FIBA: Praha beats Galatasaray as EuroLeague Women play-in race tightens

Defending EuroLeague Women champions ZVVZ USK Praha continued their play-in push, defeating Galatasaray Çağdaş Faktoring 74-61 and reasserting themselves in a highly competitive Group E.

On Gameday 9, Praha showed how dangerous they are when they’re hitting their jumpshots, but their Gameday 10 win proved that they’re just as adept on the defensive end of the court. Praha held Galatasaray to just 38.5 percent shooting on 2-pointers—well below their season average of 53.3 percent, which ranks third in the league—and, for the most part, held their star players in check. Only Marine Johannès (18 points) and Awak Kuier (14 points) were able to get anything going for Galatasaray, and the Group E leaders lacked their usual paint presence.

The win moved Praha into a three-way tie for third place in Group E, alongside Beretta Famila Schio and Tango Bourges Basket.

Schio kept pace by defeating Spar Girona, thanks in large part to a monstrous performance from Jessica Shepard, who recorded 31 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Without Mariam Coulibaly, who may be out for the remainder of the season with a foot injury, there wasn’t much Girona could do against Shepard, who now leads the league in both scoring (17.1 points per game) and rebounding (9.2 rebounds per game).

Bourges, meanwhile, suffered a bit of a letdown against Flammes Carolo Basket (and yes, this was a prediction that we got wrong). Carolo hadn’t won a game in the second round of group play and had already been eliminated from play-in contention, but they took advantage of an uncharacteristically sluggish Bourges start that their French rivals never quite recovered from. Though Bourges forced 23 Carolo turnovers, their halfcourt offense left much to be desired; they shot just 33.3 percent from the field and scored only 59 points, which was obviously not enough to get the job done, even against one of the competition’s weaker teams.

The week’s chaotic results meant that no one in Group E actually clinched a play-in spot. There are still three postseason berths remaining, with Girona (7-3) a game ahead of Bourges, Praha and Schio (6-4). This is probably just the kind of scenario FIBA wanted when it overhauled the EuroLeague Women competition system two years ago: an extremely tight race that won’t be decided until the final weeks of group play.

Casademont Zaragoza outlasts Valencia Basket Club in the second half—again

Not much was decided in Group F, either, though we did see another entertaining game between Cadademont Zaragoza and Valencia Basket Club.

It wasn’t quite as dramatic as the ridiculous comeback Zaragoza pulled off the last time the two teams played, but it was an impressive win for the Spanish club ,nonetheless. Veteran forward Merritt Hempe scored a season-high 20 points for Zaragoza, and as a team they shared the ball very effectively, recording 26 assists on 30 made shots.

Zaragoza and Valencia are now tied for third place in Group F at 6-4, though it’s not quite as cluttered as Group E is. With Umana Reyer Venezia (5-5) taking a loss to Fenerbahçe Opet (9-1), it’s looking very possible that both Zaragoza and Valencia both make the play-ins; it will all come down to the final two weeks of group play.