Game Center: A quartet of Tuesday showdowns

Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv 91-85 Veolia Towers Hamburg

Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv improved to 7-1 at Shlomo Group Arena and 11-5 overall after beating Veolia Towers Hamburg 91-85 in Round 16 action of the 7DAYS EuroCup on Tuesday evening. This win helps Hapoel's chances of securing home-court advantage in the playoffs, which could prove key, while Hamburg dropped to 5-11.

Dolomiti Energia Trento 79-76 Buducnost VOLI Podgorica

Dolomiti Energia Trento kept its hopes of reaching the 7DAYS EuroCup Playoffs alive with a crucial 79-76 home win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica on Tuesday night. However, the Italian team had a nervy end to the game after it had thrown away a 23-point lead it had built early in the second half. The outcome left Trento on a 3-13 record in Group B, two games back of Veolia Towers Hamburg (5-11), who missed a chance to seal a playoff berth after suffering an 85-91 setback at Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv. Trento visits Hamburg next week and only a win will see it avoid an early exit.

Joventut Badalona 104-81 U-BT Cluj-Napoca

Joventut Badalona secured a 104-81 home win over U-BT Cluj-Napoca in Round 16 to clinch home-court advantage in the eighthfinals of the 7DAYS EuroCup. Despite missing three key players – Andrija Stipanovic, Kasey Shepherd and Karel Guzman – the guests started strong and headed into the second quarter with a 21-22 lead, but Joventut improved on defense and dominated in the paint to seal its seventh victory in eight home games. The hosts improved to 11-5, but Cluj dropped to 5-11 and has been mathematically eliminated from the playoff race.

Paris Basketball 89-85 Slask Wroclaw

Paris Basketball grabbed its 10th victory in Group B of the 7DAYS EuroCup by downing Slask Wroclaw 89-85 in the French capital on Tuesday night. Paris recorded its fourth straight home win and went up to 10-6 in the standings. Meanwhile, Slask dropped to 1-15 and is now on a 19-game road losing streak. Its last road victory came against Kalev Cramo Tallinn, 61-79, on December 4, 2007.

Frutti Extra Bursaspor vs. Umana Reyer Venice

It is a critical game in the fight to reach the playoffs and get the home-court advantage in the first round. Reyer (8-7) has mathematically qualified to the playoffs. Bursaspor (7-8) qualifies if Cluj loses, regardless of other scores. If Cluj wins, Bursaspor qualifies with a victory if both Ulm and Brescia win, too. If Bursaspor wins, both teams would be tied at 8-8 and getting the tiebreak advantage would become quite important. In Round 7, Reyer registered a 78-65 home win against Bursaspor.

Prometey Slobozhanske vs. Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse

Prometey (11-4) has already secured home-court advantage in the eighthfinals. It will secures first place in Group A with a victory in this game if Joventut also loses at home against Cluj. That would guarantee that Prometey hosts every playoff game until a potential championship game. The hosts have an eight-game winning streak. Bourg (8-7) also has punched its playoffs ticket and was the last team to beat Prometey, 92-85, in Round 7. Bourg is on a four-game losing streak but still has chances to fight for the home-court advantage in the next round.

ratiopharm Ulm vs. Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana

Two high-scoring teams meet again at Ratiopharm Arena. Ulm (8-7) will qualify to the playoffs with a victory, or if Cluj loses. Ulm may have lost its last two games, but a victory on Wednesday, in addition to securing a playoffs berth, would give the German club a good chance to fight for home-court advantage in the eighthfinals. Cedevita (3-12), the only eliminated team in Group A, is looking for its third consecutive victory against Ulm. Earlier this season, Cedevita thrashed Ulm 108-78 in the Slovenian capital. Cedevita lost its last two games and looks to finish the season in style.

London Lions vs. Promitheas Patras

London (7-8) has already sealed its ticket to the next round and currently stands in seventh place, two wins ahead of eighth-ranked Hamburg and also two wins away from Promitheas (9-6), which is currently tied for fourth place. A win would give London a better chance to get out of that seventh place, avoiding one of the two top teams in Group A in its eighthfinals matchup. A win would give Promitheas a fighting chance for a top-four finish in Group B, as its next two games are against Paris and Hapoel. In Round 7, London downed Promitheas 67-77 in Patras.

Germani Brescia vs. 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys

Brescia (7-8) may already be qualified by the time of this Wednesday tipoff if Cluj loses to Joventut on Tuesday. But if not, Brescia needs to win hope that Bursaspor defeats Reyer in order to punch its ticket to the next round. Brescia has registered three double-digit wins in its last four home games, but comes off a 26-point loss to Reyer in Venice. Lietkabelis (8-7) has already qualified to the playoffs for the second consecutive season. It has also won its last two road games, against Cluj and Cedevita. For tiebreaking purposes, Lietkabelis downed Brescia 79-70 at home in Round 7, so a victory in the rematch would settle any tiebreaks between them in favor of the Lithuanian visitors.

Gran Canaria vs. Turk Telekom Ankara

Right now, Gran Canaria (12-3) has the best record in the competition and winning its next three games would allow head coach Jaka Lakovic's team to stop traveling and host all playoffs games until it loses or lifts the trophy. In this game, Gran Canaria can clinch first place in Group B with a win if Hapoel also loses against Hamburg. Turk Telekom (11-4) needs a win to keep challenging for first place. It also secures the home-court advantage in the eighthfinals with a victory combined with a loss by either Buducnost or Paris. Gran Canaria beat Turk Telekom 81-88 in Round 7.