Both clubs are looking to reach the EuroCup Finals for the first time
Bourg vs. Besiktas: A chance to write history
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3 Minuto di lettura
If seeing two games of the BKT EuroCup semifinal series between Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse and Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul wasn’t enough, basketball fans are in for a treat on Wednesday night when the two teams meet for a do-or-die Game 3 at Ekinox.
So far, the home team has won each game in this series, with Bourg winning 86-74 in France in Game 1 before Besiktas came out on top, 82-71, in Turkiye. Ekinox was packed for Game 1 as 3,500 fans showed up to cheer on Bourg, but Game 2 saw more than four times that number head to Sinan Erdem Sports Hall as 15,200 spectators were in attendance at Besiktas’s temporary home for the night.
Dusan Alimpijevic’s squad appeared to be boosted by that extra support, and it will hope to carry the momentum from Game 2 into Wednesday’s Game 3. Frederic Fauthoux’s side, however, has the chance to lean on home comforts once more, with Bourg going 10-1 on its home floor this season, including the postseason. While Besiktas’s record on the road is not as impressive, its 6-6 mark on its travels is not too bad, particularly considering that it knocked out Dreamland Gran Canaria and Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv on their home floor en route to the semifinals.
History at stake
Both Bourg and Besiktas are in unchartered territory when it comes to the EuroCup, with neither club having reached the semifinals before. Yet, a chance to appear in a first-ever finals series is an opportunity that does not come around too often. Bourg is just four years into its EuroCup journey, compared to 10 for Besiktas, although this is a fourth straight campaign in the competition for the French outfit and the first season since 2015-16 for the Turkish squad.
That said, Besiktas is led by the incredibly charismatic Alimpijevic, who shocked Europe by guiding Frutti Extra Bursaspor to the EuroCup Final in 2021-22 when it was a one-legged affair. Bursaspor ended up falling to Virtus Segafredo Bologna, but Alimpijevic has shown in the past that when a series is on the line, his team has a habit of stepping up – just ask Gran Canaria and Hapoel this season.
Bourg, meanwhile, is in uncharted territory but has shown that it is more than happy to accept the challenge. In fact, since Fauthoux was appointed as Bourg’s head coach in the summer of 2022, he took the club to its first EuroCup playoff appearance in 2022-23 before a first trip to the quarterfinals and semifinals this season. There’s been an upwards trend since Fauthoux arrived, and Bourg has no desire to stop any time soon.
The players to watch
Much of the talk heading into this series surrounded Bourg’s Zaccharie Risacher, the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, yet it has been his teammate Isiaha Mike who has really caught the attention of many. Through Games 1 and 2, Mike is averaging 17.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks. Risacher, meanwhile, has posted averages of 6.0 points and 2.0 rebounds.
Another individual who impressed in the first two games of this series is JeQuan Lewis, Bourg’s tenacious two-way guard. Lewis and Mike were the only Bourg players to score a double-digit number of points in Game 2 in Istanbul, with Lewis averaging 12.5 points, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals so far against Besiktas. In addition to Mike, Lewis will be front and center as Bourg attempts to close out the series.
Interestingly, just three players netted 8 points or more in Bourg’s loss at Besiktas – Mike (19), Lewis (11) and Bryce Brown (8) – whereas seven players did so during Game 1 back in France. There is a reason why home-court advantage is so key in the playoffs, and those numbers confirm that assertion; players feel more comfortable and, cheered on by a home crowd, are more likely to rise to the occasion.
What is perhaps even more intriguing is the fact that of the five Besiktas players who scored 10 points or more in Game 2 in Istanbul, four of them did so in Game 1. Therefore, there is reason for Besiktas to feel confident, with dominant center Angel Delgado posting 14.5 points and 12.5 rebounds in this series, while Matthew Mitchell (13.5 ppg. against Bourg), Derek Needham (12.5 ppg.) and Marko Simonovic (12.5 ppg.) have all shown that they can score against the French team's defense.
There is one big X-factor for Besiktas and that is the play of Jonah Mathews. Following a 4-point showing in Game 1, Mathews responded in Game 2 by scoring a joint team-high 17 points. It is important that Coach Alimpijevic’s other scorers continue to score at a similar rate, if not better, but Mathews could turn out to be the factor that swings Game 3. He is certainly capable of lighting it up, but Bourg will not make it easy.
Which players will become heroes for their respective teams on Wednesday night? Only time will tell, but with a finals series against Paris Basketball on the line, expect to see a tough, gritty, hard-fought contest at Ekinox. Game 3 drama in the EuroCup — you've got to love it.