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One of the top performers all decade in Euroleague Basketball is returning to the place where his career took off to face his old club in a do-or-die qualification game for access to the Eurocup regular season. Galatasaray Cafe Crown forward Dejan Milojevic made a name for himself during four seasons with Buducnost of Podgorica, Montenegro, which he led to a pair of Yugoslav League titles while being named that competition's MVP twice. Now, however, Milojevic leads Galatasaray against Buducnost in a do-or-die second-leg qualifying game on Tuesday after his new team beat his old one by 85-83 in the first leg. And having been in their shoes once, Milojevic knows exactly how Buducnost's young bucks feel going up against the many proven veterans on Galatasaray. "Most of all, you need to play it like a normal game," Milojevic advises. "If you think too much about how important it is, you put big pressure on yourself and you don't play as well. Everyone is going to go out there to play his best, but only the team with cool heads can win."
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(Friday, October 31, 2008)
Hapoel Jerusalem
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At a time that few players stay with one club for multiple years, guard Timmy Bowers seems to have found a home with former ULEB Cup champion Hapoel Jerusalem. Bowers enters his third season in a row with the team from the Israeli capital and continues to leave a mark.
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(Friday, October 17, 2008)
BC Triumph
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The 2008 Eurocup first qualifying round started with a lot of drama all around the continent. One of the most thrilling games came in Russia, where Triumph Lyubertsy rallied from a 16-point deficit to get a 78-78 tie against Base BC Oostende.
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(Friday, October 10, 2008)
Unics Kazan
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The Eurocup first qualifying round starts next Tuesday and all 16 teams are getting ready to fight their way to reach the Eurocup regular season. Two of the teams that reached the Final Eight last season - Galatasaray Cafe Crown and Unics Kazan - have to work their way through both qualifying round to make it to the Eurocup.
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(Monday, April 07, 2008)
Dynamo Moscow
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When it comes to ULEB Cup results, Dynamo Moscow power forward Antonis Fotsis sets the bar high. In just his third ULEB Cup season, Fotsis has a chance to reach his third final, a feat unmatched by anyone else. Fotsis has been a key part of his team’s success in each of those previous runs.
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(Thursday, April 03, 2008)
Unics Kazan
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Listed as 1.98 meters tall, he says that's an exaggerated by a couple centimeters. The difference hardly changes the fact that Unics Kazan swingman Tariq Kirksay - who is even playing backup point guard these days - has been the ULEB Cup's rebounds leader for the last two seasons.
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(Tuesday, April 01, 2008)
Galatasaray Cafe Crown
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Galatasaray Cafe Crown is in the midst of its most successful European season to date and it couldn't have done it without one of its unsung heroes, sixth man Cuneyt Erden. The 30-year-old point guard, participating in his third ULEB Cup season, has played his best basketball at the most important times.
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(Thursday, March 27, 2008)
PGE Turow
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In his second season with PGE Turow Zgorzelec, point guard Andres Rodriguez is not surprised in the least that his team will be standing shoulder-to-shoulder with better known ones with much longer histories at the ULEB Cup Final Eight in Turin, Italy next month.
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(Monday, March 17, 2008)
Zadar
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In just four seasons, Zadar guard Corey Brewer has made his mark on the ULEB Cup in more than one way. Brewer has scored the second-most points among all players in the history of the competition, 828, as well as compiling the seventh-most assists and steals. More impressive is how far he has brought his teams - one of them to two semifinals, and another to the title game.
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(Thursday, February 21, 2008)
Azovmash Mariupol
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On the verge of setting the record most career ULEB Cup appearances, Azovmash Mariupol forward Yahor Meshcharakou knows a thing or two about the ULEB Cup elimination rounds. This season, Meshcharakou helped Azovmash reached the Last 32 in its debut ULEB Cup season, marking his fifth consecutive year of post-season play.
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(Monday, January 14, 2008)
Spirou Charleroi
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It might take a worldwide search to find any basketball player anywhere who can say he is al competition's all-time leader in three different statistical categories, but as of last week, Andre Riddick of Spirou Charleroi certainly can.
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(Friday, December 14, 2007)
PGE Turow
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PGE Turow Zgorzelec is one of the most pleasant surprises in the ULEB Cup this season and one of the main reasons to its success is small forward Thomas Kelati, who comes off his best game this season. Kelati helped Turow to register a 70-77 road win against EiffelTowers Den Bosch with 26 points, most of them in the final 15 minutes of the game.
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(Monday, December 10, 2007)
Besiktas Cola Turka
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One of the best European big men of his generation, center Kaya Peker, has a lot to do with the early success of Besiktas. While averaging at least 5 fewer minutes per game than any other Besiktas starter, Peker leads his team in rebounds and is second in scoring.
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(Monday, November 19, 2007)
BC Kalev/Cramo
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Of the 11 undefeated teams through two weeks of the ULEB Cup regular season, perhaps the least expected among them is BC Kalev/Cramo, the first-ever Estonian representative in the competition.
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(Sunday, April 08, 2007)
Lietuvos Rytas
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Aleksandar Trifunovic has taken the road less traveled to reach Charleroi and the ULEB Cup final as head coach of Lietuvos Rytas. Trifunovic only joined the club midseason and wasn't handed the reins as the head coach until shortly before the quarterfinals.
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(Sunday, April 08, 2007)
Real Madrid
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Joan Plaza more than paid his dues before getting his chance to coach Real Madrid. Almost 30 years' worth of dues, in fact.
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(Tuesday, April 03, 2007)
Real Madrid
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He is a reigning world champion with the Spanish national team, and now, after leading Real Madrid to its second ULEB Cup Final appearance, power forward Felipe Reyes plans to lift his first continental trophy, too.
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(Tuesday, April 03, 2007)
Lietuvos Rytas
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One of the most decorated players in Lithuanian basketball, and one of the few with both Euroleague and European Championships trophies to his name, almost didn't play professionally at all.
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(Thursday, March 15, 2007)
BC FMP
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BC FMP has exceeded even its own expectations by reaching the ULEB Cup semifinals this season and it couldn't have done so without the outstanding play of big man Zoran Erceg.
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(Monday, March 05, 2007)
Real Madrid
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One of the biggest clubs in European basketball history is ready to again challenge for one of the few pieces missing in its trophy case. Real Madrid has unveiled a new-look team this season for the tasks at hand, though it does have some big names back, too.
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(Monday, February 19, 2007)
Strasbourg
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SIG Strasbourg forward Chuck Eidson swooped up back-to-back MVP of the week awards in leading Strasbourg over Sluc Nancy in the ULEB Cup eighthfinals to become the first French team to reach the quarterfinals.
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(Thursday, February 08, 2007)
Ventspils
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When a pair of classic ULEB Cup teams meet with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line, Ventspils center Dusan Jelic will try to guide the Latvian champions to a big victory over a former ULEB Cup champ.
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(Monday, January 15, 2007)
PAOK
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One of the great basketball towns in Europe - Thessaloniki, Greece - is living heady days again, with PAOK qualified early for the ULEB Cup elimination rounds from difficult Group D.
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