7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys boosted its playoffs chances with an exciting comeback victory, 94-90, over ratiopharm Ulm on Tuesday. Lietkebelis improves to 4-7 in Group B while Ulm drops to 8-4.

Lietkabelis battles back, downs Ulm for crucial win 

7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys boosted its playoffs chances with an exciting comeback victory, 94-90, over ratiopharm Ulm on Tuesday. Lietkebelis improves to 4-7 in Group B while Ulm drops to 8-4. After a closely contested first half, Ulm pulled ahead early in the third, but a double technical foul against point guard Juan Nunez proved costly and Lietkabelis grabbed the momentum to take the lead and seal a big win. Paulius Valinskas led the winning team with 24 points and 10 assists on his return from injury, while Gediminas Orelik scored 17 and Deivydas Sirvydas added 16. The outstanding Karim Jallow pushed Ulm's challenge with 24 points and 4 steals. 

Game Videos

### Back and forth first the first two quarters

Martynas Varnas capped a 5-0 run to give Lietkabelis an early lead, and Sirvydas protected the lead with the game’s first triple. Two inside scores from Jallow kept Ulm close, but Sirvydis netted another three-pointer to make it 16-10. Georginho De Paula struck from deep as Ulm fought back, and Tobias Jensen’s deep strike made it 18-19 after 10 minutes. 

Valinskas started and finished an 11-2 run, also featuring a triple from Stefan Bircevic, as Lietkabelis surged ahead, 29-22. A three-point play from Philipp Herkenhoff restarted Ulm, and a layup from Trevion Williams pulled it back to 32-32. Orelik netted from deep as Lietkabelis rallied, but Jallow scored consecutive baskets before Nunez and LJ Figueroa hit triples to make it 43-47 at the break.  

### Lietkabelis made its move and held on

The second half started with three scores from Jallow bettering another triple from Orelik, making it 49-54. Jallow stayed hot with another three-ball, but Nunez was ejected for consecutive technical fouls. Nicolas Bretzel scored inside to protect Ulm’s lead, but Liutauras Lelevicius and Valinskas struck from deep to tie it, 62-62, and 4 points from Nikola Popovic made it 68-65 through three quarters. 

Three-pointers from Dziugas Slavinskas and Bircevic stretched the host’s lead , 74-67. Sirvydas also scored from deep, before Jallow gave Ulm hope with a three-point play. Another three-ball, this time from Valinskas, gave Lietkabelis the game’s first double-digit lead, 82-72. Three-pointers from Thomas Klepeisz and Jansen sparked Ulm, and the visitors kept pushing as Jallow scored twice, making it 87-86. But Popovic and Sivrydas netted from close-range, and the host held on in a tight finish. 

Game News

Down slightly after each of the first two quarters, the hosts delighted the home crowd by coming back to beat a higher-placed Group B visitor.

Lietkabelis battles back, downs Ulm 94-90 for crucial win 

7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys v ratiopharm Ulm (2023-12-19T17:00:00.000Z)

JL Mincidelice Bourg en Bresse extended its winning streak to a club-record six games and hit 15 three-pointers before holding on to an 89-98 win over U-BT Cluj-Napoca on Tuesday. 

Bourg holds off Cluj's big rally, 89-98

JL Mincidelice Bourg en Bresse extended its winning streak to a club-record six games and hit 15 three-pointers before holding on to an 89-98 win over U-BT Cluj-Napoca on Tuesday. The win gave Bourg a season sweep of Cluj-Napoca and lifted its record to 10-2 while Cluj dropped to 8-4 in a tie for third. Bourg scored a club-record 37 first-quarter points and held 20-point margins at the ends of the first two quarters. The lead grew to 27 points, 40-67, before Cluj made its run behind D.J. Seeley, Bryce Jones and Patrick Richard to get within 78-83 before Bourg replied with a 0-7 run and cruised to the finish. Isiaha Mike scored 14 of his game-high 26 points in the first quarter, and also had 7 rebounds. Jequan Lewis finished with 17 points, 6 assists and 3 steals. Bryce Brown added 12 and Maksim Salash 11 points for Bourg. Seeley scored all of his 20 points in the final 14 minutes of the game. Richard added 16 points, Jones 11 and Emanuel Cate 10 in defeat.

