Basketball capital Vilnius to host Euroleague qualifying rounds!

One of the world's great basketball hotbeds, the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, will usher in the new 2013-14 season with a bang by hosting the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Qualifying Rounds next October. The qualifying rounds features eight aspirants playing single-elimination games over four days until a single winner claims the 24th and last spot in the 2013-14 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Regular Season. 

The qualifying rounds will be held at the 11,000-seat Siemens Arena, which is well known as a venue for major basketball events, including the 2011 EuroBasket for men's national teams. This marks the second time that Vilnius will host the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Qualifying Rounds, as Siemens Arena was one of two sites to do so before the 2011-12 season. This time, the qualifying rounds are scheduled to run in Vilnius between Tuesday, October 1 and Friday, October 4. 

Siemens Arena's long-time home team, Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius, is among the eight teams from eight countries slated to battle it out in the qualifying rounds. Rytas has won the Eurocup title twice in the last decade and will be joined by another former champion of that competition, Khimki Moscow Region of Russia. Three teams are making repeat appearances in the qualifying rounds: Czech champion CEZ Nymburk, Turkish League runner-up Banvit Bandirma and Belgian champion Telenet Ostend. EWE Baskets Oldenburg of Germany and VEF Riga of Latvia, are making their qualifying rounds debuts, as is one of the most successful clubs in basketball history, Cimberio Varese of Italy, which won five Euroleague titles in the 1970s. 


Here is the official schedule (all times local) for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Qualifying Rounds at Siemens Arena in Vilnius. 

Tuesday, October 1, 2013
18:00 - Cimberio Varese – EWE Baskets Oldenburg
20:30 - Lietuvos Rytas – VEF Riga

Wednesday, Octber 2, 2013
18:00 - Khimki Moscow Region – Telenet Ostend
20:30 - CEZ Basketball Nymburk – Banvit Bandirma

Thursday, October 3, 2013
18:00 - Tuesday winners20:30 - Wednesday winners

Friday, October 4, 2013
20:30 - Thursday winners