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The inaugural EuroLeague Women play-ins begin this week, with the competition’s eight remaining clubs playing for the right to advance to the league’s playoffs, or “Final Six.” Each play-in series will be two games, home and away, with the winner being determined by the combined score in those two games.
The play-ins are separated into two categories: semifinal play-ins and quarterfinal play-ins. Each club in the semifinal play-ins has already qualified for the Final Six and will be playing to advance directly to the Final Six semifinals; the losers of the semifinal play-ins will play the winner of the quarterfinal play-ins in the Final Six quarterfinals. The losers of the quarterfinal play-ins will be eliminated from the tournament.
As for the clubs themselves, this is what FIBA envisioned when it redesigned the EuroLeague competition system for the 2024-25 season: a format in which the best teams play one another often as the season concludes while keeping the matchups fresh. It’s no surprise that star-studded clubs like Fenerbahçe Opet (10-0) and ÇBK Mersin (11-1) are in the semifinal play-ins, but Beretta Famila Schio (9-3) and Valencia Basket Club (7-3) have also earned their appearances there and will advance to the Final Six regardless of play-in results.
As for the rest of the field, the stakes are considerably higher. We’ll see if ZVVZ USK Praha (5-5) can reach its former glories or if a less-heralded club like Basket Landes (6-6) makes a stronger first impression. All of the action will be streamed live and for free on FIBA’s EuroLeague Women YouTube channel and via DAZN.
Wednesday, February 19
ÇBK Mersin (11-1) vs. Valencia Basket Club (7-3) (semifinal play-in)
When: 1:!5 p.m. ET
Where: Pabellón Fuente de San Luis in Valencia, Spain
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Marine Johannès, Natasha Howard, Karlie Samuelson, Bridget Carleton, Yvonne Anderson, Iliana Rupert, Marine Fauthoux, Regan Magarity (ÇBK Mersin); Alina Iagupova, Leonie Fiebich, Stephanie Mavunga, Yvonne Turner, Kayla Alexander, Leticia Romero, Alba Torrens (Valencia Basket Club)
Matchup details: For many, this is the play-in matchup to look forward to. Both Mersin and Valencia were billed preseason as clubs that could possibly unseat Fenerbahçe, and there’s certainly enough talent between them to cause a stir. Johannès and Iagupova are two of the premiere playmakers in the competition, while bigs like Howard, Rupert, Mavunga and Alexander are among the most impactful at their positions. We’ll have to wait until the Final Six to see if either Mersin or Valencia can knock Fenerbahçe off the EuroLeague Women throne, but their play-in matchup will be must-watch basketball, too.
Fenerbahçe Opet (10-0) vs. Beretta Famila Schio (9-3) (semifinal play-in)
When: 1:15 p.m. ET
Where: Palasport Livio Rómare in Schio, Italy
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Emma Meesseman, Tina Charles, Gabby Williams, Nyara Sabally, Julie Allemand, Nikolina Milić, Sevgi Uzun (Fenerbahçe Opet); Kitija Laksa, Jasmine Keys, Janelle Salaün, Ivana Dojkić, Dorka Juhász (Beretta Famila Schio)
Matchup details: Fenerbahçe entered this EuroLeague Women season as the favorite to win it all for a third consecutive year, and despite the changes to the competition format, not much has stood in the defending champs’ way thus far. Players like Meesseman and Williams have been as brilliant as ever, though they’ll need to pick up a bit of additional slack in the play-in; Ariel Atkins has left the team and will be replaced by Kayla McBride, but Fenerbahçe will need to wait for McBride to finish playing in Unrivaled in the United States. This opens a window of opportunity for Schio, which was as hot as any team in the second ground of group play, winning four-straight games thanks to the shooting of Laksa and Salaün and the rebounding of Juhász and Olbis Andre. This may be the biggest threat Fenerbahçe has faced all season, and it’s only right that it comes during the play-ins.
ZVVZ USK Praha (5-5) vs. Basket Landes (6-6) (quarterfinal play-in)
When: 1:30 p.m. ET
Where: Espace François Mitterrand in Mont-de-Marsan, France
How to watch: DAZN
Notable players: Ezi Magbegor, Brionna Jones, Maite Cazorla, Valeriane Ayayi, Emese Hof (ZVVZ USK Praha); Destiny Slocum, Leïla Lacan, Luisa Geiselsöder (Basket Landes)
Matchup details: It may have been a disappointing regular season for Praha, a club that’s used to finishing near the top of the EuroLeague Women standings, but thanks to the new competition system, Magbegor and company will still get the opportunity to make a postseason run. They’ll face a Landes club that, statistically speaking, may have overachieved to this point. Despite its 6-6 record, Landes has a cumulative point differential of -38, which is the lowest of any play-in team. Still, a play-in appearance is a play-in appearance, and in Lacan and Geiselsöder, Landes has one of the competition’s more talented young duos. Praha, meanwhile, is still adjusting to life without Maria Conde, who is out for the remainder of the competition with an Achilles injury. Perimeter players like Cazorla and Ayayi will need to step up for Praha in her absence.
Tango Bourges Basket (7-5) vs. Casademont Zaragoza (5-5) (quarterfinal play-in)
When: 2 p.m. ET
Where: Pabellón Príncipe Felipe in Zaragoza, Spain
How to watch: FIBA YouTube live stream
Notable players: Amy Okonkwo, Morgan Green, Pauline Astier, Kariata Diaby (Tango Bourges Basket); Markeisha Gatling, Helena Pueyo, Tanaya Atkinson, Stephanie Mawuli (Casademont Zaragoza)
Matchup details: Bourges has statistically been one of the more impressive teams in EuroLeague Women this season, entering the play-ins with a cumulative point differential of +99 (third behind Fenerbahçe and Mersin) while also challenging for the league lead in 3-point shooting (37.2 percent as a team). Zaragoza specializes in making things difficult, though, particularly defensively, so this should be an interesting matchup in terms of differing styles of play. We’ll see a major battle in the paint between Diaby and Gatling, while Pueyo, one of the competition’s best perimeter defenders, will be tasked with guarding one of its most talented young playmakers in Astier.
