Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv improved to 14-2 at home and 20-14 overall on Thursday night after beating Real Madrid 100-96 in overtime at Menora Mivtachim Arena. This win wraps up the fifth seed for Maccabi, which means that it will take on AS Monaco in the playoffs. Real, meanwhile, still has to wait to find out where it finishes; a defeat for FC Barcelona on Friday night would see Los Blancos grab the second seed, but a win for their archrival would result in Real taking the No. 3 seed.

Maccabi locks up fifth seed with OT win over Real Madrid, 100-96

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv improved to 14-2 at home and 20-14 overall on Thursday night after beating Real Madrid 100-96 in overtime at Menora Mivtachim Arena. This win wraps up the fifth seed for Maccabi, which means that it will take on AS Monaco in the playoffs. Real, meanwhile, still has to wait to find out where it finishes; a defeat for FC Barcelona on Friday night would see Los Blancos grab the second seed, but a win for their archrival would result in Real taking the No. 3 seed.

 

Lorenzo Brown paced Maccabi with 22 points, followed by Josh Nebo with a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double. Bonzie Colson had 14 points, Wade Baldwin 11, and Roman Sorkin and Darrun Hilliard added 10 apiece. Guerschon Yabusele scored a game-high 25 points in the losing effort. Dzanan Musa contributed 20, Gabriel Deck finished with 16, and Mario Hezonja had 15.

Game Videos

Roared on by its vocal fans inside Menora Mivtachim Arena, Maccabi got off to a good start, opening a 7-3 lead in which Brown scored 5 points. Real soon responded, though, with Musa and Yabusele knocking down a triple apiece to give Los Blancos their first lead of the night, 7-9. From there, Real did enough to stay in front, and a 0-5 run allowed it to open a game-high 6-point lead, 12-18. But, Maccabi scored the last 4 points of the quarter to make it a 2-point game after 10 minutes, 16-18.

 

Just as it did in the first quarter, Maccabi began the second on fire, scoring the opening 5 points to make it a 9-0 run bridging the first and second quarters, 21-18. That appeared to wake Real up, however, with Rudy Fernandez snapping the hosts' run with a triple, 21-21, before a 0-5 stretch saw the visitors nudge ahead again, 23-27. Real enjoyed a lot of success from three-point land in the first half, and Hezonja's triple from way downtown helped Los Blancos remain in control, 31-38. Musa gave Real a game-high 9-point advantage, 31-40, with 1:12 remaining, but 6 points by Colson inside the final minute of the half make it a 5-point game, 37-42, at halftime.

Game News

After the break, Maccabi came firing out of the blocks once again, adding to its 4-0 run to end the first half by scoring the first 7 points of the third quarter, which gave it a 44-42 lead. The run extended to 13-0, 46-42, following a made basket by Colson, before Musa scored Real's first points of the second half with 6:31 remaining, 46-44. The game swung back and forth for a while, but Yabusele scored 6 points in a row to nudge Real ahead again, 51-57. Maccabi fought back again, though, with Nebo's dunk and Hilliard's triple cutting the gap, 56-57. The lead changed hands a couple of times again, before Brown scored a layup and hit both of his free throws to ensure that Maccabi had a 3-point advantage, 65-62, entering the fourth quarter.

As was the case during the previous three quarters, another quick start by Maccabi – capped by a Sorkin score inside and a Brown layup – extended the gap to 7, 72-65. Baldwin had enjoyed a largely quiet night until the fourth quarter, but he scored 5 points on consecutive trips down the floor to keep Maccabi in control, 80-73. But, Real refused to give up. Another surge by Los Blancos, which finished with Deck scoring a layup off a Musa steal, made it a 3-point deficit with just over 3 minutes remaining, 82-79. That gap cut to 1, 84-83, after Yabusele nailed a three-pointer, with 1:30 left. Brown converted 2 free throws to extend it back out to 3, 86-83, before 3 free throws by Walter Tavares and Deck tied it up at 86-86 with 22 seconds still on the clock. Maccabi had a chance to win it with the final shot of the game, but John DiBartolomeo's three-point shot was off target. This game was going to overtime!

