Telekom Bonn hosts Besiktas ColaTurka on Tuesday in the teams’ Eurocup final for this season. Neither team will advance to the Last 16 from Group D. Besiktas has dropped three in a row as its record slumped to 1-4. Bonn seeks its first win of the season despite a number of close games – four of its losses have been by 5 points or less, including a thrilling 102-98 overtime loss at Besiktas in Istanbul last month. Mire Chatman dominated that night with 35 points and 8 assists for Besiktas, earning Week 2 MVP honors. Chatman will look to close out a splendid individual regular season on a high note. The point guard and former ULEB Cup champ enters the game as the competition’s top scorer (23.5 ppg.) and can wrap up the scoring title with another big game. However he is not the only big time scorer in the game. Bryce Taylor, who showered 28 on Besiktas in Week 2, leads Bonn and is in the competition top 10 with 20 points per game. Those two players will help put on a show to finish their Eurocup seasons in style. Chatman will duel with Jared Jordan, while Taylor must get past Muratcan Guler for his points. In the paint, Chris Ensminger and Tim Ohlbrecht will tangle with Lonny Baxter and Cevher Ozer, while Bonn’s Ronald Dupree and Besiktas’s Engin Atsur round out the starting lineups. Though the game is for protocol only, expect a cast of stars to be eager to enjoy the game, generate lots of points and look for a win to remember the Eurocup fondly until next year.
REFEREES: Milivoje Jovcic, Andrej Lovsin, Regis Bardera