Top 16 Game 1 - February 15, 2007 CET: 20:45 Local time: 20:45 - PALAU BLAUGRANA

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
0-0 Regular Season 0-1
9-5 Overall 5-9

Referees

Crew Chief
KOUKOULEKIDIS, STELIOS, Greece
Referee
CASTANO, ANIBAL, France
Umpire
VIATOR, EDDIE, France

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
78.1 Points 72.9
32.1 Rebounds 30.8
10.2 O. Rebounds 8.4
21.9 D. Rebounds 22.4
15.0 Assists 13.0
9.1 Steals 9.2
3.4 Blocks 2.5
12.4 Turnovers 13.3
53.2 % 2PT 50.0 %
39.4 % 3PT 33.6 %
75.9 % FT 71.4 %
90.6 Index 72.1

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
18.0 / Navarro Points 11.8 / DALMAU, C.
4.8 / TRIAS, JORDI Rebounds 4.6 / BESOK, HUSEYIN
2.1 / TRIAS, JORDI OR 1.5 / MASIULIS, TOMAS
3.4 / MARCONATO, DENIS DR 3.2 / BESOK, HUSEYIN
3.8 / Lakovic Assists 2.5 / ATKINS, R.
1.2 / Basile Steals 1.6 / DALMAU, C.
1.3 / Vazquez Blocks 0.6 / ATKINS, R.
2.3 / Lakovic Turnovers 2.4 / DALMAU, C.
66.0 % / MARCONATO, DENIS 2PT 62.5 % / NORDGAARD, J.
50.0 % / DE LA FUENTE, RODRIGO 3PT 40.9 % / ATKINS, R.
89.6 % / Navarro FT 100.0 % / NORDGAARD, J.
17.0 / Navarro Index 10.7 / BESOK, HUSEYIN

THE TAKE

Fresh from winning the tropy at its national cup tournament, Winterthur FC Barcelona will open the Top 16 in Group F by hosting Polish League champion Prokom Trefl Sopot on Thursday. Barcelona finished second in its regular season group with a 9-5 record. Meanwhile, Prokom took fifth place in its regular season group with a 5-9 mark, sealing its second Top 16 appearance in three seasons. Barcelona ranked among the regular season's best five teams in fewest turnovers (12.4), assists (15 apg.) and three-point shooting (39.4%). Juan Carlos Navarro (18 ppg., 43.1% 3FG, 89.6% FT) was the regular season scoring champ and will once again be a main concern for Prokom. Navarro highlights a talented backcourt featuring Jaka Lakovic (11.5 ppg., 3.8 apg.), Gianluca Basile (10.9 ppg., 40.9% 3FG), Roko-Leni Ukic (4.6 ppg., 47.1% 3FG) or defensive stopper Rodrigo De La Fuente (4.6 ppg.). Navarro will test his scoring skills against Donatas Slanina (10.9 ppg.), whose ability to get hot, as when he scored 14 points in the fourth quarter of Prokom's do-or-die final regular season game, makes him dangerous. Prokom features enough firepower despite having Jeff Nordgaard (2.3 ppg.) on the injured list, as players like Christian Dalmau (11.8 ppg., 1.6 spg.), Tomas Pacesas (33.3% 3FG), Jasmin Hukic (6.5 ppg.) and Rashid Atkins (5.9 ppg., 1.5 spg.) are excellent shooters. Physical playmaker Justin Hamilton (5.1 ppg.) will have a tough matchup against Lakovic and Ukic. Barcelona is still missing center Mario Kasun, but power forward Jordi Trias (5.5 ppg., 4.8 rpg.) was the hero of Barcelona's cup-winning run last week and looks ready to confirm his potential. He and Michalis Kakiouzis (6.2 ppg.) will not have it easy against another do-it-all forward like Tomas Masiulis (4.8 ppg., 4 rpg.). Prokom may miss franchise player Huseyin Besok (9.8 ppg., 4.6 rpg.), who did not take part in the Polish Cup final this weekend, in which his team lost against Anwil Wloclawek. If Besok is finally sidelined and cannot offer his set of post moves and mid-range jumpers, Adam Wojcik (8.1 ppg.), Michael Andersen (6.6 ppg.) and even Filip Dylewicz (3 rpg.) will have to step it up for Prokom. Barcelona counts on athletic big man Fran Vazquez (4.9 ppg., 1.3 bpg.) and experienced center Denis Marconato (6.6 ppg., 66% 2FG) to go against the whole Prokom frontcourt. Prokom will better chances with an up-tempo game, as Barcelona played three games in four days over the weekend and could be tired. At the same time, Barcelona is playing its best basketball all season and is the heavy favourite to win the game. Expect Prokom to try hard to surprise the hosts, however.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Euroleague.net - J.A. Casanova, Barcelona

