Eurocupe 2010-11, Qualifying Round, game analysis
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BESIKTAS COLA TURKA vs. DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS
 A giant club in Turkish sports, Besiktas JK Cola Turka hopes to take advantage of the Eurocup Qualifying Round to return to the competition this season. Besiktas reached the ULEB Cup Final Eight in 2008, but has not advanced a stage in the competition since. But with a powerful fan base and a well-respected name in the business, Besiktas will give it all to reach what could be its sixth consecutive Eurocup season.
 Deutsche Bank Skyliners are eager to bounce back from a run of quiet seasons starting by claiming a berth in the 2010-11 Eurocup through the Qualifying Round. After missing out on the German championship in the deciding game of the playoff finals, the Skyliners start this season looking to continue their climb both at home and in Europe to re-establish the club as a force to be reckoned with.
HAPOEL MIGDAL JERUSALEM vs. BELGACOM LIEGE
 The 2004 ULEB Cup champion aims to return to the group stage of the competition in which it has recorded its greatest success. New coach Oded Kattash arrives eager to build an attractive team that will help the Israeli powerhouse climb back to the forefront of the Eurocup. Last season, Jerusalem survived the Qualifying Round and marched all the way to the quarterfinals, narrowly missing out on reaching the Eurocup finals.
 Belgacom Liege Basket is one step away from returning to the Eurocup for the first time in five years. An emerging power in Belgian basketball, Liege comes off a season in which it had the best record in its league and reached the finals of the playoffs. Now the Eurocup Qualifying Round represent its next hurdle as it aims to return to the competition and show that it can compete at the pan-European level.
ARIS BSA 2003 vs. LUKOIL ACADEMIC
 A classic team in European basketball, Aris Thessaloniki boasts three past continental titles and came close to a fourth when it played the 2006 ULEB Cup final. Now the club targets a return to the Eurocup as it looks to prove it is still among the best in Europe. Last season Aris had a strong Eurocup campaign, reaching the quarterfinals before succumbing to eventual champion Power Electronics.
 The undeniable king of Bulgarian basketball, Lukoil Academic Sofia aims to return to the Eurocup after a one-year absence. Lukoil, which won its eighth consecutive Bulgarian League title last season, was one of European basketball’s first powers when it reached back-to-back European Cup finals in the late 1950s. Over the past decade, Lukoil has become a familiar face in the Eurocup and it longs to shine there again.
GRAN CANARIA 2014 vs. KK ZAGREB
 Despite being the European team located furthest from mainland Europe, Gran Canaria 2014 has become a classic team in the competition. Granca has played the Eurocup in four straight seasons, advanced a stage in three of those years and was close to the semifinals last year. Tradition and an uncanny homecourt advantage have become Gran Canaria’s calling cards that it will present this season as it tries to reach the Eurocup regular season once more.
 KK Zagreb Croatia Osiguranje has the chance to advance to the Eurocup for the first time since 2004 if it survives the Qualifying Rounds. The club has been on the rise in recent seasons after lifting its first trophy, the Croatian Cup, in 2008 and a second Croatian Cup last year. With those victories in its sails, Zagreb is now eager for more as it tries to establish itself as one of Croatia;s finest by making it to the 2010-11 Eurocup.
BC AZOVMASH vs. ENTENTE ORLEANAISE
 Perennial Ukrainian champion Azovmash Mariupol was a late addition to the Qualifying Rounds as a result of another team’s withdrawal, but it should not be taken lightly. Azovmash has slowly, but surely improved its reputation on the continent by competing in the Eurocup in each of the past two seasons, nearly reaching the Last 16 last year. Now it will try to make it three in a row by getting through the Qualifying Rounds.
 After a promising showing in the Euroleague last season, Entente Orleanaise Loiret looks to continue establishing itself as a rising force in French and European basketball as it Eurocup Qualifying Round. In less than two decades, Orleans climbed from the French third division a Euroleague berth. This year the club looks to survive the qualifying and register its Eurocup debut as the step on the road to elite status.
BC SPARTAK SPB vs. PAOK BC
 Spartak St. Petersburg made its competition debut last season and came within a tiebreaker of reaching the Last 16. This season the storied Russian club will start a little earlier, in the Qualifying Round, but will try to finish even stronger. Spartak has a rich basketball tradition with a golden period in the 1970s and is now on the upswing again trying to little by little rebuild itself into a European power.
 PAOK Thessaloniki, a true legendary team in European basketball, aims to return to the Eurocup this season by playing its way through the Qualifying Rounds. A former ULEB Cup finalist, PAOK boasts two past continental titles in addition to three finals appearances. It has not played this competition since the 2006-07 ULEB Cup, but with its fantastic fan base, PAOK will try to show it is still among Europe’s finest with another strong season.
BENETTON BASKET BWIN vs. APOEL NICOSIA
 Benetton Basket Bwin is one of the most famed names in European basketball and this season the club hopes to re-establish itself as one of the best too. The first task at hand is to return to the Eurocup via the Qualifying Round after the club advanced to the Last 16 last season and reached the Final Eight the season before. A busy start to the summer has the club already retooling to bring as strong a roster as possible to the 2010-11 campaign.
 Cypriot League champion Madisons Apoel Nicosia will try to book a Eurocup berth through the Qualifying Round for the second consecutive season, which would be a historic achievement for a basketball-crazy country. Apoel missed reaching the Eurocup regular season last year on a last-second shot, but is back to try again to reach the group stage of Europe’s No. 2 competition for the first time in over a decade.
DYNAMO MOSCOW vs. CEDEVITA ZAGREB
 A familiar face in the Eurocup, Dynamo Moscow is back looking to go far, even though it must first get through the Qualifying Round for the second year in a row. Dynamo won the competition as the ULEB Cup in 2006, reached the semifinals in 2008 and the quarters the next year. After failing to get past the regular season last year, Dynamo is back and hungry looking to prove to all it is still among the best in the Eurocup.
 Cedevita Zagreb arrives to the Eurocup Qualifying Round as a fast-rising power in Croatian basketball now trying to expand its name throughout the continent. Cedevita has been around for less than two decades, but in the past three seasons has turned into a team all must keep an eye on. Surviving the Qualifying Round and reaching the Eurocup for the first time could go a long way towards making everyone else take notice.
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