In the EuroCup, Baglietto challenges the Slovenian champions: "Focused, united, and with the utmost respect for Ljubljana."
Baglietto Derthona Tortona faces the sixth matchday of the BKT EuroCup regular season. The black and white team is scheduled to play at 18:30 PM tomorrow, Wednesday, November 4th, at the Stozice Arena in Ljubljana, the imposing 12-seat arena home to Cedevita Olimpija. From Udine to the Slovenian capital, the Lions of Tortona quickly cross the border. After their league defeat in Friuli, they will look to maintain their playoff position in Group A, which was held in last place by tomorrow's opponent, a historic name in continental basketball: Olimpija Ljubljana, by far the most successful team in Slovenia and fresh from their 2019 merger with Croatian club Cedevita Zagreb.
The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sport Basket and streamed on Now.
How do the two teams arrive?
Baglietto will try to put the difficult season behind them by extending their European double win streak against Burgos and Rostock. Mario Fioretti's team currently stands at 3 wins and 2 losses, the same as Riga Zelli, who lost third place due to a head-to-head loss in the first leg in Latvia, but still have a one-win advantage over fifth-placed Le Mans.
Ljubljana is the only team still without a win in the group. Their latest defeat came on the hardwood of Aris Thessaloniki after a hard-fought game (78-73) against one of the two undefeated league leaders, while in their last ABA Liga game last Saturday, they beat FMP Belgrade at home (96-87), the third win in five games for Montenegrin coach Zvezdan Mitrovic's team in the Adriatic League, where they occupy third place (out of 10 teams) in Group A behind Buducnost and Red Star Belgrade. American point guard Anthony Cowan is the best EuroCup player in terms of points (14.4), assists (3.2), and rating (14.8) for the Slovenians, who also feature some recent acquaintances from the Italian league, such as big men Matthew Hurt, a teammate of Eboua and Alibegovic (formerly with Ljubljana in 2022-23) in Trapani last year, and Jayce Johnson, who played for Trieste two seasons ago.
Previous encounters with Slovenians
This is the first time in Derthona's history that they will face a Slovenian team.
The statements
Coach Mario Fioretti: " We're playing an away game against a team that obviously has a false ranking, with experienced but also talented players, both on the outside and in the very versatile big men. We want to find consistency over the 40 minutes, playing with great aggression and concentration on both ends of the court."
Point guard Aljami Durham: "No matter where Ljubljana is in the standings, we have to go there and play our game. They're all strong teams, they all know how to play, they all can win—especially at home. We have to approach the game with intensity and give it our all to win, because every opponent must be taken seriously."
"Our team's mental state is good, we're doing well. The key is to continue working hard every day and focusing on constant improvement. Whatever happens, the team is committed to doing better every day, working hard, and wanting to stay together."
