2010-11 Results

Spanish League: Finalist

Spanish Cup: Quarterfinalist

Now entering its 12th season, Bizkaia Bilbao Basket seeks to continue making club history as it debuts in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague for 2011-12. This spring, Bilbao knocked off both a Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four team and another Euroleague playoff team to reach the Spanish League finals for the first time, finishing as runner-up to Regal F.C. Barcelona. With strong runs in both the Eurocup and Spanish League in its past, the time has come for Bilbao to take aim at the Euroleague. Founded in 2000, Bilbao has marched along a road of success that started in the Spanish third division. Not the first professional basketball club in the city, Bilbao tapped into a ready base of eager basketball fans as it moved up almost a division per year under head coach Txus Vidorreta and future All-Euroleague superstar Tiago Splitter. In 2004, Bilbao aced the second-division playoffs to qualify for the top Spanish League. Bilbao finished 14th overall in its debut Spanish League season and started to make noise soon after. Bilbao used a core of players featuring Javier Salgado, Marko Banic, Martin Rancik, Luke Recker and Andy Panko to finish 10th in the 2006-07 Spanish League. The next year Marcelinho Huertas and Quincy Lewis helped Bilbao climb even higher and get to the Spanish League playoff quarterfinals, the Spanish King's Cup semifinals and the Spanish Supercup title game. In 2008-09, Bilbao beat all expectations in its Eurocup debut season, finishing the regular season unbeaten and winning its Last 16 group to reach the Final Eight. Bilbao then beat Zadar 76-67 in the quarterfinals behind 21 points from Janis Blums, but was unable to beat BC Khimki in the semifinals. The club also returned to the Spanish League playoffs that season. Fotis Katsikaris became head coach early in the 2009-10 season and Bilbao returned to the Eurocup semifinals with stars like Banic, Alex Mumbru and Axel Hervelle leading the way until losing against Alba Berlin in the semis. Banic was chosen as the 2009-10 Eurocup MVP. Last season Bilbao focused on the Spanish League and did not stop until it had knocked off Power Electronics Valencia in the quarterfinals and Real Madrid in the semis to register its best results in the competition. The momentum ran out against Barcelona in the finals, but what had been accomplished was already enough to earn a Turkish Airlines Euroleague berth and give this always-ambitious club a chance to take its game to a new level against the very best on the continent.

Marko Banic

PROVISIONAL ROSTER 2011-12
Raul Lopez	G
Kostas Vasileiadis	F
Josh Fisher	G
Dimitris Mavroeidis	C
Axel Hervelle	F
Chris Warren	G
Aaron Jackson	F
Janis Blums	G
Marko Banic	F
Alex Mumbru	F
Roger Grimau	G
Head Coach: Fotis Katsikaris