Final Four – Oberfart becomes basketball Mecca

The entire Austrian basketball team is looking forward to Oberwart this weekend. Arsenal will play the Men’s Basketball Cup ‘Final Four’ at the gym there on Saturday and Sunday – so the league is on pause. On Saturday, Oberwart will open the scene at 5 p.m. with its semi-final match against Gmunden, from 7:15 p.m. The second semi-final will take place: BC Vienna against UBSC Graz.

With Gunners, Gmunden and Vienna, the three best basketball teams in the country are currently involved. Graz, which is currently eighth in the league, is a bit far away, but that doesn’t detract from the overall spectacle. Gunners chairman Thomas Linzer: “This is a real highlight of the season for us. The cup has a long tradition at Oberwart. Our breakthrough came in 1995, when we hosted the Final Four for the first time. The last time we hosted it was in 2016, so of course it’s great. To be the host again.”

But just being host is not enough for Arsenal, in the end a sixth cup title must also be won. However, Lenzer knows that this will not be an easy task: “We have to bend Gmunden and then Vienna too – really hard.” Coach Horst Leitner agrees – he’s been ill lately but should be back on Saturday. “Winning the cup means you have to beat the top two. But we will be ready.” Sunday’s league bankruptcy against Gmunden must be quickly forgotten.

In order for the Gunners to perform at their best, they need support from the stands. President Lenzer: “That’s why we all hope that many fans will come to the auditorium.” Will there also be Quincy Diggs this weekend? Apparently, there have been rumors recently that Oberwart is working on signing the MVP from the 2015/16 season in the run-up to the final tournament. The Gunners said no at the start of the week: “Diggs will not be coming in, but we are currently looking for a replacement for Edi Patekar. However, there won’t be any new signings ahead of the ‘Final Four’.