### Bourg busted out after tipoff

Jarell Eddie hit a pair of triples for the hosts, including a four-point play that made it 9-8, before Bourg took over. Mike had a three-pointer and followed it up with a steal and a dunk. After a dunk by Andrija Stipanovic, Bourg scored 12 consecutive points, a run that included 2more threes from Mike and one from Maxime Courby, to open 11-25 lead. Cate snapped the Bourg run, but Mike added a three-point play and Salash strung together 6 points to make it 17-37 after 10 minutes. Cate and Mareks Mejeris scored inside early or Cluj, but there was no stopping Bourg as a triple apiece from Earl Rowland, Axel Julien and Brown opened a 25-50 margin midway through the second. The hosts melted the deficit through Jones, who scored 7 points in a 9-2 run, but Lewis nailed another triple, Bourg's ninth, to make the visitors take a 20-point lead into halftime, 35-55.

### Despite rally, Cluj got no closer than 5

Cluj started the second half with some extra energy, but triples by Mike and Jeremy Morgan kept Bourg in charge, 39-65. After Karel Guzman's steals and a three-point play got Cluj going again, Seeley and Mike exchanged three-pointers before Richard hit his own to make it 57-73. A series of 8 free throws by Richard and Seeley cut the difference it to 65-75, but Salash beat the third-quarter buzzer with a triple and Earl Rowland hit another early in the fourth to make it 67-81. Cluj continued its charge, getting 8 straight second-chance points, including back-to-back triples from Seeley and Adam Mokoka, that made it 78-83. However, that's when Brown nailed a tough corner triple for the visitors and followed it with a jumper before a fastbreak dunk by Mike capped a 0-7 run that restored Bourg's double-digit margin with 4:30 to go. The visitors closed out the game from there.

The visitors set a pair of club records and solidified their hold on second place in Group B.

U-BT Cluj-Napoca v Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse (2023-12-19T17:00:00.000Z)

In an important game in the playoffs race in Group B, Aris Midea Thessaloniki downed Turk Telekom Ankara 85-94 in the Turkish capital on Tuesday. Aris improved to 5-7 and has a 2-0 record against Turk Telekom which dropped to 3-9. 


Aris gets pivotal road win, 85-94! 

In an important game in the Group B playoffs race, Aris Midea Thessaloniki downed Turk Telekom Ankara 85-95 in the Turkish capital on Tuesday. Aris improved to 5-7 and has a 2-0 record against Turk Telekom, which dropped to 3-9. Vassilis Toliopoulos paced the winners with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists. Jonathan Stark added 18 points, Roberto Gallinat and Roberts Blumbergs 12 each, and Ronnie Harrell 10 for Aris. Tyrone Wallace led Turk Telekom with 30 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Okben Ulubay added 15 points, Steven Enoch 12 and James Palmer 10.

### Toliopoulos put Aris ahead

Blumbergs and Toliopoulos got Aris going early with 5 points apiece before Harrell struck from downtown to make Turk Telekom call timeout at 6-13. Kris Bankston followed a dunk with an alley-oop slam for the visitors, then Toliopoulos scored from beyond the arc for a 12-20 Aris lead. Enoch and Ulubay fueled a 9-2 run that got Turk Telekom within 21-22 before Lefteris Bochoridis's layup restored a 21-24 Aris lead after 10 minutes.

### Wallace kept Turk Telekom close

Palmer hit a jumper and Wallace added a triple for Turk Telekom to forge a 26-26 tie early in the second quarter. Gallinat followed a three-pointer with a layup for Aris, but an unstoppable Wallace dunked and hit from deep to complete the hosts' comeback, 33-32. Harrell and Silvio de Sousa helped Aris regain a 35-39 lead. Wallace, Blumbergs and Boran Guler each hit a three-pointer, then Bochoridis hit another late layup to fix the halftime score at 41-46.

