Copa del Rey Basketball 2023: schedule, teams, and format / News - Basketnews.com

Find out everything about Copa del Rey Basketball 2023 tournament, including the schedule, teams, and format.

Credit: Borja B. Hojas/Getty Image Credit Borja B. Hojas/Getty Image

All around Europe, it's a time for a little break in the domestic leagues, which will be filled by the local cups, and Copa del Rey Basketball, or simply the Spanish Basketball Cup, is no exception.

In just a few days, teams will fight for the second domestic title of the season. The tension and the excitement that the domestic cups generate are something that can't usually be found during the regular season of the local leagues.

If you're missing some info or details about these competitions, there's no need to worry because we've got you covered.

In this article, we will focus on Copa del Rey Basketball, where the tournament will be played in Badalona from February 16 to February 19.

Located in Catalonia, Badalona is one of the most historical basketball cities in Spain. Every single corner of the city breathes basketball.

Badalona will host the Copa del Rey Basketball for the first time since 1985. That year, Real Madrid became the champion, winning the final against Joventut at Ausias March arena.

Format

The Spanish Cup is a Final 8 tournament with 8 teams distributed in a bracket, followed by a knock-out elimination: quarterfinals, semifinals, and the final will be played in a single-game format. Each winner advances to the next round.

Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Lenovo Tenerife, Cazoo Baskonia, Unicaja Malaga, Gran Canaria, Joventut Badalona, and Valencia Basket clinched a spot for the Spanish Cup.

Barca will try to make the three-peat, while Madrid wants to take back the title. We won't be El Clasico in the final, as both powerhouses were drawn in the same part of the bracket. Tenerife and Baskonia have a big opportunity to reach the final.

Teams

Real Madrid (no. 1 seed) FC Barcelona (no. 2) Lenovo Tenerife (no. 3) Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (no. 4) Unicaja Malaga (no. 5) Gran Canaria (no. 6) Joventut Badalona (no. 7) Valencia Basket (no. 8)

Schedule

Real Madrid and Valencia Basket open the Cup on Thursday, February 16th, at 18:30 CET. Following them, FC Barcelona will face Unicaja Malaga at 21:30 CET.

On Friday, Lenovo Tenerife will play against Gran Canaria at 18:30 CET. Then, Joventut Badalona and Cazoo Baskonia will close the quarterfinals at 21:30 CET.

The semifinals will be played on Saturday at 18:30 CET and 21:30 CET, respectively.

The final is set to be played on Sunday at 19:00 CET.

Quarterfinals

Feb. 16, 18:30 CET: Real Madrid 86:85 Valencia Basket (1) Feb. 16, 21:30 CET: FC Barcelona 87:89 Unicaja Malaga (2) Feb. 17, 18:30 CET: Lenovo Tenerife 89:73Gran Canaria (3) Feb. 17, 21:30 CET: Joventut Badalona 94:81 Cazoo Baskonia (4)

Semifinals

Feb. 18, 18:30 CET: Real Madrid 82:93 Unicaja Malaga (5) Feb. 18, 21:30 CET: Lenovo Tenerife vs. Joventut Badalona (6)

Final

Feb. 19, 18:30 CET: Unicaja Malaga vs. Lenovo Tenerife/Joventut Badalona

Historical stats

Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have won the last 13 Cups. Cazoo Baskonia was the last team apart from the two Spanish powerhouses to claim it in 2009. Did you know... Nico Laprovittola has the best PIR record in Cup history? He accumulated 50 in 2019 while playing for Joventut. Rudy Fernandez has been named MVP three times of the Spanish Cup (2004, 2008, and 2015). Pablo Laso is the most successful coach in the competition. 6 titles, one more than Aito Garcia Reneses. Sarunas Jasikevicius will seek his third.

Throwback to last year

In last year's final, Barcelona beat Real Madrid 64-59, as Nikola Mirotic was named the MVP of the tournament. Like what we are doing? You can express your gratitude here.