Two of the stars from last week’s wins will square off in the paint when ratiopharm Ulm meets Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse.

Marquee matchup: Ulm’s Blossomgame vs. Bourg‘s Pelos

The 1.98-meter Jaron Blossomgame scored 25 points with just 2 missed shots to lead Ulm to an 81-96 road win at Gran Canaria. He is averaging 14.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game this season. Pelos posted 20 points and 7 rebounds in Bourg’s victory over Frutti Extra Bursaspor and has been worth 13.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals. Pelos has a height advantage but, like Blossomgame, shoots nearly as much from behind the arc as he does in the paint. These two stretch big men will be critical to the game’s outcome.

Ulm hosts Mincidelice in critical Group B clash

Ulm (3-3) routed Gran Canaria 81-96 as Jaron Blossomgame shined with 25 points and Sindarius Thornwell impressed in his debut, too. Bourg (2-4) trounced Frutti Extra Bursaspor 95-65 with Pierre Pelos leading a balanced attack with 20 points. Ulm is only 1-2 at home this season while Bourg is winless in three road games. This game will be the first time these teams have ever met.

Thomas Klepeisz - ratiopharm Ulm (photo Gran Canaria) - EC21

On Tuesday afternoon, Valencia Basket made official a contract extension with Valencia-born forward Josep Puerto that will have them together until June of 2025. 

Puerto, Valencia together until 2025

Puerto (2,00 meters, 21 years old) made his debut with the first team during the 2015-16 season in a 7DAYS EuroCup game against Spirou Charleroi, and he scored two points. He also played 10 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague games in 2017-18 and since then he has also played on loan with other teams like Oviedo or Castellon. In October of 2020, Puerto was back to Valencia for good and has kept progressing since then. He appeared in 17 EuroLeague games last season and in this season's EuroCup he averages 5.3 points and 3.8 rebounds after six games.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣5️⃣<br>🧡 Josep Puerto<br><br>Cas 👉 Josep Puerto renueva con Valencia Basket hasta 2025<a href="https://t.co/0TJuDebbbi">https://t.co/0TJuDebbbi</a><br><br>Val 👉 Josep Puerto renova amb Valencia Basket fins a 2025<a href="https://t.co/7plkYaOaD3">https://t.co/7plkYaOaD3</a><br><br>Eng 👉 <a href="https://t.co/Nu2mLi49TM">https://t.co/Nu2mLi49TM</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EAct%C3%ADVate?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EActíVate</a> <a href="https://t.co/XEIFUOekzD">pic.twitter.com/XEIFUOekzD</a></p>&mdash; Valencia Basket Club (@valenciabasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/valenciabasket/status/1470759983998386176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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"I am really happy. This is a dream come true for me." Puerto said after signing the new contract. "Every kid that starts in the youth teams has the goal of playing with the first team, and the club giving me this opportunity makes me really happy. I hope to return the favor working as hard as I can and always giving my 100 percent."

Turk Telekom Ankara announced on Tuesday the arrival of Henrik Rodl as the team's new head coach. His appointment comes almost two weeks after the departure of Burak Goren, who started the season on Turk Telekom's bench. Assistant coach Candost Volkan had served at the head of the bench in the interim.

Turk Telekom gives the reins to Rodl

Rodl, 52, played in ALBA Berlin from 1993 to 2004 and started his coaching career there with the youth teams in 2005. He made his pro debut in January of 2005, taking the reins of the first team. In two EuroCup seasons under Rodl, ALBA had a 6-13 record.

Rodl led TBB Trier in his native Germany from 2010 to 2015 before he was promoted from assistant to head coach of the national team between 2017 and 2021. Under Rodl, the national team finished 18th at the 2019 World Cup and eighth at the recent 2020 Olympics in Tokyo after going 4-0 in the qualifying tournament.

As a player, Rodl was an NCAA champion with the University of North Carolina, as well as a seven-time German League and a 1995 Korac Cup champion with ALBA, which retired his No. 4.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">Yeni baş antrenörümüz Henrik Rödl!<br>Türk Telekom Basketbol Takımımız, baş antrenörlük görevi için Almanya Milli Takımı&#39;nda görev yapmış ve Alba Berlin’de antrenörlük kariyerine başlayan Henrik Rödl ile anlaşma sağladı.Kendisine hoş geldin diyor, takımımızda başarılar diliyoruz✍️👏 <a href="https://t.co/uZAiATXwNJ">pic.twitter.com/uZAiATXwNJ</a></p>&mdash; Türk Telekom SK (@TurkTelekom_SK) <a href="https://twitter.com/TurkTelekom_SK/status/1470718908478930948?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Ferrell’s debut was a success from first sight and he has not been the only one in the history of the competition to turn heads in his first appearance.

