Aleks Maric joins Brad Newley at Gran Canaria
Australian center Aleks Maric has signed to play with Herbalife Gran Canaria in the Spanish ACB, a deal that will see him play for his fourth team in the 2014/15 season.
On the eve of the Spanish ACB finals, Gran Canaria have taken the opportunity to bolster their front court by signing the 211cm big man who has previously represented the Australian national team. The signing links Maric with former Australian Boomers team-mate Brad Newley who has been a shining light for the Spanish Eurocup runner-up this season.
Maric made his debut for Gran Canaria overnight in a 90-76 win over Valencia in the Spanish ACB. The big man provided 2 points with 3 rebounds before fouling out in 6 minutes, while Brad Newley chipped in 10 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in 23 minutes. The win solidified Gran Canaria's position in outright 8th place, 1 game clear of Chris Goulding's ZAI Zaragoza.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pysHvKK-ZI
Maric has travelled far and wide in the 2014/15 season, starting with reigning Euroleague champions Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv where he posted 3.8 rebounds in 6 outings in the Israeli league. After seeing little on court action, he moved to Turkish power Galatasaray Liv Hospital Istanbul for a short-lived stint that saw him able to log just 1 point and 1.7 rebounds an outing in only 3 games. Across both clubs, he played in 15 Euroleague games for averages of 2 points and 2.3 rebounds in 9:20 minutes per game.
Desperate to see some decent playing time, Maric found an opportunity with Petrochimi Bandar Imam Harbour in the Iranian Superleague where he has played since early March. Across 8 games for his new club, he enjoyed the additional court time in posting 9.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He leaves the team having helped guide them to equal first place in the Iranian Superleague.
Gran Canaria who recently lost the 2015 Eurocup finals to Khimki Moscow, are hopeful that Maric can make a positive contribution to the team as they eye a place in the Spanish ACB finals. With some much-needed game time under his belt from his experience in Iran, this could well be Maric's last opportunity to demonstrate he still has what it takes to play at the elite level in arguably the best national league competition in Europe.
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The 2015 Eurocup Finals were won by Khimki Moscow over Australian Brad Newley's Herbalife Gran Canaria 2-0.
Game 2 - Replay
7 May: 4:00am AEST
The 2015 Euroleague quarterfinals have been completed and the Final Four has been set - here are the teams:
Real Madrid (ESP) vs Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul (TUR)
CSKA Moscow (RUS) vs Olympiacos Piraeus (GRC)
The Final Four commences on 16 May 2015 Australian time and scheduled to be broadcast as follows:
Saturday, 16 May 2015
4:00am LIVE: Real Madrid (ESP) vs Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul (TUR)
Sunday, 17 May 2015
1:45am DELAYED: CSKA Moscow (RUS) vs Olympiacos Piraeus (GRC)
* Times are subject to change. Times and Dates are AEST. See http://tv.au.eurosport.com/ for details.