Champions League
With a 1-0 win against Tofas, AEK made the big step towards qualifying for the TOP 16 of the Basketball Champions League
With tenacity and creativity, AEK defeated Tofas (73:70) in a game behind closed doors and made it 1-0 in the play-in series against the background of qualifying for the TOP-16 of the Basketball Champions League.
The episode before the game against Rezzo Emilia forced AEK to enter the Basketball Champions League play-in without their world. On Wednesday evening (January 4th), the yellow-black Tofas received the first game of the best-of-three series, got the positive result (73:70) after a nerve-wracking final thriller and took a big step towards qualifying for the TOP 16 of the competition, which is held in four groups of four.
Janis Strelnieks performed unbelievably at the decisive points of the match, Akil Mitchell – Isaiah Miles followed and with 21 assists for 22 baskets AEK Tofas didn’t let the break come. Rob Gray and Burke Ugiurlou were a separate team for Dimitris Priftis, who eventually saw chances for the overtime shot but poor execution from his players.
AEK started the game poorly (4-13 mid first period), with Tofas having four goalscorers and 3/3 threes up to that point. At the end of the quarter, the Yellow-Blacks had 3/13 shots and 8/11 shots, while the Turks had 8/16 shots and hadn’t taken a shot. Still, the game was level in the second quarter, with the hosts continuing to hit from the line (14/18 shots in 20′) and hoping to be more effective on the three-pointer.
Strelnieks and Miles did a great job early in the second half, with AEK building a six-point lead (46-40) midway through the third period without capitalizing on it, and play continued in the same pattern. Strelnieks did incredible things in the fourth too, scoring a string of points to put it 69-62 with 37 minutes and in the final thriller, first Brymo and then Gray missed shots after a Frazier foul to put the game into overtime to send .
THE REFEREES: Lanzarini, Baldini, Kozlovskis
THE DECADES: 16-20, 35-37, 52-49, 73-70
AEK (Kantzouris): Flionis 9 (3/3 2-pointers, 1/2 3-pointers, 3 rebounds, 4 assists), Fraser 2 (3 rebounds, 5 assists), Madsen 4, Mitchell 16 (6/12 2-pointers ). , 4/6 shots, 7 rebounds, 3 assists), Strelnieks 16 (4/6 3-pointers, 4/4 shots, 5 assists), Koniaris, McGriff 9 (1 3-pointers, 6/6 shots), Miles 12 (2/6 trebles, 6/7 shots, 5 rebounds), Papadakis, Petropoulos, Williams (0/6 shots), Xanthopoulos 5 (1 treble, 2 rebounds, 3 assists)
TOFAS (Receivers): Braimo 3, Ennis 10 (2), Gray 18 (4/8 2-pointers, 3/5 3-pointers, 1/2 shots, 5 assists, 7 turnovers), Toure 9 (3/4 2- Pointer, 3/4 shots, 10 rebounds), Ugyurlu 16 (3/6 2-pointers, 3/4 3-pointers, 1/2 shots, 4 rebounds, 3 assists), Buyuktuncel 2, Milaknis 3 (1), Tanisan 7(1), Thompson 2
Team stats from AEK: 13/22 2-pointers, 9/27 3-pointers, 20/26 shots, 33 rebounds (24 defensive – 9 offensive), 21 assists, 7 steals, 3 blocks, 14 turnovers, 20 fouls
Tofa’s team stats: 15/33 2-pointers, 10/24 3-pointers, 10/16 shots, 40 rebounds (22 defensive – 18 offensive), 14 assists, 6 steals, 2 blocks, 17 turnovers, 23 fouls
The next games of the two teams: The second game of the series will be played in Bursa on January 10th, while a third event will be played on January 18th in the closed Ano Liosia.
Source: Sport 24
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
We continue to examine the future of Donetsk shakhtar To buy tickets directly to the main stage Champions League 2026/27.
This will be possible if the place reserved for the team that wins the Champions League trophy is redistributed.
