### What’s made Group A special?

At the midway point of the 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season, Group A is the tighter of the two groups. Only one win separates the top six teams in the standings and three wins separate first place from ninth. It has also seen more points scored and home-court advantage has mattered more. 

### Home court advantage 

The home teams have won 60 percent of the games played in Group A, which stands out, even more, considering that in the other regular season group, home teams actually have a losing record (22-23). Even though no Group A team has a perfect home record, it features four teams with only one loss and only one team with a losing record at home (Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana at 1-4). The winningest home team in the group thus far has been 7bet Lietkabelis Panevezys at 4-1. 

Joventut Badalona, JL Bourg en Bresse, Umana Reyer Venice, Prometey Slobozhanske, Frutti Extra Bursaspor Top Plays from 09/30/2022 to 01/03/2023

Half-season highlights of top 5 Group A teams

### Praise for the newcomers

The two EuroCup debutants in Group A have both acquitted themselves well to the competition. Prometey Slobozhanske (5-4) is a story unique to itself in that the Ukrainian club does not have a home this season due to the war in its country and thus has played its home games in Latvia and Lithuania. Nevertheless, it has won three of those and has excited fans with its high-scoring brand of basketball. The other newcomer, U-BT Cluj-Napoca (3-6) is second to Prometey for the most points of any team in Group A with 86.1 per game. What Cluj is lacking is a road win – it is winless in four appearances outside of Romania – and the ability to capture a victory away from home could be what it needs to reach the next phase. 

### Top offenses 

More balls sink through the nets in Group A than in Group B. The scoring average for Group A teams is 82.9 points per game led by Prometey’s 87.0. The only two teams averaging at least 40 percent on three-point shooting are from this group: Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse (40.3%) and Joventut Badalona (40.0%). Joventut also tops the charts in free-throw accuracy (81.6%). Cluj not only leads the competition in two-point accuracy, but its 66.7% two-point shooting is on pace to set the EuroCup record. Dynamo Moscow set that record by shooting 61.8% on twos during the 2007-08 campaign. 

### Kings of the close call

Bourg shares the best record in Group A with Joventut at 6-3 and a main reason for that has been its performance in close games. The team is 5-1 in games decided by 7 points or less. The lone loss was at home against Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, 90-91, last week. Prometey and Cluj have also been in a number of close games. Neither has had the magic touch in close and late situations that Bourg has; Prometey is 3-3 in games decided by 7 points or less and Cluj is 2-4 in such games. With many more close games likely on tap, how teams far in those could tip the balance in Group A. 

ratiopharm Ulm, Germani Brescia Leonessa, Lietkabelis Panevezys, U-BT Cluj-Napoca, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana Top Plays from 09/30/2022 to 01/03/2023

Half-season highlights of bottom 5 Group A teams

Group A midway through the regular season 

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica has announced the signing of experienced combo guard [Erick Green](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/erick-green/005159/) until the end of the season. Green (1.93 meters, 31 years old) arrives from Hapoel Holon of Israel, where he averaged 22.3 points per game. He is a veteran of Euroleague Basketball competitions, as he played four seasons in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and two in the 7DAYS EuroCup.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">Zeleno ide sa plavo-bijelim: Bivši evroligaš stiže u Podgoricu 🔵⚪️<a href="https://t.co/BECwlva3ms">https://t.co/BECwlva3ms</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KKB?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KKB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeOwnTheFuture?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeOwnTheFuture</a> <a href="https://t.co/ofms32CRL2">pic.twitter.com/ofms32CRL2</a></p>&mdash; KK Budućnost VOLI (@KKBuducnostVOLI) <a href="https://twitter.com/KKBuducnostVOLI/status/1608221786893680641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

In the EuroLeague, Green made a total 102 appearances with Montepaschi Siena, Olympiacos Piraeus, Valencia Basket and Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul between 2013 and 2019. He scored a total of 1,027 points, or 10.1 per game, and dished 113 assists. In the EuroCup, Green played 15 games with Siena and Bahcesehir Koleji Istanbul in 2013-14 and 2020-21, respectively. In his last EuroCup season, in 2020-21 in Turkey, he averaged 21.3 points and 4.7 assists as a starter in all of his nine appearances. He has also played in Spain and China and in the NBA with the Utah and Denver.

Buducnost signs scoring ace Green

U-BT Cluj-Napoca has completed the signing of Kasey Shepherd until the end of the 2022-23 season. Shepherd (1.89 meters, 28 years old) spent the first part of the campaign with Bahcesehir Koleji, where he averaged 8.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 steals in 9 Turkish League games. He will make his 7DAYS EuroCup debut with Cluj.

