UCAM Murcia Club Baloncesto, S.A.D.,[1] more commonly referred to as UCAM Murcia, is a professional basketball club based in Murcia, Spain. The team plays in the Liga ACB and the Champions League. Their home venue is Palacio de Deportes. The team is sponsored by the Spanish university Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM).

UCAM Murcia
UCAM Murcia logo
NicknameUniversitarios
LeaguesLiga ACB
Champions League
Founded1985
HistoryAgrupacion Deportiva Juver
(1985–1993)
CB Murcia
(1993–2013)
UCAM Murcia CB
(2013–present)
ArenaPalacio de Deportes
Capacity7,454
LocationMurcia, Spain
Team colorsBlue, golden, red
     
PresidentMaría Dolores García Mascarell
Head coachSito Alonso
OwnershipUCAM
Championships4 2nd division championship
1 Copa Príncipe de Asturias
Websiteucamdeportes.com

History

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Founded in 1985 under the name Agrupación Deportiva Júver, Murcia agreed with a Madrid-based club, Logos de Madrid, to buy out its rights to play in the Spanish second division. Murcia would play at that level for four consecutive seasons and its first superstar was do-it-all big man Randy Owens.[2]

In 1990, Murcia, led by veteran center Mike Phillips, beat Obradoiro in a playoffs series to gain promotion to the Spanish League. The club would stay in the Spanish elite for the next seven seasons, with stars likes Ralph McPherson, Clarence Kea, Michael Anderson and Johnny Rogers and head coaches like Felipe Coello, José María Oleart and Moncho Monsalve. In December 1991, Kea pulled down 29 rebounds, which remains a Spanish League record, in a win against Breogán Lugo.[2]

 
A timeout in the 2008–09 season.

The club became CB Murcia in 1993 and moved to its current arena, Palacio de Deportes, the following season. Murcia organized the Copa del Rey tournament in the 1995–96 season and made it to the semifinals. Murcia went down to the Spanish second division at the end of the 1996–97 season, but reached the Spanish elite a couple of times, including in 2006, when it downed CAI Zaragoza in overtime in a do-or-die game to advance. Led by Jimmie Hunter and Juanjo Triguero, Murcia ranked 12th in the 2007–08 season, but went back to the second division two years later. Murcia bounced back to score promotion directly with a 30–4 record, and has been in the Spanish elite even since.[2]

In 2013, the club switched hands and UCAM Murcia took control. That moved helped Murcia shine in the last couple of seasons for its best results ever. With Diego Ocampo as head coach and Scott Bamforth, Raulzinho Neto and Carlos Cabezas as its top newcomers, Murcia finished the Spanish regular season with a 17–17 record, which was just one win from the playoffs. Last season Murcia found a new coach in Fotios Katsikaris and added more experienced players like Facundo Campazzo, Serhiy Lishchuk and Vítor Faverani. That led to a seventh-place finish with an 18–16 record and a ticket to the quarterfinals for the first time in the club's history, where it lost 2–1 to Real Madrid in the quarterfinals, but earned the right to make its debut in European competitions in the 2016–17 EuroCup.[2] In its European debut, UCAM Murcia reached the Top 16 round.

In the next season, the club joined the Basketball Champions League, reaching the Final Four in its first participation. Murcia lost to AEK in the semifinals and won the third place game over MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg.

In the 2023–24 ACB season Murcia reached the finals in the first time after beating Valencia Basket in the quarterfinals and Unicaja in the semifinals, but they lost to Real Madrid in three games in 2024 ACB Finals

Sponsorship naming

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CB Murcia has received diverse sponsorship names along the years:

  • Juver Murcia: 1985–1992
  • CB Murcia Artel: 1997–1998
  • Recreativos Orenes CB Murcia: 1998–1999
  • CB Etosa/Etosa Murcia: 2000–2003
  • Polaris World CB Murcia: 2003–2008
  • UCAM Murcia: 2011–present

Logos

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CB Murcia logos
1993–2009 2009–2013 2013–present
     

Home arenas

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Players

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Current roster

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Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

UCAM Murcia roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht. Age
SF 00   Kurucs, Rodions 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 26 – (1998-02-05)5 February 1998
PG 6   García, Dani 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 26 – (1998-01-30)30 January 1998
G/F 8   Sant-Roos, Howard 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 33 – (1991-02-13)13 February 1991
PG 10   Caupain, Troy 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 28 – (1995-11-29)29 November 1995
PF 11   Radović, Nemanja (C) 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 33 – (1991-11-11)11 November 1991
SG 12   Radebaugh, Jonah 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 27 – (1997-06-17)17 June 1997
G/F 13   Falk, Wilhelm (Y) 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 21 – (2003-06-25)25 June 2003
F/C 19   Todorović, Marko 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 32 – (1992-04-19)19 April 1992
PF 20   Brodziansky, Vladimír 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) 30 – (1994-05-08)8 May 1994
C 21   Diagne, Moussa 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) 30 – (1994-03-06)6 March 1994
PG 22   Håkanson, Ludvig 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) 28 – (1996-03-22)22 March 1996
G 25   Kurucs, Artūrs 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 24 – (2000-01-19)19 January 2000
G 31   Ennis, Dylan 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 32 – (1991-12-26)26 December 1991
C 35   Birgander, Simon 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) 27 – (1997-10-23)23 October 1997
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (Y) Youth player
  •   Injured

