The club
Saski Baskonia S.A.D. was estamblished in 1959 (Tau Ceramica since 1997) but didn't achieve anything special until the last decade of the 20th century. Tau plays in Fernando Buesa Arena with over 9300 seats. In 1996 the team won their only European title so far, it also hasn't been dominant in Spain but since the ULEB era, Tau Ceramica has been one of most powerful and respectable clubs in Europe.
The team
Tau Ceramica is a very young team. Most of its main players are still under 25. Generally, the team holds on shoulders of two players - Luis Scola and Arvydas Macijauskas. Scola (PF/C. 2.06) has a rich arsenal of inside moves and has been a huge power under the boards, but lacks stabilness and often gets into foul trouble, which remains one of the biggest problems for Dusko Ivanovic. On the other hand, "Klashnikov" Macijauskas (SG/PG. 1.92), one of the best sharp-shooters in the world, has improved his defense much and demonstrated superb play last months. Other two starters taking a very important part in the team's game are veteran Kornel David and one of the most improved players this Euroleague season Jose Manuel Calderon. David (PF. 2.08) is always dangerous, can penetrate and hit mid-range jumpers. Calderon (PG. 1.90) has shown very good point-guard skills and is an all-around player for Tau. The last starting lineup spot is shared between Travis Hansen and Sergi Vidal Plana. Hansen (SG/SF. 1.98) can hit from anywhere outside the arc, while Vidal (SF/SG. 1.98) is one more surprise this season, hard-worker on the court.
One of the most promising young Centers in the world, Tiago Splitter get the honor to open Tau's bench. Together with Andrew Betts, they make a strong backup for Scola. Guard Pablo Prigioni is a strong assister, while Robert Conley, having impressive athletic skills, is doubtful about staying in Tau and probably won't be trusted in the crutual minutes.
Historic Titles
Tau Ceramica has only one European title in its history. In 1996, Baskonia won the European Cup tournament. Having won the Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) 4 times (1995, 1999, 2002, 2004) Tau won the Spanish Championship only once - in 2001. Tau has participated in a Euroleague Final, where it lost to powerhouse Kinder Bologna.
This season
Tau Ceramica had a very hard and problematic regular season, finishing 5th in Group C with 6-8 record, but was second in their Top16 group just after Panathinaikos with 4-2 record. In the Quarterfinals, Tau swept Benetton Treviso on road 98-59 and were able to hold on in Vitoria - 66-64.
Strong sides
Tau moves the ball on offense very well. In the Top16, it was the 2nd best assisting team in Euroleague with 17.8 assists per game. This is no big surprise, when you know Tau has such a shooter like Macijauskas. Most of the players are mobile an can shoot from various distances.
When Tau gets on a roll, nobody can stop them - thunderous offense is backed up by iron defense, creating a real hell for the opponents.
Weak sides
First of all, Tau is based on young players, which is partially a disadvantage. Even if they had a very good last season, they still lack expieriance for such big events like the upcoming Final Four. As a result of the young overall age, the team plays very unstable. One day they can crush their opponent with excelence, while on the next struggles on both ends. Also, Tau often relies on long-range shots and a bad period for their shooters could hurt the results of the whole team very much.
Overall
Tau Ceramica is team with huge potential. They can beat anyone if they have their day. The whole team's results will depend much on the Macijauskas-Scola duo, which are almost unstoppable individually. If they will be at their best and get some help from other players, Tau is already a strong candidate for the title.
Tau and its Semifinal opponent - CSKA Moscow had very intersting fights in the last season. All of those, however, were won by the Reds, as well as the last second victory in the Top16, which stole the Final Four ticket from Tau. Baskonia players are coming to Moscow for revenge and with huge confidence and even such clubs like Maccabi, CSKA and Panathinaikos should be very much aware of them.
2.5.2005
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.jpg "Serbia is U19 World champion 2007 (photo: fiba.com)")
