Manchester Basketball make history with ENBL Final Four berth

By Guest Writer on April 2, 2026

Manchester Basketball have written themselves into the history books, becoming the furthest any club from the city has ever progressed in European competition after fighting back from 18 points down to beat Dinamo Zagreb 97-94 and seal a place in the 2026 ENBL Final Four.

Matt Otten’s side won the quarter-final series 183-178 on aggregate at the Drazen Petrovic hall in Zagreb on Wednesday night, completing a remarkable comeback in their debut European campaign.

It is the second consecutive year an SLB club has reached the ENBL Final Four, following Newcastle Eagles’ run to the 2025 final in Bratislava under Marc Steutel. But Manchester’s achievement arguably carries even greater weight – reaching the last four in their first ever European season, with a 9-2 record that includes a perfect 3-0 series sweep of Dinamo.

Wednesday’s decisive game looked to be slipping away early. Dinamo stormed out of the gates to build an 18-36 lead, pushing their aggregate advantage to 16 points and threatening to end Manchester’s European adventure. But this team, as they have done all season, refused to fold.

A devastating 29-12 run dragged Manchester back into the contest, edging them ahead on aggregate with just over 20 minutes remaining. From there, it was a heavyweight battle. Dinamo launched two more surges – stretching their aggregate lead back to six at one point in the second half – but Manchester’s backcourt trio proved too strong down the stretch, combining for 70 points between them.

PJay Smith was sensational. The Furman University graduate poured in 31 points on a sizzling 10-for-14 from the field, including 4-for-5 from three. His go-ahead triple with 2:17 remaining, putting Manchester 90-87 ahead, was the dagger. Smith’s seven three-pointers across the two legs tied the fourth-best mark in ENBL history.

Jordan Johnson matched the intensity with 20 points on near-perfect 15-for-17 free-throw shooting, adding a game-high 11 assists to orchestrate the offence when it mattered most. Kansas State graduate Max Jones contributed 19 points, with Gabe Osabuohien providing the defensive backbone throughout.

Manchester shut down Dinamo’s primary weapon – star guard DeLonnie Hunt was held to just three points, a masterclass in defensive game-planning. Captain Hrvoje Garafolic led the hosts with 22 points, but it wasn’t enough.

Manchester finished the game on a 25-14 run, turning a tight contest into a decisive series victory. They committed fewer turnovers (13-17) and scored more points off them (19-15) – the kind of composure that wins games in hostile environments.

The ENBL Final Four takes place on April 22-23 at the Stadthalle Weissenfels in Weissenfels, Germany – the 3,000-capacity home of hosts and 2025 German Cup winners SYNTAINICS MBC.

Manchester face MBC in the semi-final on Wednesday April 22 at 19:00 BST, with the winners advancing to Thursday’s final.

2026 ENBL Final Four schedule (BST):

Wednesday, April 22 – Semi-finals
16:00 BST: CSO Voluntari/Riga Zelli vs Dziki Warszawa
19:00 BST: SYNTAINICS MBC vs Manchester Basketball

Thursday, April 23 – Medal games
16:00 BST: Bronze medal game
19:00 BST: Final

Game 2 stats. Game 1 stats.

Watch the full game.

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