Edu Hernandez-Sonseca, DKV Joventut
 If experience counts at this do-or-die time of season, DKV Joventut has plenty in the middle with center Edu Hernandez-Sonseca. Despite being just 24 years old still, Hernandez-Sonseca has played every season this decade in either the Euroleague or ULEB Cup. In this, his first season with Joventut, he has proven to be a key component as the team won its national cup and progressed comfortably through the ULEB Cup, where he has averaged 5.8 points on 88.2% free throws and 4.2 rebounds. Now, with a Last 16 test ahead against a similarly dangerous Khimki of Russia, Hernandez-Sonseca will be counted on to produce the timely block, rebound or basket that are the fruits of that experience. "I must admit that our regular season group was not as tough as some others out there, but you have to play and win the games because nobody is going to forgive you if you don't. We’ve had a very strong ULEB Cup season so far, but we know we face a very tough opponent in Khimki."  "Khimki has a nice roster, including a couple of players that played with me at Real Madrid, Maciej Lampe and Pat Burke. I haven't seen much about Khimki and its game yet, but seeing the players they have, I know it is a good team. We cannot focus on anything until we study them a little bit. We all know that they won the Russian Cup, beating CSKA Moscow in the final, so it is a team we must respect a lot. They can play and the first game is in Russia, which is tough. If we cannot win in there, we must come back with a deficit that we can overcome in front of our fans here in Badalona." "Playing the second leg at home may well be an advantage, but also can be bad if you lose the first leg, because it can be overwhelming if you don't manage to rally and see that the clock is running down. Of course, if you come back with a win, you know you are playing in front of your fans, with your basketballs and your rims. We know the way we have been playing at home, so that gives us some extra confidence. We have to go step by step, of course, and try to play a good game in Russia. Our next goal will be to do the same at home and if we make it, think about the Final Eight. We cannot think ahead and must be focused on what we have in front of us, which is the series against Khimki."
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Mike Wilkinson, BC Khimki
 Khimki may been in just its second season in the ULEB Cup, but it boasts a collection of some of the most experienced players in the competition, including forward Mike Wilkinson, a former ULEB Cup finalist for Aris. Wilkinson joined Khimki this summer after a standout Euroleague season and has become a key contributor on a deep squad that already won the club's first-ever trophy, the Russian Cup, defeating mighty CSKA Moscow to do so. An all-around threat who scores, rebounds and blocks shots as well as hitting perimeter shots, Wilkinson has averaged 7.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in 24 minutes so far this season and looks to do even more as his team eyes a ticket to the Final Eight. "We've done alright so far this season. We've been through the group stage, which was our first part and then we beat Koln in the first round of the playoffs, which went pretty easy. So just to be at this stage is where we wanted to be. This was our ultimate goal, to still be playing at this time."  "We've had pretty much the same group of core of guys all season. The big thing has been injuries, but when those guys come back, they step right in and make the team stronger. Because we have a bunch of guys who all have experience and playing time, and everyone has played together. So it's been a long year with injuries, but essentially it's made us a better team." "I know a bunch of the players on Joventut and they're a really good team. It's easy to keep track of a team like that because you hear about them all the time… winning the cup and playing well. I played against Jagla in college and you always kind of keep track of the people you know. So for me I know quite a bit about them." "For us, the keys in the series are not turning the ball over and executing, whether it be on offense or defense. We just have to execute what we want to do. We have to control them, because they're a really explosive team and they can get on a run. For us, we need to come out in the first game and get a win, to play the best basketball we can and to take care of our half of the home-court and to put a little pressure on them going back to Spain."
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