Stats Review: Exciting trends in scoring efficiency

A pattern is emerging in the first season of the new 7DAYS EuroCup format, broadly successful offensive efficiency that could lead to more high-scoring shootouts down the road.

High-Gravity Matchup

In Round 6, the team most reliant on ball screens to create shots – Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana – took on the team least reliant on pick-and-roll play – Virtus Segafredo Bologna. In a true contrast of styles, fans were treated to an offensive clinic. In one of the highest scoring games of the season so far, Virtus prevailed as both teams surged over the 100-point mark.

Despite the loss, Olimpija found significant success playing out of on-the-ball screens, creating 50 points over 43 possessions while proving opportunistic in the open floor as well. Virtus was similarly effective in creating quality shots but leaned heavily on balance, generating several good looks with off-the-ball motion, post touches, and backdoor cuts while making some crafty plays after offensive rebounds to secure a three-point victory, 101-104.

What Wins Now

In years past, the Top 16 often represented a major shift in EuroCup efficiency trends. After surviving the regular season, one-dimensional teams often gave way to more balanced ones at the top of the standings in the second phase. While balance is still important in the EuroCup, this season's format eliminates that seismic shift, making it easier to figure out which early trends are on track to shape the playoff picture.

Although several of the EuroCup's most efficient offensive teams failed to qualify for the Top 16 in recent years, four of the five teams now at the top of those rankings currently hold the top two spots in the standings of both Group A and B after six rounds. While some of that can be traced to the fact that these teams are more balanced than their predecessors, only one of the five teams listed above is also differentiating itself significantly with efficiency on the defensive end – Buducnost.

This is a positive development for the EuroCup as Virtus's win over Olimpija provided a glimpse of what this year's postseason may wind up looking like – an exciting showcase of elite shot-making and execution. While there is something to be said for a defensive battle, the ability of this season's premier teams to go shot-for-shot on the offensive end could reshape those drama of the postseason into a compelling test of skill.

Much like the Olimpija-Virtus matchup, each of these teams brings something a little different to the table. Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar ranks as the league's most prolific pull-up shooting team; Virtus moves the ball exceptionally well; Valencia creates a huge volume of open catch-and-shoot jumpers; Buducnost is prolific in the midrange game; and Partizan uses aggressive perimeter shot selection to give its finishers significant daylight around the rim.

Since the 2014-15 campaign, an average of three EuroCup teams have finished the regular season and Top 16 averaging over 1.00 points per possession. This year, seven teams have set that pace with league-wide efficiency trending up gradually since the start of the season and nearing a 10-year high. Given the weight offensive performance is carrying not just at the top of the table but across the league landscape, it will be fascinating to see if this thread tracks all the way to the finals or if something different emerges to shake up the standings mid-year.

Looking Ahead to Round 7

There are five teams in Group B with two wins each, and while things are not dire by any means at this stage in the competition, teams looking to keep up in touch with the leaders at the top of the standings cannot wait long in an 18-game season. Among those teams, Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse has a chance to make the biggest leap in Round 7 with a win over the Group's only three-win team, ratiopharm Ulm. The only team with a positive point differential and more losses than wins, Bourg faces a key opportunity to break free from the early gridlock.