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The second and final slate of EuroLeague Women play-in games tips-off this Wednesday, Feb. 26, as the eight remaining clubs in the competition play to determine who will advance to the playoffs, otherwise known as the “Final Six,” which will begin in April.
Four clubs—Beretta Famila Schio, Fenerbahçe Opet, Valencia Basket Club and ÇBK Mersin—have already qualified for the Final Six by finishing at the top of their respective groups in group play. These clubs are competing in the semifinal play-ins, which will determine matchups in the Final Six: The winners of the semifinal play-in will get a bye round, while the losers will play the winners of the quarterfinal play-ins.
The clubs currently competing in the quarterfinal play-ins are Basket Landes, ZVVZ USK Praha, Casademont Zaragoza and Tango Bourges Basket. For them, it’s win or go home; whoever doesn’t qualify for the Final Six is eliminated from the competition. Since the winner of the best-of-two series is determined by aggregate points (point differential in the two games) rather than wins, the results of last week’s games will play a part in determining each team’s strategy for this week’s.
This means that Landes, while an underdog against Praha, still has a fighting chance this week after losing by just four points in the series opener. Zaragoza, on the other hand, is going to have a harder time getting past Bourges, which won by 20 last week and, barring a miraculous performance from Zaragoza, will probably be advancing to the Final Six.
In the semifinal play-ins, Mersin will try to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Valencia and prove that it can win without Iliana Rupert, who looks to be out with a longterm injury. Fenerbahçe, meanwhile, remains undefeated on the season after a challenge from Schio; will the reigning champs continue to remain spotless through the play-ins? If Emma Meesseman continues to be at her best, Fenerbahçe may just be unbeatable.
Each of this week’s play-in games will be streamed for free via FIBA’s EuroLeague Women YouTube channel and the DAZN sports streaming service. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Wednesday’s schedule.
Wednesday, February 26
Beretta Famila Schio (9-3) vs. Fenerbahçe Opet (10-0) (semifinal play-in)
When: 11 a.m. ET
Where: Metro Energy Sports Hall in Istanbul, Turkey
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Kitija Laksa, Jasmine Keys, Janelle Salaün, Ivana Dojkić, Dorka Juhász (Beretta Famila Schio); Emma Meesseman, Tina Charles, Gabby Williams, Nyara Sabally, Julie Allemand, Nikolina Milić, Sevgi Uzun (Fenerbahçe Opet)
Matchup details: Fenerbahçe is currently shorthanded, waiting for Kayla McBride to arrive after Ariel Atkins left the team, but was still able to hold off a valiant Schio comeback attempt and win its first play-in game. The defending champs’ offense remains a thing of beauty, recording 28 assists on 38 made field goals and shooting 64.2 percent on 2-pointers last week, and while Schio outshot Fenerbahçe from long range (10 made 3-pointers), it wasn’t quite enough to earn an upset. Both of these teams have already qualified for the Final Six, so there isn’t as much at stake here as in the quarterfinal play-ins, but Schio would surely love to defeat the reigning champs on the road before then.
Valencia Basket Club (7-3) vs. ÇBK Mersin (11-1) (semifinal play-in)
When: 11:30 a.m. ET
Where: Servet Tazegül Spor Salonu in Mersin, Turkey
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Alina Iagupova, Leonie Fiebich, Stephanie Mavunga, Yvonne Turner, Kayla Alexander, Leticia Romero, Alba Torrens (Valencia Basket Club); Marine Johannès, Natasha Howard, Karlie Samuelson, Bridget Carleton, Yvonne Anderson, Iliana Rupert, Marine Fauthoux, Regan Magarity (ÇBK Mersin)
Matchup details: Of each of last week’s results, Valencia’s win over Mersin was the most decisive. In a shocking 32-point blowout, Valencia held Mersin to 34.4 percent shooting from the field and forced 18 Mersin turnovers against just six assists while winning the rebounding battle 46-31. Only Anderson and Fauthoux, who combined to score 38 of Mersin’s 57 points, could get anything going. This would obviously be much more alarming had Mersin not already qualified for the Final Six, but the Turkish club will be trying to redeem itself in this game nonetheless. Howard (two points on 1-for-8 shooting last week) will certainly need to play better, especially with Rupert’s (broken hand) status in doubt.
Basket Landes (6-6) vs. ZVVZ USK Praha (5-5) (quarterfinal play-in)
When: 1 p.m. ET
Where: Královka Arena in Prague, Czech Republic
How to watch: DAZN
Notable players: Destiny Slocum, Leïla Lacan, Luisa Geiselsöder (Basket Landes); Ezi Magbegor, Brionna Jones, Maite Cazorla, Valeriane Ayayi, Emese Hof (ZVVZ USK Praha)
Matchup details: Last week’s game between Landes and Praha was the closest of the first slate of play-ins, with Praha eking out a 72-68 victory. Landes made 12 3-pointers to Praha’s four, but recorded more turnovers than assists, while Praha won the rebounding battle 40-31. Jones was downright unstoppable, scoring 31 points and grabbing 16 rebounds, and it’s not looking like Landes has anyone to match up with her individually. That being said, it’s only a four-point difference between the two clubs at the moment, meaning that another hot shooting game from Landes could offset Praha’s obvious physical advantages and send the young French club to the Final Six. This is exactly the type of scenario FIBA envisioned when it devised the play-ins: a high-stakes game that will send one team to the playoffs and the other one home.
Casademont Zaragoza (5-5) vs. Tango Bourges Basket (7-5) (quarterfinal play-in)
When: 2 p.m. ET
Where: Palais des Sports du Prado in Bourges, France
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Markeisha Gatling, Helena Pueyo, Tanaya Atkinson, Stephanie Mawuli (Casademont Zaragoza); Amy Okonkwo, Morgan Green, Pauline Astier, Kariata Diaby (Tango Bourges Basket)
Matchup details: Bourges made a powerful statement on the road last week, beating Zaragoza by 20 on its home floor and thus setting itself up nicely for a trip to the Final Six. Zaragoza isn’t out of it yet, but has a lot of ground to make up this week, especially for a team that has leaned more on its defense for much of the competition; of the 11 clubs that participated in the second round of group play, Zaragoza finished ninth in points per game at 66.3, and it’s hard to envision a high-octane lineup like Bourges’ completely folding, especially at home. It goes without saying that Zaragoza will need to shoot better than 29.7 percent from the field, as it did last week, while imports Atkinson and Mawuli, who scored a combined 13 points on 5-for-20 shooting, must do more of the heavy lifting. Bourges, meanwhile, will continue to rely on its backcourt of Astier and Tima Pouye (32 total points last week) to lead its potent offense.