Eurohoops presents five plus one of the most impactful debut performances in 7DAYS EuroCup history, all the way back from the inaugural 2002-03 season to this very day.

[MORE...](https://www.eurohoops.net/en/trademarks/1282419/five-plus-one-astounding-eurocup-debuts/)

Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana guard Yogi Ferrell greeted the 7DAYS EuroCup with a remarkable performance in Round 6, although his team lost to Virtus Segafredo Bologna 104-101.

Five (+1) astounding EuroCup debuts

Yogi Ferrell - Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana - EC21

Although several of his teammates have had blow-up scoring performances as ratiopharm Ulm has won three of its last four 7DAYS EuroCup games in Group B, the steadiest presence in the German team's rise has been its floor leader, point guard Semaj Christon.

Who's hot: Semaj Christon, Ulm

Recently turned 29, Christon returned to the EuroCup this season after having debuted in the competition two years ago for Limoges CSP of France and then finished that season in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague with Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz.

No sooner did Christon arrive in Ulm for this one than head coach Jaka Lakovic gave him the keys to a team that featured precious little EuroCup experience but loads of potential, both from imported players and homegrown young guns.

Christon's firm hand on the rudder has helped steer Ulm into the middle of Group B despite the team's 0-2 start on single-digit defeats to current group leaders Buducnost VOLI Podgorica and Virtus Segafredo Bologna, respectively.

Although he was solid in those first two games, with 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists on average with solid shooting, Christon has been even better since, while barely leaving the floor.

He played 34 minutes in Round 3 as Ulm took its first victory at home against Umana Reyer Venice as Christon led the winners with 19 points and 7 assists.

Next, he played 43:32 of a double-overtime 96-101 road win at Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, scoring 24 points and dishing 9 assists. His 20 points in the next game went for naught in a 65-71 home loss to Promitheas Patras.

But Ulm bounced back on the road last week, beating erstwhile group co-leader Gran Canaria 81-96 on the road as Christon combined 18 points with 5 assists.

Between Round 3 and Round 6, Christon lifted his scoring average to 20.3 points, his assists to 6.3 and his steals to 2.0. Turnovers and a three-point shooting slump cost him a higher PIR, but few players wouldn't take his 16.3 per game over that stretch.

One thing that Christon gives Ulm is scoring the team can count on.

He has put up between 14 and 24 points in every game this season to rank seventh in the league with 18.7 per game. In the last four of them, he has more total points, 81, than all but four other players in the EuroCup.

At the same time, Christon finds his teammates enough to rank sixth in the competition in assists with 6.0 per game.

Most important, and despite the turnovers and shooting slump, Christon has the full trust of a head coach, Jaka Lakovic, who had a great career himself as a floor general at the EuroLeague level and so knows what it takes to lead a team.

Their partnership is the key one in helping an Ulm team with plenty of talent, but little experience, keep getting better in a tough group where every win will be worth its weight in gold.

Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse is in its second 7DAYS EuroCup season and so is big man Pierre Pelos, who has been one of the French powerhouse's pillars in the competition. Pelos started his professional career with Valence and Auch in the French fourth division. Slowly but steadily, he climbed the ladder to play for teams in higher levels such as Elan Bearnais Pau-Lacq-Orthez, L'Union Lourdes-Tarbes Pyrenees Basket, Saint Chamond Basket Valle du Gier and FOS Provence Basket. This is his second stint with Bourg, which he first joined for the 2016-17 campaign. Pelos will tell us all about what is happening with Bourg, his personal experience in the EuroCup and much more this season in his EuroCupbasketball.com blog.

Pierre Pelos: 'The EuroCup is really hard'

This is the second EuroCup season, not just for me, but also for the team. For me, the EuroCup is a very big experience. I think it is a better championship than the French League. I have played against many players like me, who focus more on having a high basketball IQ than physicality. It is a very good championship and it is important for Bourg to be back to the EuroCup for a second consecutive season. It has been a good experience for the club.

We have a new team this season, with some new players. Only three players, Eric Mika, JaCorey Williams and Maxime Roos, have played in the EuroCup before. Other guys like Axel Julien, Alexandre Chassang and our coach played in Europe, but not in the EuroCup.

We are 2-4 now and lost against some big games like Valencia and Gran Canaria - that was a really tough game for us. We will try to keep playing better this season. Playing the EuroCup for the second season is definitely an advantage. Last season, it was also my first one in the EuroCup and I had a good season. I discovered the EuroCup and I am sure a lot of people wondered who Pierre Pelos was! Now, every team knows me and the referees, too, so it is more difficult for me. All teams have more options against me; everybody switches and tries to stop me. Last season, being a rookie, things were easier. Nobody tried to stop me!

"Last season, I discovered the EuroCup and I am sure a lot of people wondered who Pierre Pelos was! Now, every team knows me and the referees, too, so it is more difficult for me."

