BC Rustavi (Georgian: საკალათბურთო კლუბი რუსთავი) is a professional basketball club based in the city of Rustavi, Georgia. The club competes in the Georgian Superliga, and plays its home games in the Rustavi sports arena.

Rustavi 1991
Rustavi 1991 logo
LeaguesGeorgian Superliga
Founded1991; 33 years ago (1991)
HistoryBC Azoti
(1991–1995)
BC Kimikosi (1995–1997)
BC Azoti
(1997–2005)
BC Rustavi
(2005–present)
ArenaAzot Arena
Capacity750
LocationRustavi, Georgia
Team colorsblack and white
   
PresidentGiorgi Gogoberishvili
Head coachMikheil Beruashvili
Championships4 Georgian Superligas
Websitehttp://basketball.energyinvest.ge/
jersey
Team colours

Uniform

jersey
Team colours

Uniform

History

edit

The club was founded in 1991 as BC Azoti, and began competing in the newly established Georgian national league. It is one of only 2 clubs (the other being Dinamo Tbilisi) to have participated in the league continuously throughout its existence. Rustavi challenged for high positions in the league on a consistent basis, and recorded numerous top 3 finishes, always falling short of winning trophies.

The club's fortunes changed in 2006, when it acquired major sponsorship from the investment company 'Energy Invest'. They were now able to attract some of the best Georgian players to the club, as well as foreign imports. As a result, Rustavi convincingly won 4 league championships in a row, between 2007 and 2010. In addition, they won the Georgian cup in 2009, and numerous smaller national competitions. At the end of the 2009/10 season, 'Energy Invest' announced that the level of funding for the club would diminish, forcing them to compete with a young team and modest ambitions for 2 years. In 2012, the funding increased once more, and the squad was considerably strengthened.

Rustavi took part in various international competitions on several occasions, such as the Korać Cup in 1997, 98 and 99; the Eurocup in 2007; and the EuroChallenge in 2008, but failed to advance beyond the qualifying rounds on each occasion.

Honours

edit
  • Georgian Superliga
    • Winner (5): 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2021
    • Runner-up (4): 1998, 1999, 2000, 2006
  • Georgian Cup
    • Winner (1): 2009
  • Dadiani Memorial Trophy
    • Winner (5): 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
  • Korkia/Sakandelidze Memorial Trophy
    • Winner (5): 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2020

Players

edit

Current roster

edit

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

BC Rustavi roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name
G 0   Nelson Larkins
PF 3   Jason Perry-Murray
C 6   Gegi Baqradze
G 7   Levan Tsekvava
G 8   Merab Bokolishvili
G 11   Denzel Livingston
SG 13   Zurab Vashakidze
PF 21   Akaki Dvalishvili
Head coach

  Anatoli Boisa

Assistant coach(es)

  Mikheil Beruashvili


Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  •   Injured

Updated: 7 August 2020

Notable players

edit

To appear in this section a player must have either:
- Set a club record or won an individual award as a professional player.
- Played at least one official international match for his senior national team.

References

edit
edit