Week 6 - Wednesday games preview

MIES (Switzerland) - Week six of the Basketball Champions League continues Wednesday November 23 with more intriguing matchups all over from Turkey, Germany, Spain and France, as the second half of the regular season ramps up.

Here's a look at the four games on Wednesday:

Game 1: Galatasaray Nef (2-1) v Hapoel Atsmon Holon (3-0) - Group C

Where: Istanbul, Turkey

When: 18:00 CET

This will be the fourth encounter between Galatasaray and Holon with their first three meetings having been won by the home team of the day; none of their previous three meetings ended up with a double-digit margin. Galatasaray have won each of their last four home games played in the BCL regular season; they have always managed to score more than 80 points in their seven home games during BCL regular seasons (88 on average). Galatasaray are making the three-pointers per game of any team in the BCL this season (12.3, also Lenovo Tenerife), while Holon is conceding the most on average (13.3). The Turkish side are also making 2.16 assists per turnover, the highest ratio of any team in the league in 2022-23. Holon have won their last five games in the BCL regular season but have never won more games in a row at that stage; each of their last seven games in the regular season ended up with a single-digit margin. Holon's Joe Ragland is the only player averaging 15+ points, 5+ rebounds and 5+ assists per game in the BCL this season – he is combining for 18.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 10.3 assists per game in the league in 2022-23. [/unordered]

Game 2: Telekom Baskets Bonn (2-1) v AEK (1-2) - Group B

Where: Bonn, Germany

When: 20:00 CET

Bonn and AEK have already faced each other on three occasions before in the BCL, the German team winning the last game this season 73-66 after AEK won their two meetings in 2019-20; each of those previous three games ended up with margins of seven points or fewer. Bonn have won their last two BCL games but have never won three games in a row in the competition; they have scored more than 80 points in each of their last 11 home games in the BCL, but no team has ever managed to score that many points in more home games in a row in the competition. TJ Shorts II has scored more than 25 points in each of his three games with Bonn in the BCL, but no player has ever scored that many points in more than three consecutive games in league history; Shorts has also made 7+ assists in each of those games. AEK have won their most recent away game (84-73 v UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia) ending a run of seven straight defeats away from home in the competition; the last time they won consecutive away games was in January-March 2020, with both wins happening in Germany (v RASTA Vechta & Bonn). AEK's Janis Strelnieks scored 20 points in the last game, the most for him in a single BCL game; the Latvian player has made 15 or more points in the two games in which he has played more than 20 minutes, but AEK lost both those encounters. [/unordered]

Game 3: UCAM Murcia (2-1) v Falco Vulcano Szombathely (1-2) - Group A

Where: Murcia, Spain

When: 20:30 CET

 

Murcia have won their last 11 home games in the BCL, conceding 80+ points in only two of those games; their last three home games in the BCL ended with margins of three points or fewer, however. Murcia are simultaneously, the team with the most free-throws made and attempted per game (27.3/33.3) and the team to have conceded and allowed the most free-throws to their opponents in the BCL this season (20.3/28.7). Szombathely won 102-94 in their only previous meeting with Murcia in the BCL, the highest scoring game in the competition this season; it was the only time that Szombathely scored 100+ points and the only time Murcia conceded more than 100 points in a BCL game. Szombathely have lost their last five away games in the BCL, their longest losing streak in the competition; they have conceded more than 85 points in four of those five games, as often as in their previous 13 away games in the competition. Zoltan Perl has scored a total of 361 points off the bench and needs 11 more to become the fifth player with the most points scored off the bench in the BCL history (J'Covan Brown, currently 5th with 371); he scored 29 points in the last game, his highest in a BCL game. [/unordered]

Game 4: Limoges CSP (0-3) v VEF Riga (1-2) - Group F

Where: Limoges, France

When: 20:30 CET

 

 

Limoges lost 71-51 in the last game against Riga, the only time they lost a BCL game by more than six points and the fewest points conceded by Riga in a game in the competition. Limoges have lost their last two home games in the BCL after winning two of the previous three; each of their five home games in the BCL ended with margins of five points or fewer. Limoges have scored the fewest three-pointers per game in the BCL this season (5.0) while Riga have scored the fewest two-point shots on average (11.0); they are two of the four teams to have scored fewer than 70 points per game in the league this season; Limoges 63.7 and Riga 68.7. Riga won their last BCL game against Limoges, but have won consecutive games in the competition only once before, a stretch of three wins in November-December 2020; they have lost their last nine away games in the competition however, a run that includes two defeats in France (v Strasbourg and Dijon). Riga's Nysier Brooks has grabbed 10+ rebounds in each of his last two games in the BCL; he is yet to miss a free-throw in the league (8-of-8), while also making 70 percent of his attempted field goals (14-of-20). [/unordered]