### Stark stepped up

Toliopoulos bettered Enoch's layup with a triple for a 43-49 Aris lead soon after the break. He got help from Gallinat and de Sousa to boost the guests' margin to 47-56. Enoch kept pacing Turk Telekom and Wallace's driving basket got the crowd involved at 53-56. Aris found a new go-to guy in Stark, who followed a close basket with a jumper and soon added a three-pointer to keep his team in charge, 59-66, after 30 minutes.

### Aris took off, sealed it

Gallinat's corner triple made it a double-digit game, 59-69, early in the fourth quarter. Wallace tried to change things for Turk Telekom but Stark scored again and Nikos Persidis banked in a three-pointer for a 62-74 Aris lead with 7 minutes left. Toliopoulos followed a jumper with a floater to break the game open, 62-78. Stark and Toliopoulos made sure Aris kept full control of the game until the final buzzer.

With their third road win at a key moment, the visitors kept above the cut-off line for the playoffs in Round 12.

Aris gets pivotal road win, 85-95, in Ankara

Turk Telekom Ankara v Aris Midea Thessaloniki (2023-12-19T17:00:00.000Z)

The 8-3 U-BT Cluj-Napoca comes up against the 9-2 JL Bourg in Round 12 of the 2023-24 EuroCup season, with both teams towards the top of the standings.

U-BT Cluj-Napoca, JL Bourg face off in a colossal clash in Group B

There are still seven games to go in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season, but [the matchup between U-BT Cluj-Napoca (8-3) and Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse (9-2) in Round 12](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/u-bt-cluj-napoca-mincidelice-jl-bourg-en-bresse/U2023/116/) could go some way towards determining playoff seeding in Group B.

With Cluj currently third in the standings, albeit with the same record as ratiopharm Ulm in fourth, and Bourg alone in second place, something has to give when they go head-to-head at BTarena. 

### Cluj is a different force at home

A 5-1 record on its home floor shows how dominant Cluj has been at BTarena, with the team’s only defeat coming against the juggernaut that is Dreamland Gran Canaria in Round 8. On the road has been a bit of a different story, with Cluj going 3-2, but Tuesday evening’s clash is a good chance for Mihai Silvasan’s side [to make a big statement](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/veteran-experience-helped-ubt-cluj-napoca-seal-its-eighth-win/). 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Never stop fighting till the victory! Let&#39;s go! <a href="https://t.co/GZaS2GC816">https://t.co/GZaS2GC816</a></p>&mdash; U-BT Cluj-Napoca (@UBTCluj) <a href="https://twitter.com/UBTCluj/status/1734957036436107302?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Over the last three games, veteran forward [Andrija Stipanovic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/andrija-stipanovic/005113/) has increased his scoring average to 16.0 points per game. Cluj’s offense has particularly impressed since Round 9, with a further four players posting a double-digit number of points: [D.J. Seeley](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/dennis-seeley/004862/) (15.3 ppg.), [Patrick Richard](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/patrick-richard/011801/) (14.3 ppg.), [Jarell Eddie](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/jarell-eddie/010569/) (13.7 ppg.) and [Emanuel Cate](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/emanuel-cate/005373/) (11.7 ppg.).

Andrija Stipanovic, D.J. Seeley and Patrick Richard have shined bright for U-BT Cluj-Napoca since Round 9 of the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Cluj's star trio since Round 9

Cluj has scored 80 points in all five of its home wins this season, so ensuring that its offense is firing once again will no doubt be one of the main keys to determining the result against Bourg.

