Kataja BC
title: "Kataja BC" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1949-establishments-in-finland", "basketball-teams-established-in-1949", "basketball-teams-in-finland", "joensuu", "sports-clubs-and-teams-in-north-karelia"] topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kataja_BC" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox Basketball club"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| color1 | white |
| color2 | #003cb3 |
| name | Kataja |
| logo | Kataja Basket 2019 logo.png |
| leagues | Korisliiga |
| founded | |
| arena | Motonet Areena |
| capacity | 2,500 |
| location | Joensuu, Finland |
| president | Jukka Törmälä |
| coach | Petri Virtanen |
| retired_numbers | 4 (9)(11) (14) (15) |
| championships | 2 Finnish Leagues |
| 4 Finnish Cups | |
| website | katajabasket.fi |
| h_body | 003cb3 |
| a_body | 003cb3 |
| :: |
| color1 = white | color2 = #003cb3 | name = Kataja | nickname = | logo = Kataja Basket 2019 logo.png | imagesize = | leagues= Korisliiga | founded = | history = | arena = Motonet Areena | capacity = 2,500 | location = Joensuu, Finland | colors = | president = Jukka Törmälä | coach = Petri Virtanen | retired_numbers = 4 (9)(11) (14) (15) | championships = 2 Finnish Leagues 4 Finnish Cups | website = katajabasket.fi | h_body= 003cb3 |h_pattern_b=_basket_with_white|h_shorts= 003cb3 |h_pattern_s=_adidaswhite | a_body= 003cb3 |a_pattern_b=_basket_in_white|a_shorts= 003cb3 |a_pattern_s=_adidasonwhite
Kataja Basket Club (eng. Juniper) is a professional basketball club of sports club Kataja from Joensuu, Finland. The team plays in the Korisliiga, the highest tier of Finnish basketball. In 2015, Kataja won its first national championship, after it beat Bisons Loimaa 3–2 in the Finnish Finals.
History
The basketball activity of the club started in 1955. In 1961, the team started playing in the Joensuu Sports Hall. The team started in provincial competitions, but quickly promoted to the national level in the 1960s. From 1976 till 1980, the team played continuously in the highest Finnish division. In the 2001–02 season, the team won its first trophy when it won the Finnish Cup. In 2015, the first championship of Kataja was realized after a 3–2 Finals series win against Bisons Loimaa. In the 2012–13 season, Kataja started participating in European competitions when it entered the EuroChallenge. The team immediately reached the quarterfinals of the competition, and has played in Europe every season since.
Achievements
- Korisliiga :Champions (2): 2014–15, 2016–17
- Finnish Cup :Champions (4): 2002, 2011, 2012, 2023
Players
Retired numbers
::data[format=table] | Joensuun Kataja}};"|Kataja Basket Club retired numbers | Joensuun Kataja}};"|No. | Joensuun Kataja}};"|Nat. | Joensuun Kataja}};"|Player | Joensuun Kataja}};"|Position | Joensuun Kataja}};"|Tenure | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | 9 | USA | Leon Huff | C | 1975–1978, 1979-1980, 1993-1994 | | | 11 | FIN | Eero Oksava | G | 1963–1980 | | | 14 | FIN | Petri Virtanen | G | 2005–2007, 2008-2016 | | | 15 | FIN | Sami Lehtoranta | C | 2005–2014 | | ::
Current roster
| color1 = white | bg1 = #003cb3 | color2 = #003cb3 | bg2 = white }} | head_coach = FIN Petri Virtanen | asst_coach = FIN Teemu Turunen | roster_url = http://www.katajabasket.fi/joukkue/ | accessdate =
Notable players
-
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 at any time.
-
FIN Fiifi Aidoo
-
Finland Antti Kanervo
-
Finland Sami Lehtoranta
-
Finland Pekka Markkanen
-
FIN Topias Palmi
-
FIN Ilari Seppälä
-
Finland Jukka Toijala
-
Finland Petri Virtanen
-
Finland Teemu Rannikko
-
CAN Daniel Mullings
-
NGR Amanze Egekeze
-
USA Rion Brown
-
USA Robert Arnold
-
CAN Elijah Lufile
Season by season
::data[format=table]
| Season | Tier | League | Pos. | Finnish Cup | European competitions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–11 | 1 | Korisliiga | 2nd | Champion | |
| 2011–12 | 1 | Korisliiga | 2nd | Champion | |
| 2012–13 | 1 | Korisliiga | 3rd | 3 EuroChallenge | |
| 2013–14 | 1 | Korisliiga | 2nd | rowspan=7 | 3 EuroChallenge |
| 2014–15 | 1 | Korisliiga | 1st | 3 EuroChallenge | RS |
| 2015–16 | 1 | Korisliiga | 5th | 3 FIBA Europe Cup | R32 |
| 2016–17 | 1 | Korisliiga | 1st | 3 Champions League | RS |
| 4 FIBA Europe Cup | R16 | 0–2 | |||
| 2017–18 | 1 | Korisliiga | 6th | 3 Champions League | QR3 |
| 4 FIBA Europe Cup | R2 | 4–8 | |||
| 2018–19 | 1 | Korisliiga | 5th | 4 FIBA Europe Cup | |
| 2019–20 | 1 | Korisliiga | 7th{{efn | On 13 March 2020, the season was ended prematurely due to the coronavirus pandemic.{{cite web | url=https://korisliiga.fi/korisliiga/uutiset/myos-miesten-ja-naisten-korisliiga-ja-divisioonakaudet-paatokseen/ |
| 2020–21 | 1 | Korisliiga | 7th | ||
| 2021–22 | 1 | Korisliiga | 4th | ||
| 2022–23 | 1 | Korisliiga | 3rd | ||
| 2023–24 | 1 | Korisliiga | 4th | 4 FIBA Europe Cup | |
| 2024–25 | 1 | Korisliiga | 4th | ||
| :: |
References
References
- "Kataja Basket Club History". Eurobasket.com.
- [https://www.hs.fi/urheilu/art-2000006598156.html Fiifi Aidoo siirtyy Espanjan kolmannen sarjatason seuraan] ([[Helsingin Sanomat]]), 11 August 2020. Accessed 9 February 2021.{{in lang. fi
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