MANISA (Türkiye) - With four groups of three teams and the first-placed team from each group going directly to the Semi-Finals, whilst everyone else goes through to Classification Games, the format of this competition leaves almost no margin for error in the Group Phase.
Each team will play twice in the Group Phase and automatically know that only two wins will be enough to stay in contention for winning the Trophy. There is no room for starting the tournament slowly and peaking at the right time.
With that in mind, let's take a look at the runners and riders in Group C and see what we can expect from all three teams.
Guess Who's Back?
The 2024 champions aren't just back by name, they are back in force.
Head coach Gintaras Kadziulis is able to count on several key returning players, including last year's MVP Ignas Urbonas, Mantas Liutkevicius, Matas Deniusas, Adomas Pocius, and Erikas Sirgedas.
The Favorites
Whilst it's impossible to guess at the strength of newcomers Pallacanestro Reggiana and hosts Manisa BBSK, we know from experience how strong Rytas Vilnius will be.
After finishing third in Year 1, only losing to the eventual champions Igokea, Rytas went one better last time around and defeated their BIH rivals en-route to the trophy in Year 2.
Not only were they undefeated throughout the whole tournament, but they won the final against Galatasary by more than 30 points and won every game by an average of 24 points. It was an utterly dominant display.
With the knowledge that key players and the head coach are returning and the squad is further stacked with experience of playing men's basketball in the Lithuanian NKL, it's very hard to look past Rytas as the firm favorites for Group C.
The Wildcards
Newcomers Pallacanestro Reggiana fit the bill as wildcards. The home of Kobe Bryant as a child, Reggiana's U19 team were national champions in 2003 and 2007, then followed that up by finishing runners-up back in 2018.
This year's team already has 17 wins and 7 losses this season as they enter the second phase of the season hoping to reach another National Finals.
Head coach Marco Rossetti wore the Reggiana colors as a pro in the Italian Serie A and has added a fresh impetus to the program.
Youngster El Hadji Mame Samba Deme looks like a serious talent and maybe the next in line to follow Momo Diouf, Sasha Grant, and Momo Faye into the first team in recent seasons.
Hosts Manisa will be looking to represent the continued growth of their club with a strong performance.
195m guard Batu Eryurtlu and 16-year-old Mehmet Delibas should be in the squad and ready to make an impact. Tolga Sen is another with strong performances to his name for the Manisa BBSK U19 team this season.
The One to Watch
After averaging 19 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists on his way to winning the MVP award in 2024, Ignas Urbonas has gone from strength to strength.
In the 2024 U17 World Cup, he averaged 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists against the best players of his generation in the world and then started to push his case with the senior squad.
Just last month, on March 22, when given the opportunity to play for the seniors against Mazeikiai in the Lithuanian LKL, Urbonas put up 12 points and 3 rebounds whilst shooting 71 percent overall and 67 percent from behind the arc.
Make no mistake, Urbonas will be aiming to break records and claim back-to-back MVP awards.