Seven playoff spots have now been filled: Bahcesehir, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Gran Canaria in Group A, and Valencia, Jerusalem, Cedevita, and Turk Telekom
Game Center: Turk Telekom, Jerusalem, Cedevita make playoffs; five home winners from seven tonight
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EuroCup Playoffs: Who has qualified?
Heading into Round 17, four teams had booked their place in the BKT EuroCup Playoffs: Valencia Basket, Bahcesehir College Istanbul, Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv, and Dreamland Gran Canaria.
So, who has joined them after this week's games?
Well, Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana advanced to the postseason without even playing on Wednesday as two things happened: Turk Telekom Ankara beat Umana Reyer Venice, and U-BT Cluj-Napoca lost at Lietkabelis. Either of these results would have been enough for the Slovenian side to go through.
Turk Telekom needed two things to happen in order to qualify – and both things came to fruition. First, it defeated Reyer after tying its season high for points in a quarter, having outscored Reyer 35-21 in the fourth period to claim a narrow victory. Then, a little later, Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem's triumph over Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse confirmed Turk Telekom's spot in the postseason.
The other team that sealed their playoff place this week was Hapoel Jerusalem, which required a victory over Bourg and ended up romping to a 27-point win.
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Turk Telekom Ankara 84-81 Umana Reyer Venice
In a thrilling contest in the Turkish capital, Turk Telekom outscored Reyer 35-21 in the fourth quarter to come away with an 84-81 win that leaves Erdem Can’s men within touching distance of the EuroCup Playoffs. Braian Angola led Turk Telekom in scoring with 17 points, but Olivier Hanlan scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, and Kyle Alexander downed four crucial free throws inside the final eight seconds en route to 13 points. Anthony Brown also chipped in with 13 points. Reyer’s Mfiondu Kabengele had a 20-point, 18-rebound double-double, but in vain. Tyler Ennis added 12 points, Davide Casarin scored 11, and Carl Wheatle finished with 10, including a crazy three with 3.2 seconds left that gave Reyer a bit of hope, only for Alexander to knock down two free throws with 2.4 seconds left to ice the game. Turk Telekom is officially be in the EuroCup Playoffs after Hapoel Jerusalem beat Bourg on the road.
Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv 91-72 Trefl Sopot
Hapoel enjoyed a peaceful evening as it defeated the visiting Trefl 91-72 at Samokov Arena. The hosts struggled offensively in the early going but managed to score 30 points in the second quarter to build a double-digit advantage, 49-32, with the guests never threatening thereafter. Hapoel improved its record to 11-6 and is one game off from clinching second place in the group. The winners were led by Johnathan Motley, who registered a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds, good for a PIR of 27. Yam Madar followed with 13 points, Antonio Blakeney contributed 12, and Marcus Foster and Patrick Beverley added 11 apiece. Darious Moten and Geoffrey Groselle paced Trefl with 17 points each, while Nick Johnson finished with 16 in the losing effort.
7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys 92-91 U-BT Cluj-Napoca
Lietkabelis rallied from 12 points down in the fourth quarter to knock off Cluj 92-91 at home and keep the guests from locking up a playoff spot. Lietkabelis was down 71-83 with 5 minutes to play but fought all the way back, before Dovis Bickauskis hit the game winner with 2.2 seconds left. The Lithuanian side, which had already been eliminated from postseason contention, snapped a four-game losing streak to move to 5-12 in Group B. Bickauskis finished with 13 points, Oleksandr Kovliar led the way with 18 points, Djordje Gagic had 17 points, and Martynas Varnas collected 10 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. Cluj would have secured a spot in the playoffs with a win but fell to 10-8 after having won three of its last four games. Zavier Simpson scored 24 points with 10 assists, Adam Mokoka had 15 points and De’Shawn Stephens chipped in 12 points and 9 rebounds in the bitter defeat.
Aris Midea Thessaloniki 88-90 Veolia Towers Hamburg
Hamburg captured its first road win since 2023 with an 88-90 overtime victory over Aris. Hamburg improved to 5-12 in Group B and sentenced Aris, which was playing its first game with new head coach Nikos Vetoulas on the bench, to finish in last place after it fell to 3-14. Brae Ivey shined with 25 points on 6-of-10 three-point shooting – both career highs – plus 5 assists and 5 steals and Kur Kuath had personal bests of 19 points and 13 rebounds in addition to 2 blocks for the winners. Sharife Cooper was Aris's leading scorer with 19 points and 6 assists, but he also committed 7 turnovers.