It was a rapid start to the overtime period, in which Yabusele dunked after picking up the loose ball, following a couple of steals for either side, 86-88. There was some bad news for Maccabi fans, however, as Brown had to make his way to the sidelines after rolling his ankle away from the play. One of the game-changing moments came with 3:28 left in overtime, with Real still ahead 86-88, as Tavares picked up his fifth foul for an illegal screen. Thereafter, Maccabi began to enjoy more success, particularly in Real's paint. Baldwin scored a mid-range jumper, 88-88, then Sorkin got an offensive rebound to tip in Hilliard's missed triple, 90-88. Yabusele hit back with a tip-in of his own, 90-90, following a miss by Adam Hanga, who got hurt and had to go to the bench. With the game approaching the final minute of overtime, Hilliard struck from downtown, 93-90, and Sorkin dunked, 95-90, to lift the roof off Menora Mivtachim Arena. Real kept fighting, but Maccabi was able to manage the rest of the game, using free throws to secure a 100-96 victory.

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv v Real Madrid (2023-04-13T18:05:00.000Z)

Olympiacos Piraeus led from start to finish to beat Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 86-78 and clinch first place at the end of the regular season.

Olympiacos beats Baskonia, clinches first place

Olympiacos Piraeus led from start to finish to beat Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 86-78 and clinch first place at the end of the regular season. Olympiacos finished with a regular-season best 24-10 record and is now awaiting the outcomes of Friday's games to learn who will be its opponent, either Zalgiris Kaunas, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, or a rematch with Baskonia, which dropped to 18-16 and will have to wait until Friday to learn if it makes the playoffs. Baskonia will clinch a playoff berth if FC Bayern Munich defeats Zalgiris on its home floor, otherwise, it will be Zalgiris moving on and Baskonia getting eliminated.

In this game, Sasha Vezenkov paced the Reds with 23 points plus 10 rebounds and Kostas Papanikolaou collected 16 points on 4-for-5 three-point shooting and 9 rebounds. Kostas Sloukas added 15 points and 6 assists in a winning effort. Meanwhile, Markus Howard netted 29 points on 7-for-15 shooting for Baskonia. Rokas Giedraitis had 13 points plus 8 rebounds, and Darius Thompson 11 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in a losing effort.

Olympiacos had 3 quick turnovers, but also triples from Papanikolaou and Vezenkov that helped open 10-2 lead. Baskonia struggled from long range against the Reds defense, and the hosts controlled the boards. A three-pointer from Isaiah Canaan helped the hosts to 19-11 after 10 minutes, before Howard got hot. 

He hit a pair of triples, including a four-point play, early in the second quarter to close the gap to 21-20, and after Olympiacos responded with a 7-0 run, another three from Howard made it 28-23. But Shaquielle McKissic, Sloukas and Vezenkov kept the Reds lead safe, before a triple from Giannoulis Larentzakis helped open a 45-30 margin. Baskonia cut it to 45-33 at the break.

Matthew Costello had a three-pointer for the visitors, but Papanikolaou answered in the same manner for the Reds early in the third quarter. A three-pointer from Vezenkov made it 53-40, but Thompson had a three-point play and Howard another four-point play to close the gap to 53-49. Vezenkov scored a three-point play to snap a 0-9 run, and despite a pair of buckets from Giedraitis, a triple from Sloukas made it 66-55 after 30 minutes.

Back-to-back threes from Papanikolaou and Alec Peters opened 72-55 after 68 seconds in the fourth. Howard and Vanja Marinkovic each knocked down a three-pointer, keeping Baskonia's hopes alive. Howard's seventh triple cut it to 80-73, and the visitors had couple of possessions to get even closer, but Olympiacos's defense stepped up again, icing the game.

Olympiacos Piraeus v Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (2023-04-13T18:00:00.000Z)

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul limped across the regular season's finish line into the postseason despite a dramatic 91-89 overtime defeat at Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in Round 34, which could have derailed the Turkish team's campaign. It didn't, eventually, as Olympiacos Piraeus beat Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 86-78 at home and sent Fenerbahce through to the playoffs despite four losses in the last six games. Campazzo paced Zvezda with 24 points, including a clutch three-pointer which gave the home side a 90-84 lead in the closing stages of overtime. Ognjen Dobric posted 22 ponits for Zvezda, Luca Vildoza 17 and Luka Mitrovic 12 points.

 Fenerbache to playoffs despite 91-89 OT loss at Zvezda 

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul limped across the regular season's finish line into the postseason despite a dramatic 91-89 overtime defeat at Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in Round 34, which could have derailed the Turkish team's campaign. It didn't, eventually, as Olympiacos Piraeus beat Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 86-78 at home and sent Fenerbahce through to the playoffs despite four losses in the last six games.

