Two matches await on Tuesday, September 25, in Bulgaria and Poland. Spartak Pleven will host Valmiera Glass ViA (1-0) in a season opener for the Bulgarians – tipoff at 18.00 CET. Two teams have their debut night in the ENBL as Dziki Warszawa will face Donar Groningen – tipoff at 19.00 CET.
Spartak Pleven vs Valmiera Glass ViA
Series history: Spartak Pleven and Valmiera Glass ViA will face each other for the first time.
Key matchup: Kris Minkov won the 2024 Bulgarian championship with Rilski sportist.
Small forward last season averaged 4.8 points in the Sesame NBL but his playing time decreased.
Artis Ate had 13 points for a 5/10 shooting from the field in the ENBL opener on September 17.
Small forward from Rucava is one of the best defenders in Latvia and went 3/5 from the long range in a win over Spišski Rytieri.
National championships: Spartak Pleven are eyeing the Bulgarian Supercup – they will play against Rilski Sportist on Friday, September 28, at the Arena Samokov.
Sesam NBL regular season is set to start on October 5.
Spartak recently added American small forward Brett Harmon Reed (203cm, 06.05.1996). Last season he played for Koping Stars in Sweden. Reed graduated Saint Martin`s University (NCAA2) in 2022.
Valmiera opened the Optibet Latvia and Estonia league with a 80-63 win against Liepāja on September 20.
Nikolajs Mazurs team are 2-0 in all competitions.
Know your referees
Crew chief: Martin Horozov (Bulgaria) – FIBA referee from 2012, Top Division in Bulgaria from 2011, Basketball Champions league referee from 2016. One of the top FIBA referees, has worked at the multiple World Cups and EuroBaskets.
Umpire 1: Andris Aunkrogers (Latvia) – FIBA referee from 2005. Has worked at many major events, including World Cup 2019 and 2023, EuroBasket 2022. Basketball Champions league referee from 2016.
Umpire 2: Ventsislav Velikov (Bulgaria) – FIBA referee from 2012, Basketball Champions league referee from 2015.
Observer: Mareks Voļskis (Latvia).
ENBL access: follow the game on YouTube live stream
Dziki Warszawa vs Donar Groningen
Series history: Dziki Warszawa and Donar Groningen will face each other for the first time. It`s the first European match in Dziki history – with a live coverage on TVP Sport.
Będzie dziko – it`s going to be wild!
Key matchup: Rickey McGill is a Dziki Warszawa guard after a transfer from the Newcastle Eagles.
A former Iona College guard was named the 2024 ENBL Most Valuable Player.
McGill averaged 17.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists in nine ENBL games.
Keevan Veinot played 37 minutes and scored 23 points for Donar in a home opener against Mons-Hainaut.
A Canadian guard (Dalhousie University) from Port Williams, Nova Scotia, last season played for the Antwerp Giants, where he averaged 8.9 points in 25 games. Veinot scored 33 points on February 18 against Donar.
National championships: Dziki Warszawa didn`t lost a single exhibition game, although they were tied with Anwil, 76-76, and GTK, 78-78.
Dziki defeated MKS Dąbrowa, 74-57, on September 20, and ended their preseason with a 80-68 success against the 2023 ENBL bronze medalist Start Lublin, on September 21.
PLK regular season will start on October 3, while Dziki will host the 2023 ENBL champion BM Stal Ostrow two days later.
Donar Groningen are 1-1 in the BNXT league and lost the most recent game against Union Mons-Hainaut, 79-92, on September 21 at the Martini Plaza (2 810 spectators).
The hosts played without Dakota Quinn, Tim Hoeve and David Grabovsek.
Donar recently signed James Karnik as a replacement for injured Dakota Quinn.
Czech center recently played for the Vancouver Bandits in the Canadian Elite Basketball league – he averaged 8.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocked shots. Karnik may debut on Tuesday.
Know your referees
Crew chief: Michal Proc (Poland) – one of the top European referees, FIBA referee from 2015, PLK referee from 2013. Has worked at the Universiade 2017, World Cup 2019 and 2023, Basketball Champions league Final Four 2022, EuroBasket 2022.
Umpire 1: Stan Kestein (Netherlands) – BNXT league referee from 2018. Has worked at the BNXT league playoffs and the Dutch Cup finals. Has worked at the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 EWBL seasons, as well as the 2023-2024 ENBL season.
Umpire 2: Pawel Pacek (Poland) – PLK referee from 2022, candidate to FIBA.
Observer: Oskars Lucis (Latvia).
ENBL access: follow the game on TVP Sport YouTube channel
You can follow Dziki also on FlashScore Poland application.
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