Buducnost VOLI Podgorica 107-75 Joventut Badalona
Buducnost made a big step towards clinching a playoff spot in the EuroCup as it improved its Group A record to 9-8 after an emphatic 107-75 home win over shorthanded Joventut Badalona, which was missing several key players. The result means that Buducnost is assured of making the postseason if it beats Wolves Vilnius on the road in its final regular season matchup, while a defeat may not turn out to be costly if other results go the Montenegrin team’s way. Among half a dozen home players who posted double figures, livewire playmaker Yogi Ferrell stood with a team-high 20 points and 5 assists, shooting 6 of 7 from three-point range. Teenager Djordje Jovanovic capped a perfect night with 13 points, having sank all his five shots from the floor. Big man Kenan Kamenjsas chipped in with 12 points and 8 boards, while Rasheed Sulaimon, Fletcher Magee and Nikola Tanaskovic added 10 points each. At the other end Sam Dekker paced Joventut on a game-high 26 points, Yannick Kraag scored 12 and Michael Ruzic netted 11 for the visitors, who had earlier lost any hope of advancing into the business end of the competition.
Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse 67-94 Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem
Jerusalem got back to winning ways by demolishing Bourg 67-94 at Ekinox on Wednesday evening. The visitors hit the ground running, imposed their game on Bourg and led by double digits for the majority of the contest. Having improved its record to 10-7, Jerusalem has managed to clinch a playoff spot and will push for a top-two finish in the last round. Bourg dropped to 9-8, but they are still in playoff contention. Jared Harper led all scorers with 31 points, with Khadeen Carrington and Justin Smith netting 15 and 14, respectively. Maksim Salash paced Bourg with 16 points and Brandon Jefferson bagged 10 in a losing effort.
Dreamland Gran Canaria 90-81 Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul
Gran Canaria shrugged off its recent struggles and clinched a top-three spot in Group A – and home-court advantage in the eighthfinals – by beating Besiktas 90-81 at home. The 2023 EuroCup champions moved to 11-6 after having lost four of its last five games. The Gran Canaria offense finally returned after scoring more than 77 points just once in that poor stretch. Caleb Homesley paced the winners with 18 points, with Nico Brussino picking up 15 points, Mike Tobey chipping in 14 points and 7 rebounds, and George Conditt contributing 13 points and 6 rebounds. Besiktas saw its two-game winning streak snapped and now has a 9-8 record, including four straight road losses. Jonah Mathews scored 18 points in the losing effort.
Tuesday, January 28, 2025
Bahcesehir College Istanbul 85-81 ratiopharm Ulm
Bahcesehir ground out a hard-fought home win over Ulm and improved to 14-3 in Group A, while the German side slipped to 9-8 after a fourth successive loss. Bahcesehir had already secured the top spot in the group, but the result could turn out to be damaging for Ulm, which now needs other results to go its way if it is to clinch a playoff berth. Tai Odiase carried Bahcesehir with a game-high 22 points, shooting 7 of 9 from the floor and 8 of 9 from the line. Jaleen Smith added 15 points for the home team, which blew a 15-point lead in the second half before it forced the final twist. Nelson Weidemann racked up 18 points and 5 boards for Ulm.
Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana 66-72 Valencia Basket
Valencia defeated Cedevita Olimpija at Arena Stozice to improve to 15-2. It can secure home-court advantage throughout the postseason if it wins or Bahcesehir loses in Round 18, while Cedevita dropped to 10-7, but still could confirm a playoff berth this week depending on Wednesday’s results. Josep Puerto led all Valencia scorers with 13 points, followed by Chris Jones and Xavi Lopez-Arostegui, who provided 12 and 10, respectively. Devin Robinson and DJ Stewart posted double-doubles in the losing effort.
Dolomiti Energia Trento 70-96 Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius
Wolves took a big step towards reaching the playoffs by winning at already-eliminated Trento. Wolves opened a 14-point lead in the second quarter and was not threatened the rest of the way in winning back-to-back games for a 9-8 record in Group A. A victory in the final round against Buducnost will put the Lithuanian side in the playoffs. Andrew Andrews paced four Wolves scorers in double figures with 19 points - including 12-of-14 from the free throw line. Trento had won its last two games and fell to 6-11 despite Saliou Niang scoring 11 points.