The most efficient regular season in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history has come to a close setting the stage for a pair of compelling Play-In Showdown matchups featuring the league’s two most improved teams from last year - FC Bayern Munich and Crvena Zvezda Belgrade, this season’s lone newcomer - Paris Basketball, and Real Madrid

Stats review: A look ahead at the Play-In Showdown

The most efficient regular season in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history has come to a close setting the stage for a pair of compelling Play-In Showdown matchups featuring the league’s two most improved teams from last year, this season’s lone newcomer, and a [Real Madrid](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/real-madrid/mad/) team that made it to the championship game each of the last three seasons.  [Last year’s Play-In](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/?round=35&season=E2023) action saw the two higher seeds advance to the field with the seventh-place finisher, [Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/maccabi-playtika-tel-aviv/tel/?season=2024-25), pushing the eventual champions, [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/?season=2024-25), to the limit in their subsequent encounter in the quarterfinals.

Given their recent run of Final Four appearances, Real Madrid is certainly capable of making a similar splash from the lower half of the playoff seedings. *Los Blancos* will start their quest for a quarterfinals berth against Paris Basketball, who they will face at Movistar Arena for the second time in 12 days.  Earning [a narrow 105-104 win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/real-gets-go-ahead-win-against-paris-105-104/) in Round 33 thanks to an outstanding fourth quarter, Madrid notched a key win — its fifth straight — over their Play-In opponent just over a week ago.

The difference late in that game were the shots Madrid was getting out of pick-and-rolls and with Paris creating a EuroLeague record 56% of its offense in the half-court operating out of ball screens, pick-and-roll play figures to be the key to this impending matchup as well. Despite its success down the stretch offensively, Madrid struggled to neutralize Paris’s ball screen attack on the road in their first meeting in Round 16 even in the absence of [TJ Shorts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tj-shorts/012608/), but beyond the heroics of [Maodo Lo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/maodo-lo/007032/) that night, the hosts otherwise struggled to make shots. Generating 64 points of out ball screens in that game and 66 in their game early in April, Paris has easily exceeded its league-best 42 points created per game in both of those losses to Madrid. How that holds up this week will certainly be something to follow as the club looks to push into the quarterfinals in its maiden EuroLeague voyage.

For Madrid’s part, it averaged 51 points created per game out of pick-and-rolls in its two games against Paris — well above the 34.6 per game average for the rest of the season.  While [Facundo Campazzo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/facundo-campazzo/005928/) does a lot of heavy lifting there, [Dzanan Musa](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/dzanan-musa/006540/) had one of his most productive efforts of the season sliding on the ball in Madrid’s win earlier this month.  How these two teams approach guarding pick-and-rolls and what adjustments they make figure to factor heavily into the outcome on Tuesday. Madrid finished in the top five in pick-and-roll defense on the year while Paris finished right at the EuroLeague average.

In the other game on Tuesday, the league’s two most improved teams face off in a test of their season splits. [FC Bayern Munich](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-bayern-munich/mun/) has been exceptional at home this season going 13-4 to mark its first season at SAP Garden. [Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/crvena-zvezda-meridianbet-belgrade/red/), in contrast, was this season’s lone team to finish with the same record on the road that it posted at home. After suffering one of its worst defeats of the season [in Belgrade in Round 12](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/crvena-zvezda-demolishes-bayern-101-77/), Bayern scored a comfortable [victory in Munich in Round 28](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/bayern-blows-away-crvena-zvezda-100-82-to-stay-in-postseason-picture/). 

That has been the story of the season as Bayern has elevated its game on both ends of the floor at home. Scoring a pristine 1.08 points per possession that eclipses Panathinaikos’s league-best 1.07 average for the season at SAP Garden, but allowing a massive 1.10 points per possession defensively that falls well below this season’s least effective defense away from home, Bayen has operated on the extremes for most of the year. Much of that disparity can be traced to the accuracy of its role players from beyond the arc, something that will be worth monitoring against a Zvezda defense that has done an excellent job defending the perimeter this season. 