<center>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Santa? Was it you? 🚨Transfer Alert! 🚨<br>Welcome to oUr family, Kasey Shepherd! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HaideU?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HaideU</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/cluj?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#cluj</a> <a href="https://t.co/oFWR2FgNpd">pic.twitter.com/oFWR2FgNpd</a></p>&mdash; U-BT Cluj-Napoca (@UBTCluj) <a href="https://twitter.com/UBTCluj/status/1608056329448607744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Shepherd began his professional career in Montenegro with BC Ulcinjska Rivijera in 2017-18, before splitting time the following the season between Kaposvari KK of Hungary and Batumi RSU of Georgia. In 2019-20, Shepherd played for Kyiv Basket of Ukraine, averaging 16.8 points in the Basketball Champions League. He improved on that average one year later in the same competition, scoring 17.4 points per night with BC Nizhni Novgorod of Russia. Last season with Tofas Spor Kulubu, Shepherd's role in the BCL was reduced, but in the Turkish League he averaged 11.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 25 games. His new experience with Cluj will see him play in Romania for the first time in his career and make his first appearance in the EuroCup.

Cluj signs guard Shepherd on deal until end of season

Last year nobody expected Frutti Extra Bursaspor to make it to the final and this season there are at least four teams who can surprise anyone in a single-game playoff.

A lot has been said about the new format of the 7DAYS EuroCup which has a long regular season and then knock-out elimination phases.

[MORE...](https://www.eurohoops.net/en/trademarks/1440047/dont-sleep-on-the-eurocup-sleepers/)

Don’t sleep on the EuroCup sleepers by Eurohoops

 Stats Review: Efficiency heat check 

The mid-point of the 2022-23 7DAYS EuroCup has arrived following an eventful week that saw the league's top offensive team knock off its top defense. 

The graph below plots every team in the EuroCup based on offensive and defensive efficiency through the first eight games relative to the league average. As it suggests, Turk Telekom Ankara has set the standard on offense so far and hammered that point home in a 13-point road win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica, the league's top defense. Currently averaging 1.06 points per possession, Turk Telekom is on pace for one of the five best offensive seasons in recent history – a big reason they currently own the league's top overall efficiency differential and best record.

Perhaps the most interesting element of the graph below is the stark contrast between groups. While most of the teams in Group B fall towards the extremes, every team from Group A is concentrated in a tight cluster. Some of this can be traced to Group B having this season's two outlier negative point-differentials, but regardless, the competitiveness of Group A and the imbalance of Group B is a storyline to follow into the second half of the year and into the postseason.

## Group A

With just one team – Joventut Badalona – sitting above average in both offensive and defensive efficiency, the teams in Group A are victims of its competitive balance. With no team proving thoroughly dominant or struggling to this point, things are a bit complicated. Perhaps the best example of that is the cluster of three teams on the left. While Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, U-BT Cluj-Napoca and ratiopharm Ulm have all performed at a similar level on paper, Ulm has as many wins as the other two clubs combined as the margin for error among these 10 teams is razor-thin.

That is most noticeable on offense, where the gap between the most- and least-efficient teams in Group A amounts to just half of the gap that exists between its most- and least-efficient defenses. Umana Reyer Venice is responsible for that disparity as its defensive prowess in transition and denying opponents catch-and-shoot opportunities has set the Italian club apart this season. 

Looking ahead, it will be fascinating to see just how competitive Group A remains at the end of the regular season. Will teams like Minicidelice JL Bourg en Bresse and Prometey Slobozhanske continue to deliver in key moments to stay towards the top of the standings? Will the consistency of a team like Germani Brescia close the gap by Round 18? Does Group A's level of parity set its teams up for postseason success? It's still too early to tell.

## Group B

Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv is the most balanced team in an imbalanced group. Hapoel owns the second-best efficiency differential in the EuroCup but nonetheless sits in the middle of the pack in the standing at just 5-4. They'll host many of the teams ahead of them in the standings in the second half of the regular season, which should make for an exciting conclusion to the team's debut campaign in the EuroCup.

While Hapoel has been the league's most balanced team on paper, Group B also features the EuroCup's first- and second-ranked defenses. Buducnost and Paris Basketball have been very stingy this season – Buducnost with interior defense and Paris with its efforts on the perimeter.

Promitheas Patras is one of just four teams that have performed at an above-average level in terms of both offensive and defensive efficiency, but still has some things to prove given its negative point differential overall. Its efficiency differential is marginally better than that of Gran Canaria who, sitting at 7-2, has come through in nearly every key moment so far this season. While efficiency is important, timing can be everything in an 18-game campaign.

Stats Review: Efficiency heat check

Paris Basketball played the role of party pooper at Copper Box Arena on Wednesday night, beating the London Lions 80-93 in front of a sellout crowd to improve to 5-0 on the road in this year's 7DAYS EuroCup and 6-3 overall. The newcomer to the competition has now won four of its last five games, too.

