The three-day event will tip off on March 22.
Zalgiris, debutants highlight first-ever ANGT Dubai
Former Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament champion U18 Zalgiris Kaunas will headline the first-ever ANGT Dubai with an eight-team field in the United Arab Emirates’ largest city also including powerhouse U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne and first-time participants U18 Aris Midea Thessaloniki and U18 Dubai Falcons Basketball Academy. The winner of the March 22-24 tournament will be the third team to lock up a ticket to the ANGT Finals at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin following ANGT Podgorica winner U18 Real Madrid and U18 FC Barcelona, which finished first at the ANGT Belgrade.
The eight teams have been divided into two four-team groups and they will face each other in round robin style. The two teams finishing first in their respective groups will square off Sunday in the first-place game at the Coca-Cola Arena, with the winner of that game advancing to the ANGT Finals. Group A has ASVEL, Aris, Dubai and U18 ratiopharm Ulm while Group B consists of Zalgiris, U18 Valencia Basket, U18 Virtus Segafredo Bologna and U18 Next Generation Team Dubai.
ASVEL is competing in the competition for the 10th time and seventh in a row. Last season the French team lost to U18 Joventut Badalona in the ANGT Patras first place game. Ulm has played in the last six ANGTs with the German team finishing a best third place in 2020-21 Valencia. Last season, Ulm ended the ANGT Munich in sixth place with a 1-3 record. The Aris senior team is playing in the BKT EuroCup this season for the first since the 2015-16 season, while its youth team will be making its ANGT debut. Also making its debut will be local host side Dubai, which also played in the U19 ABA Adriatic League this season.
The favorite in Group B will be the only continental winner in the field, 2003 and 2007 champion Zalgiris, which also finished as runner-up in 2005, 2006 and 2011. The Lithuanian side has participated in the ANGT competition every season since its inception in 2002. The last time Zalgiris won a qualifying tournament came at the ANGT Kaunas in 2018-19. Zalgiris lost to U18 Real Madrid in the ANGT Munich first-place game last season and then went 1-2 at the ANGT Finals. Valencia will be playing in the ANGT for the eighth time and the third in a row. The Spanish club won the ANGT Valencia in 2018-19 and had 2-2 records in taking fifth place the last two seasons at the ANGT Belgrade. Valencia knocked off Virtus in the 2018-19 Valencia first-place game, which was the last time the Italian club played in the competition. Virtus will be making its eighth appearance. The fourth team is the NGD select team which will be coached by Petteri Koponen.