[Filip Petrusev](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/filip-petrusev/011194/) was the standout in the November victory in Belgrade Arena, but picked up 2 quick fouls and played only a few minutes in Zvezda’s March loss. [Carsen Edwards](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/carsen-edwards/011987/) had a similarly uneven pair of games from Bayern’s side scoring only 3 points over 8 shots in their loss but 30 points over 17 in their win. Who steps up figures to be something to monitor in this game as well. 

If seeds hold, Bayern would get a chance to score its second road victory over the season over Paris while Zvezda would look to complete the season sweep, having won both of their previous matchups. Should Paris score the upset, Bayern could get a chance to notch its second win in Madrid of the year after claiming a victory there in Round 1 while Zvezda would be seeking its first triumph of the season over the historic Spanish club. 

After seeds held in the Play-In Showdown last year and created one of the more dramatic quarterfinals matchups in recent memory, it will interesting to see how things shake out this time.   

Sportradar breaks down the exciting showdowns on tap this week

Real Madrid v Paris Basketball (2025-04-15T19:00:00.000Z)

FC Bayern Munich v Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (2025-04-15T18:30:00.000Z)

Voting for the All-EuroLeague Team will be open from Monday, March 31 and will run through Monday, April 14, right after the Regular Season has concluded and before the Play-In Showdown starts. This season, the votes of head coaches and team captains will each account for 35% of the total, while media members will make up another 20% and the fan vote will be worth 10%.

Voting for the 2024-25 All-EuroLeague Team is open

As the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season reaches its thrilling final stretch, and in [accordance to the announced changes in the season awards structure](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/news/euroleague-basketball-adjusts-its-euroleague-awards-structure/), it is time to consider which stars are most deserving of season honors. And the fans will of course have their voices heard!

Voting for the All-EuroLeague Team will be open from Monday, March 31 and will run until Monday, April 14, at 12:00 CEST, right after the Regular Season has concluded and before the Play-In Showdown starts. This season, the votes of head coaches and team captains will each account for 35% of the total, while media members will make up another 20% and the fan vote will be worth 10%.

Upon completion of all voting, the player with the most votes will become this season's Turkish Airlines EuroLeague MVP. He and the next four top vote-getters will comprise the All-EuroLeague First Team and the next five will make up the All-EuroLeague Second Team.

To make sure your voice is heard, go to <https://alleuroleagueteam.euroleague.net> to register your vote for the most deserving players from the 2024-25 season! Remember to base your selections on each player's performances for the entirety of the Regular Season!

Voting for the 2024-25 All-EuroLeague Team has now closed!

Anadolu Efes stormed into the EuroLeague Playoffs with eight successive wins in the home straight of the regular season, but it now faces a massive challenge to knock out reigning champs Panathinaikos BC.

Efes braced for titanic clash with champs Panathinaikos

[Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/ist/) stormed into the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs with eight successive wins in the home straight of the regular season, but it now faces a massive challenge to knock out reigning champs [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/).

The best-of-five blockbuster will be spiced up by Panathinaikos head coach [Ergin Ataman](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/ataman-ergin/) locking horns with his former club, having guiding Efes to successive titles in 2021 and 2022 before he lifted the trophy with the Greek franchise last year.

It will be Ataman’s first postseason clash with Efes, which missed out on the business end of Europe’s premier club competition the last two years in a row and looked like being confined to the sidelines again before its magnificent late run.

The rivals shared the spoils in the regular season as [Efes prevailed 93-67](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/efes-beats-up-panathinaikos-93-67/) on its home court before Panathinaikos returned the favor with [a 104-89 win in Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/kendrick-nunn-powered-panathinaikos-brushes-aside-efes-104-89/), which was the Turkish outfit’s last defeat before going on an eight-game winning streak.

Home-court advantage could be crucial and Panathinaikos, which finished third in the regular season with a 22-12 record, has it in its favor against sixth-placed Efes (20-14), which secured a playoff berth with [an 87-77 win over Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/efes-beats-zalgiris-87-77-to-reach-playoffs/).

Head coach [Luca Banchi](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/ist/banchi-luca/?season=E2024), who took over midway through the season, acknowledged that the matchup with Panathinaikos will be an entirely different prospect after seeing Efes muscle its way across the finish line on the final day of the regular season.

He also revealed that Efes was under immense pressure against Zalgiris, having spilled a 19-point lead before coming out on top with a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter on the back of steely defense.

