Match of the season at "Morača": Buducnost vs. Cluj for the Eurocup quarterfinals

Andrej Žakelj's team will attempt to skip this step after five years, and for the first time in the new format they will have home-court advantage. The stakes are high, as there is only one match to be played – a win takes them to the quarter-finals, while a loss means the end of the European season.

"We all know how much this game means to us. The system is such that one game is decisive. We have home court advantage, but that doesn't necessarily mean much when there's only one match to be played. So far we've been playing well at home and I hope it will be the same on Wednesday. Cluj is a very difficult team, offensively oriented, with very good individuals. They play one of the fastest basketball games in Europe, along with some Euroleague teams - a lot of possession, a lot of freedom in the game. They are a very good shooting team. We're expecting a tough game. In the next day or two we have to prepare ourselves to the fullest, to try to take advantage of their weaknesses and our strengths. We have to go in positive, with good energy, with the help of the fans and I hope we'll celebrate in the end," said Budućnost coach Andrej Žakelj in announcing the game.

The Podgorica team made an excellent overture for this duel, having convincingly defeated Igokea in the ABA League last weekend. The Romanian representative, on the other hand, was defeated at home by Red Star.

"We are satisfied with the match against Igokea. I think we played a good team game, all the guys contributed and gave their maximum. I think we deserved to win. We did a good job from the start, both defensively and offensively, and we kept it up until the end," said Nikola Tanasković, the captain of the "blues", about the match with Igokea.

Buducnost finished the league stage of the Eurocup in third place in Group B with a score of 12-6, while Cluj was sixth in Group A with a score of 9-9.

"The ambition is to go all the way in the Eurocup. We won the home field against Cluj, but there is always a risk because there is only one game to play. We have to be aggressive from the start, with a strong defense. We know that this is a team that scores a lot of points, a good shooting team that runs a lot and plays fast basketball, with a lot of possessions per game. We know where the biggest threat is coming from. We have to respond with aggression and solid defense, and I believe that the attack will come from our team play," said Tanasković.

The winner of tonight's duel in the quarterfinals will face Bahçeşehir, who, as the second-place team from Group A, directly qualified for the top eight and will have home field advantage.