### Bourg has been on fire lately

Frederic Fauthoux’s Bourg is currently in the midst of a five-game winning run in the EuroCup, which has seen it surge up the standings. That stretch includes three wins at home and two on the road, and that has in turn [improved Bourg to a 6-0 mark at home](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/aggressive-bourg-triumphed-despite-shooting-woes/) and 3-2 on its travels.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">𝙻𝙸𝚅𝙴 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️<br><br>JL Bourg 79🆚 67 <a href="https://twitter.com/AquilaBasketTN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AquilaBasketTN</a><br><br>Le retour à la maison est toujours bon ! 🏠 Nouvelle victoire en Eurocup ce soir !! ✨<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoadToGreatness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoadToGreatness</a> <a href="https://t.co/LfQni3nNZS">pic.twitter.com/LfQni3nNZS</a></p>&mdash; JL Bourg Basket (@JLBourgBasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/JLBourgBasket/status/1735035363918229552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Like Cluj, Bourg has some weapons of its own on offense. [Jeremy Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/jeremy-morgan/010431/) has been very impressive during his team’s five-game winning streak, averaging a team-high 13.4 points per contest. He has had plenty of help, too, as [Zaccharie Risacher](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/zaccharie-risacher/010718/) has posted 12.0 points in the last five games, [Isiaha Mike](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/isiaha-mike/011836/) 11.6 ppg. and [Maksim Salash](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/maksim-salash/004525/) 11.6 ppg.

Jeremy Morgan, Zaccharie Risacher and Isiaha Mike have all impressed as Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse has gone on a five-game winning streak in the 2023-24 BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

Bourg's key trio during winning run

Just three weeks ago, Bourg went on the road and recorded a statement win at Ulm, coming out on top 84-89. If Coach Fauthoux’s squad was to do the same at Cluj, it would not only see it start to pull away in second place but it would deal a blow to Coach Silvasan’s charges, who would find themselves two games back of the French team.

There is always a good atmosphere at BTarena and Tuesday evening is going to be no different, so make sure to tune in from 18:00 CET to see how Cluj and Bourg get on. Playoff seeding is starting to enter the minds of the teams towards the top of the standings, and a win for either Cluj or Bourg would be the perfect Christmas present for whoever secures the victory. Will Bourg pull away or can Cluj make it a three-team fight for second spot? We will find out on Tuesday evening.

The two teams are third and second, respectively, in the standings.

Cluj, Bourg face off in a colossal clash in Group B

Only eight BKT EuroCup players have made more triples over the last five rounds than much-improved Slask guard Daniel Golebiowski.

Who's hot: Daniel Golebiowski, Slask Wroclaw

Slask Wroclaw sits at the bottom of Group B standings with a 1-10 record, but the team has been highly competitive lately. Each of Slask's last six losses were in the single digits, four of them by 5 points or less.

During this span, second-year guard [Daniel Golebiowski](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/daniel-golebiowski/011900/) has begun to find his footing and start making noise, especially from long range. His much-improved performances have helped Slask compete.

After knocking down just 7 triples on 38 attempts in 17 appearances last season, then opening this campaign 1-for-9 from three-point range in his first five games, Golebiowski has been one of the EuroCup's best long-distance shooters since mid-November.

Starting from Round 7, Golebiowski has made a total of 12 triples, nearly double his total over his first 22 appearances in the competition. 

What's more, only eight EuroCup players have made more than his 12 threes in the last five games, and his have come on highly-respectable 42.9% accuracy.

Daniel Golebiowski Top Plays from 12/01/2023 to 12/20/2023

Over that span, Golebiowski has been by far the best Slask shooter while significantly improving his scoring averages. After averaging just 4.0 points, 1.8 assists and 1.4 rebounds through Round 6, the 25-year-old has been posting 11.6 points, 3.0 assists and 2.8 rebounds since.

Golebiowski scored in double figures and hit multiple triples in four of the last five games, a streak that started with 10 points on 2-for-5 three-point shooting on the road against Group B leader Dreamland Gran Canaria. It continued with Slask guard scoring 14 points apiece in clashes against 7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys and Turk Telekom Ankara. The latter game was Slask's lone win this season, and Golebiowski had a major role with 14 points on 3-for-8 three-point shooting, and 4 assists.

Last week, Golebiowski was again a major contributor as Slask took U-BT Cluj Napoca to the wire before falling 80-76. He had 13 points on 2-for-5 accuracy from behind the arc to go with 4 assists and 3 rebounds.