One of the things that Paris head coach Will Weaver will have pleased with against London is the fact that nine of his players scored 6 points or more, while four got into double figures: Aamir Simms (15), Tyrone Wallace (13), Gauthier Denis (12) and Kyle Allman (10). Even though Paris has been led by Allman and Ismael Kamagate so far this season, the team continues to have different players step up on a round-by-round basis. After winning in London, Coach Weaver decided to pay homage to his bench players.

"Our guys that haven’t been playing as much have done an exceptional job of staying ready. Their professionalism shines through when their number gets called in an environment like this," Coach Weaver commented in the post-game press conference on Wednesday. "Every single guy that stepped on the court tonight approached it the right way and played for the name on the front of the jersey, and we got a good result because of that."

Paris Basketball's best plays vs. London Lions

Curiously, despite being impeccable away from Paris, the team is 1-3 at Halle Georges Carpinter. Paris lost its first two games in the French capital – 86-100 to Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv in Round 2 and 81-89 to Gran Canaria in Round 4 – before finally giving its fans a first home win in Round 6 against Veolia Towers Hamburg, 87-84. However, despite following that up with a road win at Slask Wroclaw, another home defeat arrived in Round 8, with Promitheas Patras winning 71-74. Heading into the second half of the season, this is one area where Paris must improve if it is to continue making progress.

Next up for Paris is the visit of Turk Telekom Ankara, who leads the Group B standings with a record of 7-2. Paris beat Turk Telekom 75-90 in Turkey in Round 1, but it will face a far bigger test this time around, with head coach Erdem Can's team having the only other unbeaten road record in the EuroCup at 4-0. Nevertheless, Coach Weaver is confident about Paris's chances.

"We're looking forward to trying to complete the sweep when we play against those guys \[Turk Telekom\]," he stated. "Obviously, this next time around in the competition, now that we've played everyone once, I think everyone's got a better feel for their teams and their opponents. We'll look forward to that challenge. I think, on paper, they're the favorites in our group, so we'll look forward to hosting them and see if we can keep some momentum going."

Paris, like London, is one of the most ambitious teams in this year's EuroCup, and Wednesday night's triumph at Copper Box Arena showed that Coach Weaver and his players are certainly on the right tracks. It is a young roster – Allman is 25, Kamagate is 21, Juhann Begarin is 20 – yet Paris has shown a resoluteness on its travels to remain unbeaten. Now, the key will be to start turning Halle Georges Carpinter into a fortress, starting with the visit of Turk Telekom after the break on January 10, 2023.

Paris continues to make noise with EuroCup-best road record

London Lions v Paris Basketball (2022-12-21T19:30:00.000Z)

Paris Basketball v Turk Telekom Ankara (2023-01-10T19:30:00.000Z)

### Christen's perfect night for Ulm

By making a perfect 5 of 5 two- and three-pointers in ratiopharm Ulm's 81-84 road win over U-BT Cluj-Napoca, forward Robin Christen joined a short list of players who have made as many as 10 field goals without a miss in EuroCup history. Only seven players before him accomplished that feat, most of them centers who hit mainly two-pointers. The last to do so was Jalen Reynolds, who hit 10 of 10 two-pointers for Zenit St Petersburg in the 2018-19 season. The record-holder, who hit 12 of 12 inside the arc for Dynamo Moscow in 2007-08, was Robertas Javtokas, who along with Primoz Brezec reached at least 10-for-10 twice. Christen is the first on the list to split 5 two- and three-pointers made. When his 1-for-1 free throw shooting is added, Christen's 26 points are now tied for second all-time for total points in a EuroCup game without a missed shot.

Christen Robin Top 2 Pts, 3 Pts vs. U-BT Cluj-Napoca, 12/21/2022

Christen's perfect night for Ulm

### Brescia spread the wealth in blowout

Germani Brescia's resounding 110-74 home win over last season's runner-up, Frutti Extra Bursaspor, came with one remarkable numbers. Besides setting the club's scoring record in the EuroCup, it also marked the first time in EuroCup history that all 12 players on any team scored at least 5 points in a game. CJ Massinburg had 18 to lead the onslaught and Nicola Akele had 5, while their 10 teammates fell in between. Although it was just the fourth win for Brescia, its +20 point differential is higher than all but two other Group A teams, which bodes well for the second half of the regular season.

Germani Brescia Leonessa Highlights vs. Frutti Extra Bursaspor, 12/20/2022

Brescia spread the wealth in blowout

### Bouteille's career night for Turk Telekom

A day after his head coach called him "one of the best shooters in all of European basketball," Axel Bouteille of Turk Telekom proved it by grabbing career highs of 26 points and 5 three-pointers made in a heady 72-84 road win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica to keep his team atop the Group B standings. It was the 60th career game for Bouteille, who averages 12.1 points over his five-season 7DAYS EuroCup career.

