head-to-head: Proximus Spirou +4 (66-62)
Permutations: Proximus Spirou cannot climb higher than second place and need a win to qualify for the Second Round; Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya are guaranteed to finish fourth.
Domestic Form: Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya lost 99-74 to Gilboa Galil in Israel, falling to 2-6 in the league table; Proximus Spirou defeated Basic-Fit Brussels 86-74 to advance to a 6-3 mark in Belgium.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group D: Keravnos (4-1) v Egis Kormend (4-1)

Time: Wednesday, 18:00 CET
Key Matchup: Kenny Barker v Marquis Wright  
Head-to-head: Egis Kormend +1 (93-92)
Permutations: Already qualified for the Second Round, Keravnos and Egis Kormend will play for the top spot in the standings, with the winner claiming first place.
Domestic Form: Second-placed Keravnos knocked off ETHA Engomi 89-77 in Cyprus, climbing to 5-1 in the standings. Egis Kormend, 7-1, handed a 76-74 loss to Szolnoki Olaj just before the international break, but have not played in the Hungarian championship since.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group E: U-BT Cluj-Napoca (4-1) v Lukoil Academic (2-3)

Time: Wednesday, 18:00 CET
Key Matchup: Zeljko Sakic v Dimitar Dimitrov
Head-to-head: U-BT Cluj-Napoca +15 (88-73)
Permutations: U-BT Cluj-Napoca are already qualified for the Second Round and can finish first in the standings with a win or if Istanbul BBSK lose to Dinamo Tbilisi; Lukoil Academic are guaranteed to finish third.
Domestic Form: U-BT Cluj-Napoca edged CSM Oradea 83-82 in a thriller to stay atop the Romanian Championship standings with a 6-1 mark; Lukoil Academic blew out Yambol 112-81 to move into pole position in Bulgaria with an identical 6-1 mark.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group B: Bakken Bears (4-1) v Nevezis (3-2)

Time: Wednesday, 18:30 CET
Key Matchup: DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell v Justas Tamulis
Head-to-head: Bakken Bears +15 (86-71)
Permutations: Already qualified for the Second Round, Bakken Bears and Nevezis will play for the top spot in Group B; Bakken Bears will finish first unless Nevezis win by 16 points or more to get the head-to-head advantage.
Domestic Form: Bakken Bears defeated Svendborg 86-74 in the Danish Championship last week to get their record to 4-1 in the standings; Nevezis suffered their fifth loss in a row in Lithuania, falling short 98-70 against Lietuvos Rytas.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group A: Donar Groningen (3-2) v Telenet Giants Antwerp (3-2)

Time: Wednesday, 19:30 CET
Key Matchup: Brandyn Curry v Jason Clarke
Head-to-head: Telenet Giants Antwerp +1 (78-77)
Permutations: Telenet Giants Antwerp and Donar Groningen will play for the only remaining place in the Second Round, with the winner advancing as the second seed.
Domestic Form: Donar Groningen outdueled Dukes 85-65 in the Dutch Basketball League, climbing to a 7-2 record and bouncing back from a technical loss just before the international break; Telenet Giants Antwerp lost a nip-and-tuck battle against Limburg, 80-78, and dropped to 4-4 in Belgium.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group C: Mornar Bar (3-2) v Kataja Basket (4-1)

Time: Wednesday, 19:30 CET
Key Matchup: Nemanja Vranjes v Ilari Seppala
Head-to-head: Kataja Basket +5 (81-76)
Permutations: Kataja Basket are already qualified for the Second Round; Kataja Basket will finish first in the standings, unless Mornar Bar win by 5 points or more to leapfrog them; Mornar Bar will clinch a Second Round berth with any win or if FC Porto lose to Kapfenberg Bulls.
Domestic Form: Mornar Bar could not come up with a positive result against Cibona in the ABA League, falling 82-78 to the Croatian club and dropping to 4-6 in the standings; Kataja Basket split a pair of games over the weekend, defeating UU-Korihait Uusikaupunki 104-84 before losing 96-78 to Salon Vilpas for a 6-6 overall record.
Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group C: Kapfenberg Bulls (1-4) v FC Porto (2-3)

Time: Wednesday, 16:00 CET
Key Matchup: Jozo Rados v Sasa Borovnjak
Head-to-head: FC Porto +1 (85-84)
Permutations: FC Porto would qualify for the Second Round if they win against Kapfenberg Bulls and Mornar Bar lose to Kataja Basket; to avoid finishing fourth, Kapfenberg Bulls would have to defeat FC Porto by at least 2 points.
Domestic Form: Kapfenberg Bulls made easy work of Graz UBSC in Austria, picking up a 100-67 win to climb to 7-2 in the standings; FC Porto inscribed two wins in the Portuguese Basketball League last week, defeating Ovarense 88-68 and topping Vitoria 102-97 to improve to 5-4.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group G: Khimik (0-5) v Belfius Mons-Hainaut (3-2)

Time: Wednesday, 19:30 CET
Key Matchup: Austin Arians v Garlon Green
Head-to-head: Belfius Mons-Hainaut +24 (75-51)
Permutations: Belfius Mons-Hainaut will qualify for the Second Round if they win against Khimik or if Sigal Prishtina lose to Demir Insaat; Khimik are guaranteed to finish fourth.
Domestic Form: Khimik celebrated a 78-58 win over Zaporozhye to move their marker to 4-5 in the Ukrainian Championship; Belfius Mons-Hainaut had a forgettable evening against Oostende on Saturday, suffering a 106-48 defeat against the Belgian championship leaders, but maintained their grip on second place with a 6-4 mark.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group G: Sigal Prishtina (3-2) v Demir Insaat (3-2) 

Time: Wednesday, 19:30 CET
Key Matchup: Andrew Lawrence v Erving Walker
Head-to-head: Demir Insaat +27 (86-59)
Permutations: Demir Insaat can qualify for the Second Round unless they lose by 29 points or more to Sigal Prishtina and Belfius Mons-Hainaut defeat Khimik; Sigal Pristhina will qualify for the Second Round if they defeat Demir Insaat by at least 29 points or by any margin if Belfius Mons-Hainaut lose to Khimik.
Domestic Form: Sigala Prishtina stayed undefeated in the Kosovar championship, thrashing Trepca 123-61 and improving to a perfect 11-0. Demir Insaat lost a close one to Eskisehir, 79-72, in Turkey and dropped to a 3-6 mark in the championship.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

Group H: Karposh Sokoli (0-5) v Falco Vulcano (2-3)

Time: Wednesday, 20:45 CET
Key Matchup: Dragan Labovic v Aliaksandr Pustahvar
Head-to-head: Falco Vulcano +21 (108-87)
Permutations: Both teams are eliminated from contention for the Second Round; Falco Vulcano are guaranteed to finish third, while Karposh Sokoli are locked in fourth place.
Domestic Form: Neither Karposh Sokoli, nor Falco Vulcano took part in any domestic action in their respective national championships after the international break.
Live Stream: YouTube.com/FIBA

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