Quotes Head Coaches

IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Winterthur FC Barcelona
"For us, it’s a very important thing to start the Top 16 in a good way in order to not be frightened afterwards. We must forget the Spanish Cup and all we got there as soon as posible. From now on, we have different goals. Prokom is a team that likes to play fast, giving the ball to their inside players, who are very tall and can hurt anybody near the basket. They have also a good shooter in Slanina, a player we know very well because he played several years in Spain, and Dalmau as well. They like to play physical basketball and now they want for sure to make history."
KIJEWSKI, EUGENIUSZ
Prokom Trefl Sopot
"We have a very hard game ahead of us. I saw Barcelona in the Spanish Cup and I was very impressed by what I saw. In my opinion, their team is a main candidate to get to the Final Four. They play very fast basketball. If we want to fight with them, we should quickly get back on defense. That will be the key of the game. I'm not sastified with our schedule, that we have to play the first two games away, but surely we won't give up."

Players

BASILE, GIANLUCA
Winterthur FC Barcelona
"At this level of the competition, there is no easy team to play against. Regarding Prokom, they don't have for sure the charisma or history of other great European teams, but this is a good basketball team, with a lot of experienced players. We played against them last year and I remember they were a fighting group. Now, it's a must to start the Top 16 with a win. We all hope to make it with the help of our fans."
PACESAS, TOMAS
Prokom Trefl Sopot
"We have chances to win, but I expect a tough game. Barcelona is a very good, well-balanced team. We have to take care on defense and of course the key will be stopping their leader, Navarro. I'm optimistic. In each game we fight for victory: in Barcelona, we will, too."
Gianluca Basile - Winterthur FCB After winning the Spanish King's Cup last weekend, Winterthur FC Barcelona showed that it's in peak form with a 97-73 home win over Prokom Trefl Sopot on Thursday night. An amazing offensive performance by Gianluca Basile in the first half allowed the hosts to build a large lead and without pressure, Barca rolled to the easy win. With the result, Barcelona starts the Top 16 with a 1-0 record to co-lead Group F with Panathinaikos, while Prokom starts with a 0-1 tied with Efes Pilsem. Basile led his team with 18 points, Jordi Trias and Fran Vazquez added 15 apiece as the former didn't miss a shot and also added 7 rebounds to his numbers. Michalis Kakiouzis also had 11 points for the winners. Rashid Atkins led the way for Prokom with 19 points, Huseyin Besok posted 16 and Christian Dalmau nailed 11.

Big man Besok hit a mid-range jumper, but Juan Carlos Navarro soon replied for Barcelona to make it 2-2. Basile's steal and fastbreak were a sign of Barca's intentions to run, but Prokom double-teamed on defense to try to force Barcelona turnovers. When the hosts missed a couple of shots, Prokom went ahead on Atkins's three-point play and fastbreak, 6-9. Fran Vazquez fed Jordi Trias underneath for a three-point play of his own, but Prokom played without risks, taking advantage of every Barcelona mistake to rise to 9-17 after Donatas Slanina's three. Basile copied him to revive Barcelona, and soon Besok was called for his third foul in just 7 minutes, sending him to the bench. The run went up to 8-0 when Jaka Lakovic fed Vazquez to tie it at 17-17. At that point, the game entered a phase of confusion with turnovers on both sides until Vazquez broke Prokom's zone defense with a jumper for 19-17. The quarter ended with Navarro feeding Trias and Basile beating the buzzer with a triple that closed a 15-0 run that made it 24-17.