This week, as Slask aims to play the spoiler's role [at home against playoff hopeful Buducnost VOLI Podgorica](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/slask-wroclaw-buducnost-voli-podgorica/U2023/117/), Golebiowski is poised to help the team by continuing his own run.

Slask Wroclaw v Buducnost VOLI Podgorica (2023-12-20T19:00:00.000Z)

U18 talents undertake a battle for supremacy starting January 26

Paris, Dubai and Podgorica join Belgrade as ANGT qualifier hosts!

The Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament is pleased to announce its schedule of qualifiers for 2024, which brings the world-class showcase for elite young basketball talents to three exciting new host cities: Paris, France; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Podgorica, Montenegro. The fourth qualifier will be in Belgrade, marking the 16th consecutive season that the Serbian capital welcomes the tournament.

The format stays the same, with the winner of each ANGT Qualifying Tournament advancing to compete for the continental junior club crown at the 2024 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin, Germany.

At each qualifying stop, a new Next Generation Team made up of young stars from clubs not affiliated with other ANGT clubs will be among the eight participants, ensuring that a full range of the continent’s best talent will be represented in the tournament. Former EuroLeague star Petteri Koponen will resume his role from last season as head coach for all four of the Next Generation Teams, sharing his wealth of experience with the players. This season, the Next Generation Select Team will not participate in the eight-team ANGT Finals. Its spot will be filled by a different team through a wild card.

The first qualifying event this season will take place from January 26 to 28 in Podgorica, with SC Derby serving as the host club. This marks the debut of the ANGT qualifiers to the Montenegrin capital. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade will host the second tournament in its home city from March 1 to 3. Having hosted a qualifying round since the introduction of that phase in the 2008-09 season, Belgrade continues its legacy as a showcase city for rising stars.

A first-time ANGT qualifier outside continental Europe will come to Dubai from March 22 to 24, with local squad Dubai Basketball Academy as the event host. The tournament will be played at Coca Cola Arena in Dubai, with a capacity for 17,000 spectators. The fourth and final qualifier will run from March 29 to 31 in Paris, to be hosted by SKWEEK with coordinated support from adidas and Paris Basketball. The ANGT returns to the French capital for the first time since hosting the 2010 Finals. The qualifier will be played at the new adidas Arena in Paris.

This season marks the 22nd edition of the ANGT. The competition has seen a who's who of basketball stars come through its ranks, including future EuroLeague and NBA stars such as Goga Bitadze, Omri Casspi, Luigi Datome, Luca Doncic, Vasilije Micic, Nikola Mirotic, Donatas Motiejunas, Dario Saric, Milos Teodosic, Domantas Sabonis, Kristaps Porzingis, Jonas Valanciunas and Victor Wembanyama, among others.

Turk Telekom Ankara is not down for the count

After losing Coach Erden Can and Tyrique Jones to Anadolu Efes Istanbul and Jerian Grant to Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, Turk Telekom Ankara knew that it had to step up to continue the progress made last season in the BKT EuroCup.

The Turkish club knew that it needed depth and experience and, despite a 1-8 record to start the season, things seem to be turning around with back-to-back wins, one by 11 points at home against U-BT Cluj-Napoca and the second on the road at Buducnost VOLI Podgorica by 23.

[MORE...](https://www.eurohoops.net/en/trademarks/1599016/turk-telekom-ankara-is-not-down-for-the-count/)

Despite a poor start to the season and a 3-8 record, last season’s BKT EuroCup runner-up is still alive and kicking.

Veolia Towers Hamburg showed great character and determination to grab its second win of the season, an 81-83 triumph over the London Lions in the English capital. Small forward Will Christmas has been heating up recently and made some key plays for the Towers in the win. 

