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.
Game Videos
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.