Rashid Atkins - Prokom TreflThe run was broken by Dalmau's long jumper to start the second quarter, but Roko-Leni Ukic blasted a three to put things back in place. The hosts went on a run to 31-19 as Ukic added another basket. Prokom did what it could on offense, but Basile made back-to-back threes that fired the stands for a 37-21 score. Michael Andersen tried to lift Prokom by himself, but Barcelona was on a hot streak where everything turned out rosy for them. Vazquez slammed for 41-23 and the hosts' defense forced Prokom mistakes again and again, while on the other side Roger Grimau made it a 20-point game with a three. Atkins replied with a new three for Prokom and Andersen added two free throws to show that the guests were not dead that early. On the following play, Prokom's defense smothered the hosts forcing a 24-second violation. With one second to go in the quarter, there would be no more changes in the score, which showed a 45-29 at the break.

Dalmau blasted an open three to start the second half, but Kakiouzis's free throws and Vazquez's layup launched Barca again. Prokom seemed to play with more patience to start the third quarter, but the hosts had Lakovic with two straight threes making it 59-36. With no pressure at all, Barcelona made its shots, but also relaxed a little on defense, allowing for Prokom's easy baskets. However, trading baskets was good for the hosts as time went by. Prokom lacked the extra bite that would allow it to be back into the game, and when Vazquez dunked again, it was clear that things would have to change a lot for the guests to have any options. Atkins scored 5straight points, including a triple that closed the third period at 68-46 for the hosts.

