Quarterfinal analysis: Iurbentia Bilbao vs. Zadar
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One is a first-timer in European club competition, the other brought basketball to its country almost 80 years ago. Just the same, quarterfinal opponents Iurbentia Bilbao of Spain and KK Zadar of Croatia will be shooting for their first continental trophies at the Final Eight. In recent years, Bilbao has revived the basketball tradition in one of Spain's biggest cities to the point where it holds the domestic league's single-game attendance record. Zadar has been synonymous with Croatian basketball forever. Their unpredictable quarterfinal will surely produce a confident winner going forward to the semifinals.
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iurbentia Bilbao Basket has been unstoppable in the Eurocup this season, winning its regular season and Last 16 groups to match the competition's best overall record. Its main strength has been a rock-solid core of players in which everyone feels important. Drago Pasalic, one of the three Croatian players in the team, knows Bilbao's quaterfinal opponent, Zadar, very well. "No doubt about it - it is going to be a tough game," Pasalic says.
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Few people at the beginning of the season believed that Zadar would make the Final Eight, but the Croatian powerhouse has proven almost everyone wrong. Seeking its first European club title, Zadar faces iurbentia Bilbao Basket, a team with three Croatians of its own, in teh quarterfinals. Zadar veteran Tomislav Ruzic thinks efficiency will be a key in Turin. "We still have room for improvement," Ruzic says.
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| STATS BY POSITION |
| POINT GUARDS |
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Pts.
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Rebs.
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Ass.
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Ste.
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NAME
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NAME
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Pts.
|
Rebs.
|
Ass.
|
Ste.
|
|
9.5
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1.4
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3.1
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1.3
|
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12.8
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2.4
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4.2
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1.9
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9.3
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2.0
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2.6
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0.8
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|
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9.6
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1.2
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1.1
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1.0
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| SHOOTING GUARDS AND SMALL FORWARDS |
|
Pts.
|
Rebs.
|
Ass.
|
Ste.
|
NAME
|
|
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NAME
|
Pts.
|
Rebs.
|
Ass.
|
Ste.
|
|
2.8
|
1.1
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0.9
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0.6
|
|
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14.5
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1.0
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0.5
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0.0
|
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10.6
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1.5
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1.2
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0.9
|
|
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|
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8.2
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2.3
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1.2
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1.3
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5.8
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1.9
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1.1
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0.4
|
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|
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1.4
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0.7
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0.6
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0.6
|
|
5.4
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2.5
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0.7
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0.9
|
|
|
|
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2.0
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0.0
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0.0
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1.0
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| POWER FORWARDS AND CENTERS |
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Pts.
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Rebs.
|
Ass.
|
Ste.
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NAME
|
|
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NAME
|
Pts.
|
Rebs.
|
Ass.
|
Ste.
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|
13.4
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5.3
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0.8
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0.8
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4.6
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2.8
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0.1
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0.2
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6.1
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3.1
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1.6
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0.5
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15.3
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4.6
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1.9
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1.5
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6.0
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4.0
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0.7
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0.6
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5.6
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3.0
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0.1
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0.8
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7.2
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5.8
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0.0
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0.3
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12.7
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4.9
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1.9
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1.3
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Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Eurocupbasketball.com
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