We just beat Bursaspor this season. We wanted to win for Eric Mika, who got injured. He will be out for three months, maybe a bit less. We only had nine senior players, but managed to play a very good game. It is not the first time that we had a good game with only nine senior players. It was better for everybody; we all had the opportunity to play. We played hard, with a lot of energy, and were more focused, making less mistakes, defensively and offensively. Everybody played well against Bursaspor. I had a pretty good start and continued like that throughout the game.

We have two wins, but both of them were by 30 points, against Promitheas and Bursaspor. We need to win on the road because we already lost at home against Reyer. We didn't play well in that first game, it was our first game together in the EuroCup and you could tell Reyer had been playing together for a while, playing a good game. We played well against Promitheas, but then went to Gran Canaria and scored 3 points in the first quarter. That was not good for the team. We need to win on the road and our next game is in Ulm, which just beat Gran Canaria. Every game in the EuroCup is hard!

So, we are focusing on beating Ulm. After that, we face Buducnost at home and Virtus on the road. If you look at the standings, Buducnost is first in our group. It is a very good team that already beat Valencia and Virtus. It played in the EuroLeague a couple of years ago, was in the EuroCup Playoffs last year and I would say they are even better this season. And Virtus is also one of the best teams in the competition.

I like the new format a lot. We made it to the Top 16 last season but had injury problems and played some games with maybe seven or eight players. This year, the competition is even harder. I believe Group B is very, very tough. Every game is tough; Cedevita Olimpija is 2-4 right now. We lost against them and every team has to battle hard to beat such a strong team. Valencia is back in the EuroCup this season, Virtus made it to the semifinals last season... the EuroCup is really hard!

"I would say that my best game in the EuroCup was against Partizan last season. We won and I played really well. Great memories!"

We don't have Partizan in our group, however. I would say that my best game in the EuroCup was against Partizan last season. We won and I played really well. Great memories! I have to say it is much easier to play against Partizan with no fans in the gym. Last week, Partizan played against Metropolitans in France and around 300 fans came to see the game. This is amazing, and it is really hard to play against its fans. Luckily, we are in the other group, even though we have Valencia and Virtus. These are the three favorites, in my opinion, to win the EuroCup. We will see who else makes it to the semifinals - maybe us! I have no idea, the EuroCup is really hard.

We travel a lot but don't have much time to see the cities we arrive in. The club is doing great: every time we go to a new city, we have a translator who talks to the players and staff. I remember we went to Istanbul in our first game last season, and there was a guy on the bus speaking French and English, talking about the city's history. It is great, but I wish I had more time to see the places we go to!

That's all from me for now, wish us luck!

Lietkabelis Panevezys has enjoyed a strong start to the 2021-22 7DAYS EuroCup and comes off one of its biggest wins in European competitions, 87-77 over Joventut Badalona at Cido Arena. Forward Panagiotis Kalaitzakis has been at the heart of Lietkabelis's recent success. The 22-year-old first came to Lithuania three years ago with his twin brother Georgios looking for an opportunity to get playing time. 

Panagiotis Kalaitzakis: 'We are going to keep proving people wrong'

The move worked for both Kalaitzakis brothers; Georgios returned home to Greece last season to play for Panathinaikos OPAP Athens and began this season with Milwaukee in the NBA. Panagiotis is one of the best newcomers in the EuroCup this season. Kalaitzakis is averaging 14.8 points on 68.2% two-point shooting, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists and ranks 22nd overall in PIR (16.0). According to Kalaitzakis, the best is yet to come, as he said in this interview. "I already learned a lot from these six games in the EuroCup. It is a tough league, a tough competition, and I love it," Kalaitzakis told EuroCupBasketball.com. "To be honest with you, I love to play a game against these teams every week, against these experienced players, and keep getting better."

**Hello, Panagiotis. Congratulations on the win against Joventut. Tell us about what it took to beat such an experienced team the way you did, leading almost all the way?**

"We played against a big team which was, I think, second in our group, so we didn't have any problems or any doubts in our minds. We knew what we had to do and if we followed our plan, we knew we could win, and that was it. We followed our plan from the first minute until the end, stayed together and won the game."

**Lietkabelis is 3-3 now, with road wins in Trento and Wroclaw. You also competed really well against Partizan and Lokomotiv. Do you feel like you are beating the expectations?**

"Yes, for sure, we proved a lot of people wrong, and we are going to keep doing that because I think we play together as a team. Every game, we show up, play together as a team, we support each other on and off the court. So yes, I'm pretty sure that a lot of people didn't expect us to be in the position that we are right now and compete against those teams, but like I said, we are working hard. We stand together and are going to keep proving people wrong."

"I'm pretty sure that a lot of people didn't expect us to be in the position that we are right now... We stand together and are going to keep proving people wrong."

