BC Astana

Not to be confused with Astana Tigers.

BC Astana
Leagues	Kazakhstan Championship, VTB United League, FIBA Europe Cup
Founded	2011
History	BC Astana (2011–present)
Arena	Saryarka Velodrome
Arena Capacity	9,270
Location	Astana, Kazakhstan
Team colors	Yellow, Blue
President	Valeri Tikhonenko
Head coach	Ramūnas Butautas
Championships	4 Domestic Titles 4 Domestic Cups
Website	bcastana.kz
Uniforms
Home Away

Basketball Club "BC" Astana (Kazakh: Астана баскетбол клубы; Russian: Баскетбольный клуб "БК" Астана) is a Kazakhstani professional basketball club that is based in the capital city of Astana, in Kazakhstan.

Founded in 2011, it has competed in the Kazakhstan Basketball Championship and the VTB United League since, obtaining a slew of domestic titles in the process.

History

BC Astana was created in March 2011, with the aim of competing in the VTB United League, Valery Tikhonenko was chosen as the general director. There were doubts expressed by other clubs in the league, due to the lack of basketball tradition in Kazakhstan, but the side answered all the admission requirements, including their budget, stadium (a revamped Saryarka Velodrome) and the proximity of hotels, and an international airport. The side received the totality of its funding from the Samruk-Kazyna sovereign wealth fund.

They would sign a number of Kazakhstani players from successful side Astana Tigers, also recruiting their coach Vitaly Strebkov to serve as assistant coach.

2011–2012 season

In their first season in the VTB United regional league, the team from Kazakhstan won 7 games out of 16 during 2011–12 season, including against strong sides such as Žalgiris and holders Khimki, nearly reaching the playoffs. They had more success on the domestic front, winning the Kazakhstani championship and the Kazakhstani cup.

The team became a part of the Astana Presidential Sports Club multi-sports club, when it was formed in December 2012.

Arenas

BC Astana vs. BC Azovmash, VTB United League regular season game in 2014, at Saryarka Velodrome.

BC Astana plays its home basketball games at the Saryarka Velodrome.

Roster

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

BC Astana roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age G 5 Johnson, Jerry 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) 83 kg (183 lb) – (1982-04-23)23 April 1982 C 7 Natyazhko, Kyrylo 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) 123 kg (271 lb) – (1990-11-03)3 November 1990 G 9 Ilyin, Pavel 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 89 kg (196 lb) – (1988-05-24)24 May 1988 G 10 Murzagaliev, Rustem 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 85 kg (187 lb) – (1992-05-24)24 May 1992 F 11 Ponomarev, Anton 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) 103 kg (227 lb) – (1988-10-31)31 October 1988 F 12 Calathes, Pat 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 104 kg (229 lb) – (1985-10-12)12 October 1985 G/F 13 Yargaliev, Rustam 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 85 kg (187 lb) – (1986-12-20)20 December 1986 F 14 Lapchenko, Vitaliy 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 98 kg (216 lb) – (1992-01-01)1 January 1992 F 15 Orazov, Alimbek 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 95 kg (209 lb) – (1993-11-04)4 November 1993 F 17 Zhigulin, Aleksandr 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) 100 kg (220 lb) – (1994-04-26)26 April 1994 C 21 Zhukanenko, Alexey 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) 108 kg (238 lb) – (1986-05-18)18 May 1986 F 22 Caner-Medley, Nik 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 104 kg (229 lb) – (1983-10-20)20 October 1983 G 25 Marchuk, Maxim 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 88 kg (194 lb) – (1994-01-17)17 January 1994 G/F 31 Kolesnikov, Anatoly 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) 93 kg (205 lb) – (1988-12-06)6 December 1988	Head coach Ramūnas Butautas Assistant coach(es) Vitaly Strebkov Andrey Novikov Legend (C) Team captain Injured Roster Updated: 25 February 2015

Championships

Kazakhstan Basketball Championship:

• Champions: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 (x4)

Kazakhstan Basketball Cup:

• Winners: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 (x4)

Season by season

Season	Domestic competitions				Kazakhstani Cup	Regional competitions			Continental competitions
	Tier	League	Pos.	Postseason		League	Pos.	Result	Tier	League	Result
2011–12	1	KBC	1	Champion	Winner (x2)	VTB	7	N/A	DNP
2012–13	1	KBC	1	Champion	Winner	VTB	5	1R	DNP
2013–14	1	KBC	1	Champion	Winner	VTB	5	1R	DNP
2014–15	1	KBC	1	Champion	DNP	VTB	8	QF	3	EuroChallenge	T16

Head coaches

• Matteo Boniciolli 2011–13
• Aleksandar Trifunović 2013–15
• Ramūnas Butautas 2015–present