Will Christmas, Hamburg: 'We are a team that you have to respect'

In his first EuroCup season, [Will Christmas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/william-christmas/012580/) has averaged 7.8 points and 4.8 rebounds for a PIR of 7.9 and he has boosted his numbers to 13.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and a PIR of 12.5 in the last few games. Born in California, Christmas played in Luxembourg and in the German second division before joining Hamburg. And, of course, around this time of the year, he gets many Christmas jokes related to his surname, as he told Javier Gancedo of the official EuroCup website in this interview. "I have been dealing with it essentially my whole life, and I wouldn't even say dealing with it, that kind of puts it in a negative light," Christmas said. "But I have heard it and I appreciate it. I think people do it more out of appreciation than anything, so it doesn't bother me at all."

**Congratulations on beating London on the road. You had a strong start and regained the lead in the end. What was the key to not losing control and holding on down the stretch?**

"I would say probably just staying on point with the things that we practice and the things that were points for the game, obviously. We came in there with a lot of energy and they came out kind of sluggish, but they are a good team. So we knew that they were going to make a run and just stay consistent with what we were doing all game and trusting the process throughout that. And that was able to help us come out of that with a win."

**This is your second win. How much of a turning point could it be, and what do you need to do to keep winning?**

"The EuroCup is tough and especially our group is incredibly competitive. So for us it's just about moving forward from this game with confidence that we have what it takes on our team to compete. But for us, against some of the better teams in the EuroCup that are in our group is just about... we've got a small margin of error, so we have to be extremely detailed and make sure that we maintain that level of focus that we went into London with for the rest of the season."

"The EuroCup is tough and especially our group is incredibly competitive." 

**This is your first EuroCup season. How do you like the experience until now, playing against big European teams night in and night out?**

"I think it's fun, it's a blast. And as a young player, that's all you ever want, just to have the opportunity to, at least for me, to compete against whoever is considered some of the best players in the world. And obviously, we play against very high quality European teams and some of the best players in Europe and across the world. So it's an awesome experience for me. It's a learning experience, for sure."

**You played in Luxembourg two seasons ago. Does coming from a lower league make you appreciate playing the EuroCup more, knowing that you earned your spot in this league?**

"Definitely. It is a journey, and the work that you put in is what makes the rewards that much sweeter. So coming from Luxembourg, coming from ProB \[second division\] in Germany and finding my way, working my way up into this level is definitely rewarding. It feels good. And I just do my best to cherish and appreciate the opportunities that I have been given."

**Benka Barloschky is the youngest coach in the EuroCup. What's the best thing about him?**

"First of all, I think he has a great, great energy. He's extremely positive and is very good at giving energy. And he is a high-quality communicator. He is very clear about what he wants. He is very honest and very open with us. And I think that enables us to trust him and the things that he tells us to do and then go out and try to execute those things to the best of our ability."

William Christmas is in his first BKT EuroCup season with Veolia Towers Hamburg.

2023-24 EuroCup highlights: William Christmas, Hamburg

**Do you think that his being so young is an advantage, in terms of what goes through his players' minds?**

"Yes, definitely. sometimes being closer in age to some of the players makes it probably a little bit easier for him to relate than the coach that was maybe into his 50s or 60s or whatever. But I also think that having that youth on your side in the coaching world is something that gives him a little extra edge in terms of his hunger and his drive and commitment to not only helping us become better, but also his own journey to improving as a coach and moving up into higher levels of coaching. So I think that works in his favor, for sure."

**Up next, Hamburg travels to Paris to face the top-ranked team in the group. How much are you looking forward to it and how much of an opportunity is it for your team?**

"I am definitely looking forward to it. Obviously, we played them already and the result was not the one that we wanted. Paris is a phenomenal team, they have had a lot of games with a very large margin of victory, us being included in that. And so I think it's just a great opportunity, first of all, to show how much we have improved over that time period since we played them. It is also a chance to learn from a team that plays at a very high level on how to compete and hopefully be able to take that experience and use it moving forward to help us in games, obviously domestically and other EuroCup games as well."