Updated: July 13, 2024

Depth chart

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Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
C Simon Birgander Marko Todorović † Moussa Diagne †
PF Vladimír Brodziansky Nemanja Radović
SF Howard Sant-Roos Rodions Kurucs †
SG Dylan Ennis Jonah Radebaugh Artūrs Kurucs † Wilhelm Falk ‡
PG Ludvig Håkanson † Troy Caupain * Dani García †

Notes: Blue † – homegrown player[a]; Red * – overseas player[b]; Green ‡ – youth player[c]

Head coaches

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  • Felipe Coello: 1985–1991, 1991–1992, 1992, 1998, 2002–2004
  • Moncho Monsalve: 1991, 1993
  • Clifford Luyk: 1991
  • Fernando Sánchez Luengo: 1991
  • Iñaki Iriarte: 1992
  • José María Oleart: 1993–1996, 2002
  • Ricardo Hevia: 1996
  • Alberto Sanz: 1996–1997
  • Manolo Flores: 1998–2000
  • Pepe Rodríguez: 2000–2002
  • Miguel Ángel Martín: 2004
  • Iván Déniz: 2004–2005
  • Chete Pazo: 2005
  • Manel Comas: 2005–2006
  • Manolo Hussein: 2006–2009
  • Moncho Fernández: 2009
  • Edu Torres: 2009–2010
  • Luis Guil: 2010–2012
  • Óscar Quintana: 2012–2014, 2016–2017
  • Marcelo Nicola: 2014
  • Diego Ocampo: 2014–2015
  • Fotios Katsikaris: 2015–2016, 2017
  • Ibon Navarro: 2017–2018
  • Javier Juárez: 2018–2019
  • Sito Alonso: 2019–present

Season by season

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Season Tier Division Pos. W–L Copa del Rey Other cups European competitions
1986–87 2 1ª División B 20th 14–20
1987–88 2 1ª División B 14th 24–18
1988–89 2 1ª División 6th 20–13
1989–90 2 1ª División B 1st 27–8
1990–91 1 Liga ACB 17th 18–19 First round
1991–92 1 Liga ACB 12th 16–20 Third round
1992–93 1 Liga ACB 22nd[d] 8–27 First round
1993–94 1 Liga ACB 18th 11–22 First round
1994–95 1 Liga ACB 12th 18–20
1995–96 1 Liga ACB 15th 15–23 Fourth position
1996–97 1 Liga ACB 17th 6–32
1997–98 2 LEB 1st 26–6 Copa Príncipe SF
1998–99 1 Liga ACB 18th 4–30
1999–00 2 LEB 7th 20–19
2000–01 2 LEB 9th 15–15
2001–02 2 LEB 8th 15–19
2002–03 2 LEB 1st 27–13
2003–04 1 Liga ACB 18th 7–27
2004–05 2 LEB 5th 21–17
2005–06 2 LEB 2nd 28–15 Copa Príncipe C
2006–07 1 Liga ACB 14th 13–21
2007–08 1 Liga ACB 12th 13–21
2008–09 1 Liga ACB 15th 9–23
2009–10 1 Liga ACB 18th 5–29
2010–11 2 LEB Oro 1st 30–4 Copa Príncipe RU
2011–12 1 Liga ACB 15th 13–21
2012–13 1 Liga ACB 13th 13–21
2013–14 1 Liga ACB 13th 12–22
2014–15 1 Liga ACB 10th 17–17
2015–16 1 Liga ACB 7th 19–18
2016–17 1 Liga ACB 9th 14–18 2 EuroCup T16 5–9
2017–18 1 Liga ACB 10th 17–17 3 Champions League 3rd 11–9
2018–19 1 Liga ACB 14th 12–22 3 Champions League R16 15–3
2019–20 1 Liga ACB 16th[e] 7–15
2020–21 1 Liga ACB 12th 16–20
2021–22 1 Liga ACB 10th 16–18 Semifinalist
2022–23 1 Liga ACB 9th 16–18 3 Champions League QF 10–6
2023–24 1 Liga ACB 2nd 26–19 Quarterfinalist Supercopa SF 3 Champions League 3rd 12–4
2024–25 1 Liga ACB Supercopa SF 3 Champions League

Trophies and awards

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Domestic competitions

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European competitions

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Other competitions

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  • Yecla, Spain Invitational Game: (1)
    • 2014

Individual awards

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ACB Three Point Shootout Champion

  • Pedro Robles – 2009

All-ACB Second Team

LEB Oro MVP

  • Tony Smith – 1998

All LEB Oro First Team

  • Pedro Rivero – 2011

Notable players

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Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Criteria

To appear in this section a player must have either:

  • Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club
  • Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time
  • Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

Notes

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  1. ^ A homegrown player is a player that played for at least three years before the age of 20 on a Spanish team. In Liga ACB, the team must register at least four homegrown players in rosters of 10–12 players or at least three homegrown players in rosters of 8–9 players. In Champions League, the team must register at least five homegrown players in rosters of 11–12 players or at least four homegrown players in rosters of 10 players.
  2. ^ A overseas player is a player from outside EEA, FIBA Europe or ACP states. In Liga ACB, the team may register at most two overseas players. In Champions League, the team did not have any limitations regarding the number of overseas players.
  3. ^ In Liga ACB, the team may register under-22 players linked to the youth system.
  4. ^ Remained in the league due to the dissolution of BFI Granollers.
  5. ^ League ended prematurely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ "Directiva | UCAM Deportes". www.ucamdeportes.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d "2016-17 Team Profile: UCAM Murcia". EuroCup Basketball. 18 August 2016. Archived from the original on August 28, 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
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