Fran Vazquez - Winterthur FCBJustin Hamilton opened the last period with his second basket of the night, but Basile was on fire from downtown, hitting his fifth bomb from downtown for a 73-48 Barcelona edge. Trias was now active under the basket, but Prokom replied to every bucket now, providing the crowd with a good offensive show. When Trias reached his 15th point without a miss, his best Euroleague offensive performance ever, the score was 77-57. Vazquez added a three-point play and that sparked a 7-0 run. Atkins and Besok got together to keep Prokom in the game combining for 6 straight points, but Barcelona replied with the entrance of youngster Albert Moncasi, who made his Euroleague debut, and he soon scored two points from the free-throw line. Grimau and Besok traded triples as the game entered the last minute with a clear 89-68 for Barcelona, who rolled into its first Top 16 win.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Euroleague.net
Referees: KOUKOULEKIDIS, STELIOS (GRE), CASTANO, ANIBAL (FRA), VIATOR, EDDIE (FRA)
Attendance: 5121
By Quarter1234
Winterthur FC Barcelona24212324
Prokom Trefl Sopot17121727
End of Quarter1234
Winterthur FC Barcelona24456892
Prokom Trefl Sopot17294673
Head coach: IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Winterthur FC Barcelona
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
5 BASILE, GIANLUCA 28:30 18 1/1 5/8 1/2 3 2 5 1 1 2     1 1 19
8 TRIAS, JORDI 23:30 15 7/7   1/1 2 5 7 2   4 1     3 24
9 MARCONATO, DENIS 11:30 3 1/2   1/2   2 2 2 1 2     3 1 2
10 LAKOVIC, JAKA 21:15 8 0/1 2/2 2/2 1   1 4 2 1   1 1 3 14
11 NAVARRO, JUAN CARLOS 26:30 4 2/4 0/5     3 3 8         1 2 9
12 MONCASI, ALBERT 2:15 2 0/1   2/2                 1 1 1
14 DE LA FUENTE, RODRIGO 11:30 3 0/1 1/4   1 3 4     1         2
17 VAZQUEZ, FRAN 28:30 15 7/13   1/1 3 3 6 3   2 4     2 22
20 KAKIOUZIS, MICHAILIS 14:15 11 3/6 1/1 2/2   4 4 1       1 1 1 12
21 UKIC, ROKO 18:45 7 2/4 1/2         2   1         5
44 GRIMAU, ROGER 13:30 6   2/2   1   1 2         1 2 10
Team             2 2     1         1
Totals 200:00 92 23/40 12/24 10/12 11 24 35 25 4 14 5 2 9 16 121
57.5% 50% 83.3%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: KIJEWSKI, EUGENIUSZ
Prokom Trefl Sopot
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 HUKIC, JASMIN 14:00 4 2/4 0/1     1 1 2 2           6
5 ATKINS, RASHID 32:00 19 6/8 2/4 1/1 1 2 3 4 2 2   1   2 23
6 HAMILTON, JUSTIN 25:15 6 3/6 0/1   1 3 4 3 1   1   2   9
7 MASIULIS, TOMAS 18:00 4 2/4     2 1 3   1 2     3 1 2
8 DYLEWICZ, FILIP 15:15 3 1/2 0/1 1/2   2 2     1     1 2 2
9 DALMAU, CHRISTIAN 20:45 11 1/2 3/5   1 1 2 2 1 1     3 1 10
10 WOJCIK, ADAM 6:45   0/2                   1     -3
12 BESOK, HUSEYIN 20:00 16 5/11 2/3   3   3 2 2 2 1 1 4 2 12
13 SLANINA, DONATAS 22:15 5 1/2 1/5     2 2   1 1   2 1   -1
14 ANDERSEN, MICHAEL 20:00 5 2/5   1/2   2 2 2   1     2 1 3
15 PACESAS, TOMAS 5:45         1 1 2               2
Team             4 4   2           6
Totals 200:00 73 23/46 8/20 3/5 9 19 28 15 12 10 2 5 16 9 71
50% 40% 60%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

IVANOVIC, DUSKO
Winterthur FC Barcelona
"I think we still can improve and we have to be much tougher when we play against stronger teams. Of course, Prokom is not Panathinaikos but they are a good team with a certain style, and if they can impose that it's difficult to play against them. The start of the game was tough for us as we had to control the euphoria from winning the cup last weekend. But after that we improved defense and when we went ahead by ten points we controlled the game. I never though the game would escape us at that point. Our big guys, Trias and Vazquez, played great, but we will also need Marconato to play at this level if we want to get far. Moncasi made his debut tonight, and I am glad. He is the future of Barcelona."
KIJEWSKI, EUGENIUSZ
Prokom Trefl Sopot
"Congratulations to Barcelona for their win in the cup and for a great game. We started well but we ran into problems soon and in the second quarter we could not stop their fastbreaks. However, we never stopped trying. Losing by 20 points it's almost impossible to come back against Barcelona. Efes and Barcelona are pursuing the same goal in this Top 16, but at this moment I think Barcelona is a better team."

Players

NAVARRO, JUAN CARLOS
Winterthur FC Barcelona
"It was a bad shooting night for me, but I had fun dishing assists for my teammates. The team is fine now, we knew we would have to improve at some point and we are getting better every game. That's good because tougher rivals are ahead of us. The cup title gave us the confidence we needed and also we managed to find the balance between the inside and outside games. Trias and Vazquez were superb tonight."
BESOK, HUSEYIN
Prokom Trefl Sopot
"Barcelona played a great game. They controlled it and when they dominated by 20 it was impossible for us to come back. We started well but they improved with their inside and outside game. We have a tough group and our goal is to play at a high level and make our arena a difficult one. I think Barcelona is a good candidate for the Final Four."
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