Facundo Campazzo served up another stellar performance for Zvezda, which has won its last five games but still fell short of making the playoffs as inconsistency and some shock defeats against lower-ranked teams cost the Serbian side a postseason berth. Campazzo paced Zvezda with 24 points, including a clutch three-pointer which gave the home side a 90-84 lead in the closing stages of overtime. Ognjen Dobric posted 22 ponits for Zvezda and Campazzo's Argentine compatriot Luca Vildoza added 17 as the home team's backcourt fired on all cylinders. Forward Luka Mitrovic added 12 points for Zvezda, who nearly squandered its lead at the death as Nick Calathes came up short with a tough three-pointer on the buzzer. Jonathan Motley led Fenerbahce with a game-high 27 points and 8 rebounds, Nigel Hayes-Davis posted 19 points, Tyler Dorsey had 12 while Calathes and Marko Guduric chipped in with 11 each.

Driven by its big man Motley, Fenerbahce made a flying start and took a 4-13 lead early on, with Zvezda struggling to put anything together on offense. However, Vildoza and Campazzo soon found their rhythm and the visiting team's lead was slashed to 15-21 by the end of the first quarter, with the homs fans roaring on Zvezda in the Aleksandar Nikolic Hall. Galvanized by the home crowd support and the majestic Campazzo, Zvezda drew level, 27-27, midway through the second quarter before the visitors conjured a 0-8 that  saw them jump back into the driving seat, only for the Serbian side to hit back and nose ahead 41-39 at halftime.

Zvezda had a slight upper hand throughout the third quarter and early in the fourth and maintained a four-point lead, 67-63, with 6:54 left on the clock. Fenerbahce was too reliant on Motley and the center was forced to take a barrage of tough shots in the paint with Zvezda's big men swarming him. However, the visitors turned the tide down the stretch with an 8-2 run and heading into the final minute, they looked the more likely winners as they were 75-78 ahead with 0:52 left on the clock. But Zvezda clawed out overtime from the jaws of defeat with Guduric's in-and-out three-pointer on the buzzer clanking away kindly for Zvezda to keep the score 79-79.

Fenerbahce then nosed ahead (81-82) on the back of a Hayes-Davis three-pointer but Zvezda came storming back to swing the momentum, 90-84, after Campazzo sank a pair of shots from the foul line and then unleashed an audacious baseline triple with a defender in his face, sending the home fans into raptures. Fenerbahce stood firm and fought right until the end, almost forcing a final twist after some Zvezda turnovers. Calathes's last-gasp three-pointer was way off the mark, however, and Fenerbahce was only able to breathe a huge sigh of relief after the Olympiacos win played into its hands.

Fenerbache to playoffs despite 91-89 OT loss at Zvezda

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade v Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2023-04-13T17:00:00.000Z)

Live Blog: Thursday, Round 34

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Thursday Blog: Olympiacos first, Maccabi fifth, Fenerbahce to playoffs!

Virtus Segafredo Bologna v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2023-04-13T18:45:00.000Z)

ALBA Berlin v LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (2023-04-13T17:00:00.000Z)

 Israel Gonzalez: 'We did it the ALBA way' 

### Israel Gonzalez, ALBA head coach 

"Congratulations to the players who played their fifth game in 10 days with only one day off after every game. It's amazing. Its very difficult because the EuroLeague level is always very high and it is great to be able to survive these 10 days. We finished the EuroLeague season well, winning the last game, competing in Baskonia and Barcelona. We ended the season well, taking into account how the season has been, especially when we probably have the lowest budget in the EuroLeague and the youngest team in a league, where experience is very important. To be able to do bounce back after 12 defeats in a row, with the club still believing in me and not changing players, not signing new players like almost every team in EuroLeague has done and arriving to the end competing well and showing our values, it's something that makes me happy for this very difficult year. We did it the ALBA way and I'm very happy and proud of this club."

### T.J. Parker, ASVEL head coach 

"In the first half we played decent basketball. After that, in the second half, when you have a collapse of two or three minutes against Berlin, you know that they will punish you. It was tough in the second half, but congratulations to them."

