The three-day final tournament of the Montenegrin Cup for basketball players will begin tomorrow in Bijelo Polje with the quarterfinal matches.
Eight teams will compete for the trophy, which is being defended by SC Derby.
SC Derbi defeated Buducnost Voli, who have won the competition 16 times, in last year's final.
Apart from those two teams, Sutjeska also holds the trophy, having triumphed in 2013.
The Bijelo Polje tournament will be opened by Sutjeska Elektroprivreda and SC Derbi, with a duel that will start at 13 pm.
Budućnost Voli will play against Primorje 15 at 30:1945 PM, and just like last year, at 18 PM their rivals will be Mornar Barsko Zlato and Podgorica Bemax.
The last semi-finalist will be decided by the duel between Jedinstvo 1950 and Teoda.
Sutjeska finished its season in the NLB ABA2 League in the group stage, while in the First Montenegrin League it recorded 13 wins and two losses.
The coach of the Nikšić team, Boško Bošković, said that it was nice to be a participant in the Cup final and that they would try to leave the best impression possible.
"It is clear that we have a tough job ahead of us because we are playing against SC Derby, who will also be playing in the Cup with the same squad they play in the ABA League. The Cup is a specific competition, it often brings surprises, and it is sporting to hope. We will not be complete, because shooting guard Bogdan Bojić is injured, but the rest are ready," said Bošković.
SC Derbi made history last year by winning the Cup, and unlike other Montenegrin teams from the ABA League, it has no problem with the number of foreigners.
Coach Petar Mijović expects a tough job, stating that SC Derbi, excluding clubs from the ABA League, has the toughest rival at the start.
"We respect Sutjeska, which is made up of very good and experienced players, who have proven themselves at different levels. I think they are in a good rhythm, especially after the important victory in Tivat. The cup always brings interesting matches, surprises, but we will try to justify the role of the favorites," said Mijović.
He expects interesting and high-quality basketball during the three days of the tournament.
"The future is the favorite, they are at the top level, our advantage is that there are no changes in the team and it is sporting to hope not to defend, but to win the trophy again," emphasized Mijović.
Buducnost Voli is the favorite this year as well, and due to the limitation on the number of foreigners (maximum four), the coach of the Montenegrin champion, Andrej Žakelj, decided to count on McKinley Wright, Yogi Ferrell, Fletcher Magee and Kenan Kamenjaš.
"The cup is a specific competition, but Buducnost always has the highest ambitions and we do not shy away from the role of favorites. We have to show character, play the quarterfinals with respect and get into the semifinals first. We just came from Belgrade, maybe we need a break, but we are professionals," said Žeelj.
He said that he will demand maximum respect from the players and that he believes that will be the case.
"We are playing without six players, with a lot of younger players, but we are definitely playing to win. There will be fatigue, but the approach must be maximal," said Žakelj.
The coach of Primorje, who is also in the top this season and among the candidates for the ABA2 league, Pavle Roganović, said that he entered the match as objective outsiders without any special ambitions.
"We had a tight schedule, a lot of injury problems, but regardless of everything we should try to sell our skin as expensive as possible. I don't think we can compete with Buducnost much, but we will definitely try to leave the best impression possible," said Roganović.
Just like last year, Mornar Barsko Zlato and Podgorica Bemax will play in the quarterfinals.
Barani have lost 13 times in the ABA League, they are focused on survival, it is clear that they are still far from winning the trophy, but they want to play a good match.
"We are an older club, we play in the ABA League, so despite all the bad results, we probably have the role of favorites. We will have a changed squad, but we will certainly have the motivation to play a good match and reach the semi-finals. We have a problem with injuries, coach Mihailo Pavićević will rest some of them, because the focus is on survival in the ABA League," said Baran assistant coach Ivan Jelenić.
Podgorica Bemax plays in the Top 8 phase of the NLB ABA2 League, and in the First A Montenegrin League they have a record of 13-2.
"Mornar, as an ABA league team, regardless of which team they will play in, is definitely a favorite. We will try to leave the best impression possible and of course try to get a win and thus reach the semifinals," said Podgorica basketball coach Marko Sekulić.
Teodo, with many personnel problems, does not have the ambitions like last year.
"We have a lot of problems with injuries, and for some players we don't know until the very beginning whether they will be able to play. We will certainly have a tough task against the hosts, but we will do our best to achieve victory," said Tivćan coaching staff member Boris Jeknić.
Jedinstvo 1950, as the host of the final tournament, awaits the start of the competition with special emotions...
"The people from the club really tried their best to make everything as organized as possible, I hope for a full hall, good basketball and that everyone will enjoy it. For us, it is a success that we have qualified, because Jedinstvo is returning to the top of Montenegrin basketball after many years," said the coach of the Bijelo Polje team, Nikola Korać.
He expects a full stadium and that they will manage to pull off a feat against a quality Teoda team, supported by the support from the stands.
"We have a wider roster, Evans and Čekić arrived from Teodi, some injured players returned, so we are waiting for the start in good spirits," said Korać.
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