Axel Bouteille Top 3 Pts, 2 Pts vs. Buducnost VOLI Podgorica, 12/21/2022

Bouteille's career night for Turk Telekom

### Hapoel went to the rim in record numbers

While Jordan McRae was lauded as MVP of Round 9 for his performance, he was among eight players who helped Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv make 35 two-pointers in their 83-100 road win at Promitheas Patras. That was not only the best total for this season but also matched the most two-pointers made in any EuroCup games since 2015. In addition to McCrae's 9-for-16 shooting inside the arc, Jaylen Hoard went 7-for-7, Chinanu Onuaku 5-for-7 and JP Tokoto 4-for-6.

Jaylen Hoard, Chinanu Onuaku, Jp Tokoto Top 2 Pts, Dunks vs. Promitheas Patras, 12/20/2022

Hapoel went to the rim in record numbers

### Ferrell and Adams made upset happen for Cedevita

Playing on the floor of group leader Micidelice JL Bourg en Bress, last-place Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana pulled off a 90-91 road win thanks in large part to the teams backcourt leaders, Yogi Ferrell and Josh Adams. The duo combined to score 20 points in the fourth quarter, and with 2 assists by Adams that turned into 5 points for other players, he and Ferrell ended up accounting for 25 out of Cedevita's 27 points to get a good-as-gold victory heading into the new year.

Yogi Ferrell, Josh Adams Highlights vs. JL Bourg en Bresse, 12/21/2022

Ferrell and Adams made upset happen for Cedevita

### Balvin stayed strong for Prometey

A week after he was the MVP of Round 8, center Ondrej Balvin of Prometey Slobozhanske followed up with in a 71-75 road win at Umana Reyer Venice. Balvin made 8 of 9 two-point shots and 2 or 3 free throws for 18 points and a PIR of 26, matching his third best in 64 career games. He made his first 3 two-pointers, which combined with 6-for-6 performances the previous two games, gave him 15 in a row without a miss, matching the third-longest such streak in competition history.

Ondrej Balvin Top 2 Pts, Dunks vs. Umana Reyer Venice, 12/21/2022

Balvin stayed strong for Prometey

Round 9 roll call

Look back at all the action in the Regular Season Round 9 by checking out the best photos of the week!

EuroCup, The Top 10 photos of the week, Round 9

Festive record allows Slask to look forward

It’s fair to say that Slask Wroclaw was desperate for victory when it hosted Dolomiti Energia Trento for the final 7DAYS EuroCup game of the calendar year on Wednesday night.

The Polish team was sitting rock bottom of Group B after suffering defeats in its first eight games of the season, taking its overall losing sequence in the competition to 13 games – the joint eighth-worst run by any team in EuroCup history. 

One glimmer of hope heading into the game, though, was that Slask’s last victory had come on 9 March 2022, against none other than Wednesday’s visitor Trento. And lightning did indeed strike twice at Centennial Hall as Slask gave its fans some much-needed festive cheer by cruising to a thumping 80-57 victory, which also means that Trento has now lost 20 consecutive EuroCup road games and sits just one win ahead of Slask at the foot of the group.

The tone for the night ahead was set in the first quarter in two respects: Slask’s excellent defense, and Jeremiah Martin leading the way at both ends of the court. Martin scored two of the first three baskets for his team and then contributed a couple more during a 15-0 run that gave Slask complete control. During that time, Trento was held scoreless for 4 and a half minutes by a determined home team defense, inspired again by Martin as he snared a pair of steals.

Slask Wroclaw - Dolomiti Energia Trento | Round 9 Highlights | 2022-23 7DAYS EuroCup

By the end of the first quarter, Slask led 27-14 after forcing 6 turnovers and restricting Trento to 5 of 17 field goal attempts, while converting 9 of its 12 two-point shots at the other end and winning the rebounding battle 11-8. The host had established supremacy in every aspect of the game, and that never changed as Slask continued to belie its status as the only winless team in the competition by rolling to a 23-point win, the club’s biggest ever in the EuroCup – eclipsing an 84-65 triumph against Kalev Cramo Tallinn in January 2008.

Slask coach Andrej Urlep was understandably relieved to secure a first win of the season, hailing his team’s hard work as the key to the success as he said: “We got the monkey off our back so that was very important. We won because of real determination and dedication from the players on the defensive end. It was definitely one of our best defensive games and that’s what got us the win. We got a little lack of energy in the second half but still we kept working.

“I’m very happy because the players really showed they care about winning. We haven’t lost our desire to win in this EuroCup, and we are still in the fight to get to the playoffs.”

And that’s definitely true: despite only just having broken into the win column, Slask has moved within two wins of the playoffs places with nine games of the regular season still remaining and can enjoy the holiday season with renewed optimism before the EuroCup returns to action in the second week of January.

Slask Wroclaw v Dolomiti Energia Trento (2022-12-21T19:00:00.000Z)