Israel Gonzalez: 'We did it the ALBA way'

 Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos: 'Improvement never ends' 

### Olympiacos Piraeus head coach Georgios Bartzokas

"I am feeling and we are feeling great. It is not a small accomplishment. It is the most competitive EuroLeague ever, and we end up first. We were really stable the whole season. We can have a lesson from everything. Bad performance or good performance, we have to improve. Improvement never ends. We can be a better team, we have to develop our offensive and defensive game because the playoffs are going to be really demanding."

### Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz head coach Joan Penarroya

"Today we needed to play a very good game and we was not one of our better games. Congratulation to Olympiacos on clinching the first position and congratulations to my team. I think 18 wins is a good regular season. I think we played soft in the first quarter. We had a lot of problems to play well offensively. In the end, we took 17 more shots than Olympiacos, but we played with bad percentages. We did not play well."

### Olympiacos Piraeus forward Sasha Vezenkov

"Our goal was to finish first. We achieved our first goals a little bit earlier this season. We had this game to do it, we are very happy, but we know that the postseason is a totally different championship. Our main goal is to go to the Final Four. We have to rest good two days, then get to hard work in order to accomplish our goals. The team is first. The team is winning, so everybody is happier. I don't want to talk about myself. The team is the most important. We have a great chemistry, we did an amazing job but we are not done. We have to play way better than this to go to the final Four."

### Olympiacos Piraeus forward Kostas Papanikolaou

"My teammates helped me have a good game, I was feeling good tonight, but this is a great accomplishment for the club, first position in the regular season. It is very important but also means nothing. Because, now, everything gets real. Now it's when we have to perform at our top level and show the character and the chemistry and basketball like we played the whole season. Now it is time to bring our A-game and go strong. Our commitment, how we approach every game, how we were hungry coming out, and our willingness to perform night in and night out, that's the most important \[to continue doing\]. The playoffs are a whole different story. One bad night can take out the whole season. Now it is even more important, and we need to step up even more and be even more hungry, to present what we presented this year."

Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos: 'Improvement never ends'

Dusko Ivanovic, Zvezda: 'A great victory'

### Dusko Ivanovic, Zvezda head coach

"A great game, a great victory, and a great atmosphere created by or fans. We regret that we didn't make the top eight, as we would have had the chance to win the competition. Maybe next time."

### Dimitris Itoudis, Fenerbahce head coach

"Congratulations to Red Star. We kept fighting but unfortunately we didn't get the result we wanted."

### Facundo Campazzo, Cvezda guard

"I think we played a great game. In the first half \[Fenerbahce\] made a lot of tough shots, but we kept playing with hustle, aggression and fight. We also played smart. We played for the fans and for ourselves, and I think we did a great job. \[Missing the playoffs) is what it is. We've done a really great job in the last five or six games. We couldn't make it to the playoffs and we have a lot to learn."

### Luca Vildoza, Cvezda guard

"It still hurts that we didn't make the playoffs. We are a good team and we fought until the end. As Facu \[Campazzo\] said, it is what it is. We had some ups and downs throughout the season, but at least we showed everybody that we are a good team. Facu did a great job tonight. We play as a team and we win as a team, so I am very proud of the guys. We now have the ABA League to win. The fans did a great job supporting us this season and I hope they keep it up in the ABA League."

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul has become the fifth team to book its place in the 2023 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs! In head coach Dimitris Itoudis's first campaign in charge, Fenerbahce has returned to the playoffs after a one-season absence, following a XX-XX victory on the road at Real in Round 31 which improved the team's overall record to 19-12. 

Fenerbahce reaches the EuroLeague playoffs!

[Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/teams/fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/ulk/) has become the seventh team to book its place in the 2023 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs! In head coach Dimitris Itoudis's first campaign in charge, Fenerbahce has returned to the playoffs after a one-season absence despite a 91-89 overtime defeat at Crvena Zvezda Medianbet Belgrade on Thursday of Round 34. Fenerbahce must wait until Friday to know its final place in the standings and its playoffs opponent.

### Road to playoffs

After an offseason that saw a flurry of new arrivals, including Coach Itoudis, Nick Calathes, Scottie Wilbekin and Johnathan Motley, among others, Fenerbahce came flying out of the blocks and won its first five games to lead the standings with a 5-0 record. The last of those victories came on the road at back-to-back reigning champion and Efes, 79-88.