**Not a bad month of December for Hamburg in terms of traveling: London last week, Paris next week. How are you enjoying this?**

"It's awesome, man. And before this year, there were a lot of these places I had never been to. And in terms of cities, I think that we got a really, really good \[EuroCup regular season\] group. Like you said, we just went to London, we are going to Paris. We were in Barcelona, Istanbul, Venice... We have been to some good cities that we were able to see. Aside from the basketball, just from the human aspect of it, the ability to just travel and see different places and experience different cultures and just add experiences to my ledger as a person is awesome. It leaves me with a lot of stories to tell, hopefully when I get a little bit older."

"The work that you put in is what makes the rewards that much sweeter."

**For someone who grew up in California, how different is Christmas in Hamburg compared to how you celebrate back home?**

"It's a little bit different. Out here, I noticed that they do the opening of Christmas presents the day before, so that's a thing that we don't do in the States. But in California around this time, it's not snow. They don't really have the winter markets. And I think that honestly, it adds an element of Christmas that feels like it's supposed to be there. You associate that stuff with the snow and with the cold weather and getting warm inside by the fireplace, all those kinds of things. The Christmas trees, the lights in California around this time, it's still probably... you're going to have some days with some sun out, good weather. So, it's definitely different, but I like it."

**I am sure people do this all the time, but do you get a lot of Christmas jokes here and there?**

"Yeah, but by this time I'm used to it. I have been dealing with it essentially my whole life, and I wouldn't even say dealing with it, that kind of puts it in a negative light. But I have heard it and I appreciate it. I think people do it more out of appreciation than anything, so it doesn't bother me at all. It's definitely a lot for sure, especially more so around this time when Christmas comes around. That's when people are going to really mostly get a lot of their jokes and their little things off, you know. But once we get past this season, we get more into the springtime... People are people, they forget all about it."

**Now that you have played everybody in Group A and the team has more momentum, how dangerous can Hamburg be in the remaining seven regular season games?**

"I think that last week, we proved that we have gotten better and that we are going to continue to get better and that, as far as the teams in our group go, that we can be a tough opponent that you might not want to play on in a tough week, that we are capable of going in any gym, playing against anybody and competing and giving teams a fight, just a team that you have to respect for sure. I think that's already a huge step from where we started this EuroCup journey. I think that if we can improve, we might be able to pick up a few more wins here or there."

After suffering the shock of last week’s home loss to Hamburg, the ambitious London Lions will seek a quick response with a visit from playoff-chasing Prometey B.C. (6-5), which has won four of its last five in the EuroCup.

Preview: London Lions vs. Prometey B.C.

[Rosters](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/game-center/2023-24/london-lions-prometey-slobozhanske/U2023/111/#roster) | [Notes and Facts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/ec2324-rs12-game-notes-facts-lli-pmt/) | [Quotes](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/news/ec2324-rs12-prequotes-lli-pmt/) |[ TV](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/tv-listings-ec/)

Last week’s MVP [Ondrey Balvin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/ondrej-balvin/002644/) will again look to control the paint for the visiting team and his battle inside with [Gabe Olaseni](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/gabe-olaseni/006600/) (17.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game) won't be for the faint-hearted. [Matthew Morgan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/players/matthew-morgan/012585/) is another weapon for the visiting to be aware of after he blasted 21 points in an 87-99 road win at Prometey in Round 3.

[London Stats](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/teams/london-lions/statistics/lli/?season=2023-24&phase=All%20phases) | [Prometey Stats](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/eurocup/teams/prometey-slobozhanske/statistics/pmt/?season=2023-24&phase=All%20phases)

Gabe Olaseni vs. Ondrej Balvin: Two of the EuroCup's centers are ready for a big battle in the paint.

Prometey Slobozhanske-London Lions | Round 3 Highlights | 2023-24 BKT EuroCup   

After suffering the shock of last week’s home loss to Hamburg, ambitious London will seek a quick response with a visit from playoff-chasing Prometey (6-5), which has won four of its last five. 

London Lions seeking a response against a much-improved Prometey side

London Lions v Prometey Slobozhanske (2023-12-20T19:30:00.000Z)