Basketball Champions League Americas 2025-26 Quarterfinals Set: Road to the Final Four

MIAMI (United States) – The Quarterfinal series of Season 7 of the Basketball Champions League Americas (BCL Americas) start this Friday, played under a best-of-three format (1-2), with the first game at the lower seed’s home court and the subsequent games, if necessary, at the higher seed’s venue. The winners will advance to the Final Four in April to compete for the championship, although the losing teams will battle for third place.

Astros de Jalisco (MEX) vs. Flamengo (BRA)

Astros de Jalisco (6-0) dominated the previous phase, finishing Group A undefeated and setting unprecedented offensive records in the competition. They are favored against Flamengo (2-4), the current champion, who finished second in Group B without a consistently strong performance. Flamengo has been without Alexei Borges (knee injury) throughout the campaign.

This marks the first time these two teams will face each other.

Key Players:

• Astros: Joseph Ávila, Alahjan Banks, Yoanki Mensia, Chikoko Vitalis
• Flamengo: Bautista Lugarini

Key Data:

• Astros remain undefeated in the BCLA and have scored over 100 points in 5 of their 6 games. They have only conceded more than 72 points once.
• Flamengo has lost their last 3 games, their worst losing streak in the BCLA. They are two wins away from becoming the first team to reach 50 wins in the competition.
• Shaquille Johnson (Flamengo) is 21 points away from reaching 600 points and becoming the sixth player to achieve that milestone in league history.
• Alexey Borges (Flamengo) is 19 assists away from reaching 200 and becoming the third player to reach that mark in BCLA history.
• Paul Stoll (AST) needs one assist to reach 100.

Nacional (URU) vs. Paisas Basketball Club (COL)

Nacional (6-0) is the favorite after an undefeated run in Group B, showcasing a balanced performance. Paisas (3-3) had an inconsistent Group A phase and will gaze to surprise with their new additions.

This is as well the first meeting between these two teams.

Key Players:

• Nacional: Erik Thomas, Nicolás Martínez
• Paisas: Romario Roque, Kevin Mickle, Josh Reaves

Key Data:

• Nacional aims to become the third Uruguayan team to reach a Final Four in BCLA history (following Biguá and Hebraica Macabi). They currently have a 6-game winning streak.
• Paisas seeks to be the first Colombian team to win a playoff game in the BCLA.

Boca Juniors (ARG) vs. Instituto (ARG)

Boca Juniors, the current Argentine champion and BCL Americas runner-up, has recently dominated Instituto in both the local league and cup competitions, making them the favorites. Boca led Group C with a 4-2 record, while Instituto was second in Group D with the same record.

Head-to-Head: Boca Juniors leads the series 1-0 (BCL Americas 6 Semifinals).

Key Players:

• Instituto: Leonel Schattmann
• Boca Juniors: Quade Green, Jaron Martin, José Vildoza

Key Data:

• Santiago Scala (Boca Juniors) is 8 points away from reaching 500 points and becoming the 12th player to achieve that milestone in BCLA history. He is also 14 assists away from 200, to be the third with that mark. He will reach his 50th game played in his next match.
• Martín Cuello (Boca Juniors) is 9 points away from surpassing José Vildoza (521) and entering the Top 10 of all-time scorers in the event. With two more games played, he will reach 50 games played.

SESI Franca (BRA) vs. Minas Tennis Clube (BRA)

These teams recently contested the NBB final in Brazil, with Franca emerging as champions, giving them a slight edge. However, a particularly even duel is expected, as they split victories with significant margins in their local league matchups. In the BCL Americas, Franca topped Group D with a 4-2 record, and Minas was second in Group C with the same balance.

This is the first time these two teams will face each other.

Key Players:

• Minas: No additions
• Franca: No additions

Key Data:

• Franca has only played twice against a Brazilian team (1-1 vs. Flamengo).
• Minas has a 4-5 record against Brazilian teams.
• Lucas Dias (Franca) has a total of 291 rebounds in his BCLA career, tied with Ismael Romero as the top rebounder in the competition’s history. His next rebound will create him the sole leader. He is also 9 rebounds away from being the first to reach 300.
• David Jackson (Franca) became the fourth player to reach 700+ points in the BCLA (716). He is 19 rebounds away from reaching 200 and becoming the ninth player to have 200+ rebounds in the tournament.
• Alexandre Paranhos (Minas) is 20 rebounds away from reaching 200.
• Helinho Rubens (Franca) is 2 games away from reaching 50 games coached in the BCLA, equaling Gustavo Conti as the coach with the most games coached in the competition’s history.