All important moments of the match are available in LIVE mode Telegram Sport.ua
Donetsk Miner They are in fourth place with a coefficient of 50.250 among the clubs competing for a possible position at the heart of the Champions League.
In the last European week, the Donetsk club added +2.625 points. This increase was achieved with a 0-0 draw with Croatian Rijeka in the 6th round of the Conference League and a sixth place in the main round final table.
Main rival Greek Olympiacos – 56,500 points remaining. The Miners can regain the 6,250-point lead if they perform well in the spring part of the European Cups.
It is interesting that Shakhtar lost the first place in the UPL (Cherkasy has the same number of points as LNZ – 35 points each), and Olympiacos lost the lead in Greece to the AEK team (36 points against 37). Ukrainian striker Roman Yaremchuk plays for the team of the city of Piraeus.
Positions rangers (59,250), 4th in Scotland and Copenhagen (53.375), placed 5th in Denmark, looks less competitive in the rankings due to its position in the national championships. Leader only in championships Dinamo Zagreb And RB Salzburg (44,000 each) but there is no certainty that the turn will come.
Let us remind you that if the cup holder buys a ticket to the Champions League through the national championship, there will be a vacancy in the main squad in the 2026/27 Champions League. In this case, a balance will arise again and if Shakhtar wins the UPL and is ahead of Olympiacos in the UEFA club rankings (or the Greek club does not become the champion of Greece), it can get a direct ticket to the base of the Champions League.
If the Piraeus team is higher in the rankings and takes advantage of the available space, the Donetsk club will start from the 4th quarter of the Champions League, not the 2nd quarter, in case they win in the UPL.
Candidates for direct tickets to the Champions League 2026/27 main stage
(In case the quota reserved for the Champions League champion becomes vacant)
UEFA Club Rankings 2026
infographics
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
Champions League
Pedri commented on the new format of the Champions League: An unexpected look from a football player
Barcelona midfielder pedri He answered the question about his attitude towards the new format of the Champions League with the general group stage.
“Do I like the new format of the Champions League? I can’t say with 100% certainty which format I like more: this one or the previous one?”
If I have to choose, I will do something new: There were more matches between strong teams in the first stage,” said Pedri, as quoted by Esquire.
Before the 2024/2025 season, the group stage of the Champions League consisted of eight groups of four clubs each. All participants played six matches in their respective foursomes, home and away, against each of the three opponents.
From the 2024/2025 season, a new Champions League format comes into force with a common group stage of 36 clubs; each participant plays eight matches, four away and four at home; The opponents are determined by lot.”
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
Earlier, English Manchester City played a match against French Monaco in a new round of the UEFA Champions League.
After the match, the head coach of the “Locals” Pep Guardiola commented on the performance of the powerful team.
“In football you can always perform better – and this is the result. Our game today was very good in many ways. And step by step we will improve our results.”
Ale mi gave many speeches today in the right way. We created many scoring opportunities and found Phil Foden active in the first half. Most Gravians played at a fairly high level.
Previously, they did not let their opponents create anything, but created the chances themselves. We adapted very well to the superniks and played very well. This is my opinion.
If you get a good match on the right side, of course you have to… Today we got a great ball, that’s all I can tell you right away.
Holland? It’s really good. He plays to score goals. He struggled with three centre-backs and two supporting defenders in front of him, and it wasn’t easy for his partners to know that. Ale, we can work hard to score goals.
Tse bula spravdi garna gra. We created a lot of chances, but unfortunately in the end we didn’t defend perfectly against a free kick, which would have been quite a few, and we conceded a penalty, which was awarded when the ball hit the first one… well, that’s it.
Referee? “I have nothing to say to the Spanish referees,” said the Spanish footballer.
In the coming round, English Manchester City will visit Spanish Villarreal.
Source: Football UA
Alberta Robinson is a sports journalist and author, who is currently associated with the publication Sportish, where she writes about sports related news and events. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, Robinson brings in-depth analysis and insightful commentary to her writing.
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