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.

History

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

  • 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

Current roster

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

BC Rustavi roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name G 0 Australia men's national basketball team Nelson Larkins PF 3 Virgin Islands national basketball team Jason Perry-Murray C 6 Georgia men's national basketball team Gegi Baqradze G 7 Georgia men's national basketball team Levan Tsekvava G 8 Georgia men's national basketball team Merab Bokolishvili G 11 United States men's national basketball team Denzel Livingston SG 13 Georgia men's national basketball team Zurab Vashakidze PF 21 Georgia men's national basketball team Akaki DvalishviliHead coach Georgia (country) Anatoli Boisa Assistant coach(es) Georgia (country) Mikheil Beruashvili Legend (C) Team captainInjured Updated: 7 August 2020
Pos.No.Nat.Name
G0Australia men's national basketball teamNelson Larkins
PF3Virgin Islands national basketball teamJason Perry-Murray
C6Georgia men's national basketball teamGegi Baqradze
G7Georgia men's national basketball teamLevan Tsekvava
G8Georgia men's national basketball teamMerab Bokolishvili
G11United States men's national basketball teamDenzel Livingston
SG13Georgia men's national basketball teamZurab Vashakidze
PF21Georgia men's national basketball teamAkaki Dvalishvili

Notable players

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.

External links

  • (in Georgian and English)
  • (in English)