Cluj retained the core of players who worked well for years, featuring Patrick Richard, Karel Guzman, Andrija Stipanovic and Emanuel Cate, and added experienced players such as D.J. Seeley and Jarell Eddie. London went in the same direction, signing well-rounded players Gabe Olaseni, Conor Morgan, Tarik Phillip and Matt Morgan to play alongside Sam Dekker, Josh Sharma and Jordan Taylor. Both teams dominate their domestic competitions, too. London won three domestic titles last season, and Cluj lifted the Romanian League trophy in each of the last three seasons.
History in the making
No teams from either Romania or Great Britain have reached this far in the EuroCup. The winner will make history by being the first team in its country to make it to the semifinals. Cluj-Napoca is just the third Romanian team to ever play in the EuroCup. Asesoft Ploiesti played three EuroCup seasons and only got past the regular season once, making it to the 2014-15 Last 16. It had a combined record of 12-22 over those three season. Steaua Bucharest took part in the 2015-16 EuroCup and finished the regular season with a 2-8 record.
The same can be said about British teams. Brighton Bears was the best British team in EuroCup history, finishing the 2003-04 regular season with a 4-6 record despite a 0-5 start. In its final game, Brighton beat Cholet Basket 112-103 in double overtime. Randy Duck scored 49 points, which remains the competition's all-time scoring record more than 20 years later. Guildford Heat went 0-10 in the 2007-08 regular season, breaking other types of records in a 116-53 road loss against Joventut Badalona. It goes without saying that London is already the best British team in EuroCup history, by far.
Road warrior on a tough court
London has been just unstoppable on the road this season, winning eight of its nine games away from the British capital. Its only loss came against Paris Basketball on December 26, 2023, 94-77. London has struggled at home, winning only half of its 10 games, but managed to score road victories against last season's semifinalists Joventut and Prometey Slobozhanske, as well as in tough environments such as against Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul. Paris is the only undefeated team on the road.