Fenerbahce suffered a narrow defeat at FC Barcelona in Round 6, 81-80, but it responded by winning its next four straight, including back-to-back road wins in the double-round week at Monaco and EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, to improve to 9-1. Despite going 1-6 through its next seven games, Fenerbahce regrouped by recording three victories in a row, the last of which was a 98-94 triumph over Monaco that saw it win the tiebreaker.

The fans at Ulker Sports and Event Hall were treated to back-to-back 100-point games in Rounds 23 and 25 as Fenerbahce beat ALBA Berlin 101-86 and Virtus Segafredo Bologna 104-72; the only other time it broke the 100-point barrier was back in Round 12 against ALBA, 75-104. The team's home crowd were also able to witness an 81-73 win against Barca in Round 28, before a victory against Zalgiris Kaunas in Round 30 and a triumph against Efes in Round 33 saw it officially confirm its place in the playoffs.

### Playoff experience

Fenerbahce enters the playoffs with championship pedigree on the bench, as Coach Itoudis has lifted the EuroLeague title on two occasions in the past: in 2016 and 2019, both with CSKA Moscow. Curiously, from the Fenerbahce team that won the EuroLeague in 2017, there is only one player still on the roster: Melih Mahmutoglu. Nick Calathes is the other Fenerbahce player with a EuroLeague winners' medal, as he became a champion with Panathinaikos Athens in 2011.

Nevertheless, despite Motley, Carsen Edwards and Devin Booker never having played in the playoffs, Fenerbahce does have plenty of players with postseason experience. The likes of Nemanja Bjelica, Calathes and Wilbekin have played in the playoffs in the past, while others such as Dorsey and Nigel Hayes-Davis featured in the Final Four last season.

### Playoff history

Fenerbahce missed out on the playoffs in 2021-22 after finishing in 12th with a 10-18 record, while it was swept in the postseason by CSKA Moscow in 2020-21. Yet, its failure to reach the playoffs last season was very much a one-off, given how the team has fared in recent times. In fact, the 2017 EuroLeague champion has regularly been a playoff team and even managed to reach five successive Final Fours between 2015 and 2019.

Overall, Fenerbahce has played a total of 24 games in the playoffs, winning 15 and losing 9. Of the eight series it has played in, too, it has advanced five times and been eliminated on three occasions.

Fenerbahce reaches the playoffs!

Heading into his team's fifth game in just 10 days, ALBA Berlin head coach Israel Gonzalez stressed that all players would need to contribute on Thursday evening against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. Not only did his bench deliver, but it provided 53 of ALBA's 88 points to lead the hosts to their second straight victory and help them end the season on a good note.

Heading into his team's fifth game in just 10 days, ALBA Berlin head coach Israel Gonzalez stressed that all players would need to contribute on Thursday evening against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. Not only did his bench deliver, but it provided 53 of ALBA's 88 points to lead the hosts to their second straight victory and help them end the season on a good note.

No ALBA player featured for more than 25 minutes while as many as eight of scored at least 8 points. Luke Sikma led the way with 12, but it was Johannes Thiemann who stepped up in key moments off the bench in the first quarter and at the end of the third quarter to provide the hosts with a much-needed boost in energy and help them maintain their lead.

"Congratulations to the players who played their fifth game in 10 days with only one day off after every game," Gonzalez said at the post-match press conference. "It's amazing. It's very difficult because the EuroLeague level is always very high and it is great to be able to survive these 10 days."

Only two teams had recorded more average assists than ALBA's 19.8 heading into the last round of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, and the hosts proved once again that they are one of most altruistic sides this season. ALBA produced 23 assists with almost all the players successfully getting everyone else involved in the game. All but two ALBA players recorded at least 1 assist, with Jaleen Smith led the way with 7. 

Gonzalez called it "the ALBA way" and pointed out that he was proud of his players for the team effort. His rotations against ASVEL bore fruit and his men looked anything but tired throughout the game to secure their 11th victory this season.

Maccabi locks up fifth seed with OT win over Real Madrid, 100-96

Olympiacos beats Baskonia, clinches first place

Fenerbache to playoffs despite 91-89 OT loss at Zvezda

Thursday Blog: Olympiacos first, Maccabi fifth, Fenerbahce to playoffs!

Israel Gonzalez: 'We did it the ALBA way'

Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos: 'Improvement never ends'

Dusko Ivanovic, Zvezda: 'A great victory'

Fenerbahce reaches the playoffs!

Assist-making defined ALBA's final win, too