**This is your first EuroCup season but you are not playing as a rookie, averaging 14.8 points. How did you adjust so well to the competition?**

"Well, to be honest with you, I've been watching these competitions, EuroLeague, EuroCup and all European competitions since I was a little kid, so I pretty much knew what to expect. And I don't want to talk about myself, but I worked hard this summer to prepare myself for this EuroCup season. So far, so good!"

**You came to Lithuania three years ago to join Nevezis together with your twin brother Georgios. It was not a usual decision. Where did it come from?**

"It was my agent. My agent said we could play in Lithuania, that there was this team, Nevezis, which has a lot of young talents every year. So we were 19-20 back then and took this decision because in Greece things are pretty different. You know, they don't use young guys as much as they do here in Lithuania. So we took this decision. We didn't know what to expect, but if I had to choose again, I would make the same decision."

**You and your brother played together one season and parted ways. Are you in touch with him on regular basis?**

"Yes, for sure. He's watching every game of mine. I try to watch every game when he's playing. Last year, when he was in Europe, it was much easier for me to watch all his games. So yes, we talk every day about basketball things and discuss everything."

**The most famous twin brothers in European basketball, Ksistof and Darius Lavrinovic, also played for Lietkabelis. Have you crossed paths at some point? Do you plan to beat their achievements?**

"Yes, I knew these guys before I even came here. But yes, last year they were playing in the second division team and we played against them. I mean, I played against them with Nevezis, and we talked a little bit about that. Not so much, but I know them. As for beating their achievements, they did really well, but why not? Year by year, we set new goals. Me and my brother, our goal is to keep getting better each and every day."

**How has playing in the EuroCup helped you become a better player… And how can it help you going forward?**

"Definitely, 100 %, 100%. I already learned a lot from these six games in the EuroCup. It is a tough league, a tough competition, and I love it. To be honest with you, I love to play a game against these teams every week, against these experienced players, and keep getting better. I love to compete against these teams and against these players. So for sure, at the end of the year, I think I will be a much better player."

**Your next game is against MoraBanc Andorra, a physical team that is undefeated at home. What do you need to do to surprise them?**

"I think the most important thing is to show up with energy and good effort. It is basketball, you know? it's five against five, so why not be the first team that is going to beat them there? We have to be as focused as we were against Joventut, from the first minute, and anything can happen. Like I said, it's basketball."

"Lithuania is a basketball country, it is their favorite sport and they follow it. So everywhere you go, pretty much, they know you."

**How does it feel to play in a basketball country like Lithuania for three years and counting? How has the experience been until now?**

"It was hard in the beginning, to be honest, even though I was with my brother, it was hard to adapt to a new life. As far as basketball, we knew what to expect. We knew it would be hard at the beginning, but if you believe in yourself and work hard, you will make it. Life was a little bit different in the beginning, but now, this is my third year here and I really adapted to it. Lithuania is a basketball country, it is their favorite sport and they follow it. So everywhere you go, pretty much, they know you, especially if you play in European competitions like Lietkabelis, Rytas and Zalgiris. Everywhere you go, they know you and they support you."

**What would make it a good season for you, personally, and for Lietkabelis?**

"Like I said, I don't want to talk about myself, but if the team achieves its goal, going to the next round in the EuroCup, then everybody will be happy, including myself. And for sure, I will do my best to reach it. My goal is to show up to every game and play as hard as I can to help my team win, and this is what I'm going to do. But right now, our goal is to look at every game, show up with energy, play together and then we will see what happens. Enjoy the game, enjoy every minute of the game and see what happens."

Panagiotis Kalaitzakis - Lietkabelis Panevezys (photo Karolio Kavolelio - Lietkabelis) EC21

Virtus Segafredo Bologna will be without top scorer Kevin Hervey for most of two months after he undergoes knee surgery early next week, the club announced on Friday. 

Virtus forward Hervey out until February with knee injury


Additionally, guard Niccolo Mannion will remain sidelined until early January with back problems. Both players sat out the team's 101-104 road win at Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana on Wednesday while being tested for their recent injuries.

Hervey, 25, was diagnosed with a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee for which he will be operated on Tuesday. His return is scheduled for the beginning of February, the club said. Hervey currently ranks 12th among all 7DAYS EuroCup scorers with 15.6 points per game and is tied for fourth with 2.0 steals on average. He is also second on Virtus with averages of 4.4 rebounds and a 17.4 PIR as a full-time starter.

Mannion, 20, has come off the bench for 2.8 points ans 2.5 rebounds per game.

Their injuries are added to those of swingman Isaiah Cordnier, who will miss all of December with a sprained ankle, and center Ekpe Udoh, who is out long-term with a knee injury he suffered in preseason.


Kevin Hervey - Virtus Segafredo Bologna - EC21