Round 5 of the BKT EuroCup lands with four games on Tuesday and six more on Wednesday. Here's your guide to the action, including the red-hot reigning champ facing another perfect team.
Unbeaten teams collide in a mouthwatering Round 4
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Tuesday, October 24
Wolves Vilnius vs. Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul
Tuesday's action starts with winless Wolves (0-2) aiming to end that record with a visit from unbeaten Besiktas (3-0). The home team shouldn't be too low in confidence after coming agonizingly close to triumphing in last week's overtime loss at Joventut. Wolves will look for more high-scoring exploits from Rasheed Sulaimon after he scored 15 and 21 points in the first two games. Besiktas has based its success so far on smothering defense, topping the league in points allowed (66 per game), partly thanks to the rebounding excellence of Angel Delgado (8.3 boards per game). Game notes and facts
Veolia Towers Hamburg vs. Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv
Hapoel (2-0) is looking to extend its unbeaten start to the season with a trip to Hamburg (0-3), which has its sights set on a first victory. Hapoel boasts the most potent offense in the competition with 98.5 points per game based on a fluent approach which has led to an average of 24.5 assists, another league-high. The task of winning the backcourt battle against Hapoel playmaker Xavier Munford (18 ppg., 4.5 apg.) falls to Aljami Durham, who leads Hamburg in scoring with 15.3 points per game. Game notes and facts
Umana Reyer Venice vs. Joventut Badalona
Winless Reyer (0-3) needs to overcome its poor start to the season by downing a Joventut (2-1) team boosted by last week's dramatic overtime win against Wolves. Rebounding could be key: Reyer is the worst team in the competition with just 30.7 boards per game, while Joventut is among the best with 40.7. Reyer's key performer in the paint, Aamir Simms (14 ppg., 6.7 rpg.), faces a tough task in overcoming Ante Tomic, who has shown he is still one of the league's best big men by averaging 9.3 points and 9.3 rebounds. Game notes and facts
A heavyweight Group A battle takes place in the English capital as two 3-0 records collide with London facing Paris. Last season's games between these teams were both high-scoring affairs won by the away team (85-96 in Paris and 80-93 in London), so we might expect a similar feast of scoring this time around. Paris ranks second in the league in points scored (97.0 per game), with the hosts close behind at 91.7 per game. There should be an explosive backcourt battle between Matthew Morgan (17 points, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game) and T.J. Shorts (17.3 points, 8 assists and 2.7 steals). Game notes and facts
Wendesday, October 25
U-BT Cluj-Napoca vs. Buducnost VOLI Podgorica
Cluj (2-1) hosts Buducnost (2-1) in a key game in the race for the knockout phase. The home team will be powered by D.J. Seeley, the league's second-highest scorer with an average of 19.3 points per game, including 22 in last week's narrow loss at Bourg. Buducnost bases its offense on a strong inside game, scoring 28 two-pointers on 43 attempts in last week's big win over Slask. Feeding the ball to JaCorey Williams, who registered a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds last time out, will be essential for the visiting team in Wednesday's opening tip-off. Game notes and facts
7bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys vs. Dolomiti Energia Trento
Two struggling teams can give their playoffs hopes a boost as Lietkabelis (1-2) hosts Trento (0-3). Both lost heavily last week and are, respectively, the second- and fourth-lowest scoring teams in the league with 74.3 and 71.7 points per game. That is partly because of carelessness with the basketball, with both teams averaging 17 turnovers per game. The ability of backcourt leaders Paulius Valinskas for the hosts and Prentiss Hubb for the visitors to limit those mistakes – both average 3.3 turnovers – could important in deciding the outcome. Game notes and facts
Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana vs. Prometey Slobozhanske
Winless Cedevita (0-3) will look for its first win of the season with a visit from Prometey (1-2), which is also struggling after two straight losses. Prometey, which won both meetings between the teams last season, is the top rebounding team in the EuroCup, averaging 41.3 boards per game, with 9.3 of those coming from Ondrey Balvin. Cedevita has committed more turnovers than any other team in the league, 18 per game, and needs to count on more than just the consistent excellence of Justin Cobbs, who has averaged 19 points on outstanding 21-of-33 field goal shooting. Game notes and facts
Turk Telekom vs. ratiopharm Ulm
Strong defense meets potent offense as Turk Telekom (1-2) welcomes Ulm (2-1). The Turkish team has allowed just 75.0 points per game, fourth-best in the competition, while the visitors have averaged a solid 87 points, sixth-best. The agility of Steven Enoch has helped Turk Telekom become the best rim protector in the league, blocking 4 shots per night. But this week he faces a huge test against Ulm's dominant force, Trevion Williams, the competition leader in rebounds (13.5) and performance index rating (25.5), who also averaging 14 points per game. Game notes and facts
Slask Wroclaw vs. Aris Midea Thessaoliniki
After gaining its first win of the season in Round 3, Aris (1-2) will look to build more momentum by piling more misery on winless Slask (0-3). Excellent defense was the key to Aris's nervous 68-66 victory over Turk Telekom last week, with no points scored in the final 3 minutes. But there was also a strong offensive contribution from in-form guard Vassilis Toliopoulos, who has scored 19 and 22 points in the last two games. Slask will again lean on the all-round contribution of big man Dusan Miletic, who ranks second in the league with a performance index rating of 24.7 per game. Game notes and facts
Dreamland Gran Canaria vs. Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse
Round 4 comes to an end with a table-topping Group B showdown between reigning champ Gran Canaria (3-0) and red-hot Bourg (3-0). Led by Nicolas Brussino (14.3 ppg., 83.3% two-point shooting), Gran Canaria is the most accurate two-point shooting team in the league with a conversion rate of 62.1%. But Bourg is also an efficient offensive unit, averaging a third-best 22.3 assists. Young playmaker Hugo Benitez (7.3 apg.) will look to further enhance his growing reputation by leading the French team to a huge road win. Game notes and facts