“After winning seven games in a row and coming within one game of reaching the playoffs, there was a lot of anxiety. But the team responded in a great way,” Banchi told the postgame press conference.

“In the third quarter we had moments when we struggled to contain their offense, but the last five minutes of the game embodied the will and desire of this group to succeed. What we did defensively has become the team’s trademark and Efes is back in the playoffs after a two-year absence,” he added.

Banchi endured a torrid 2-5 start when he arrived in January before a whirlwind streak saw Efes overcome one hurdle after another, courtesy of effervescent team work with an array of players stepping up to the plate when the chips were down.

The victorious streak instilled a new level of belief that Efes can rekindle recent glory and lift the trophy for the third time in five years, although it faces a formidable task against a resourceful and talent-packed rival.

“Moving forward we need to stay confident as the playoffs will reset everything, and we will head into the quarterfinal series with the DNA of a team that never gives up and keeps fighting until the last second of the last game,” said Banchi.

Having heaped praise on his staff, Banchi also hailed the presence of club president Tuncay Ozilhan whose commitment to the cause inspired the team to defy the odds, as they climbed from 13th place to sixth in 43 days on the back of a relentless effort.

“The players did a great job in the final part of the season but I believe that our president initiated their surge because at our lowest ebb when we were collecting defeats, he was the first to support the team as he travelled with us to road games,” Banchi stressed. “For me, that was a great lesson as you have to keep learning from the best.”

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">🚨 MAÇIN GÜNÜ VE SAATİ BELLİ DEĞİL AMA SADECE 18 SAATTE <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SOLDOUT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SOLDOUT</a> 🚨<br><br>🫂 Panathinaikos Aktor serisinin üçüncü maçında tribünler kapalı gişe olacak. Mücadeleye hazırız! <br><br>😤 &quot;Burası BGM, burası İstanbul... BENİM YERİM BURASI&quot; <a href="https://t.co/qpIDI7df4y">pic.twitter.com/qpIDI7df4y</a></p>&mdash; Anadolu Efes SK (@AnadoluEfesSK) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnadoluEfesSK/status/1911080111681523944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 12, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Efes is likely to rely on a balanced roster with a stack of players capable of carrying the mantle while Panathinaikos will hope that the league’s top scorer [Kendrick Nunn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kendrick-nunn/012774/), who is averaging 21.5 points per game, stays in top gear throughout the series.

The backcourt of Nunn, [Jerian Grant](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jerian-grant/011204/) and [Kostas Sloukas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-sloukas/001926/) face the toughest job imaginable against the Efes trio of [Shane Larkin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/shane-larkin/007200/), [Darius Thompson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/darius-thompson/011078/) and [Elijah Bryant](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/elijah-bryant/009846/), who were ruthlessly efficient at both ends of the court in the final push to reach the playoffs.

The heavyweight clash will be a basketball feast for the fans, with a Final Four spot at stake in arguably the standout series of this season’s playoffs.  

Game News

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The former EuroLeague winner faces a mammoth task to eliminate the Greek giant

Efes braced for titanic battle with champs Panathinaikos

Anadolu Efes Istanbul v Zalgiris Kaunas (2025-04-11T17:30:00.000Z)

EuroLeague top photos of the week

Look back at all the action from Round 34 of the regular season by checking out the best photos of the week! 

Top 10 photos of the week: Round 34

Check out 2024-25 EuroLeague Playoffs calendar

After the drama of the Round 34 of the regular season, top six of the eight playoff spots are filled. Olympiacos Piraeus, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens and AS Monaco clinched the top four spots and have home court advantage.

In the playoffs, Panathinaikos will face sixth-placed Anadolu Efes Istanbul, and that best- of five series will [tip off on Tuesday, April 22 at 20:30 CEST](https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/0274e36c-a55f-4e73-88a2-81c8d4c25bf5.pdf), with Game 2 scheduled two days later at the same hour.

On [Wednesday, April 23 at 19:00 CEST](https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/0274e36c-a55f-4e73-88a2-81c8d4c25bf5.pdf), Monaco will be starting its best-of-five series against fifth-placed FC Barcelona, with Game 2 set to be played on Friday, April 25, also at 19:00 CEST.

Meanwhile, Olympiacos and Fenerbahce still have to learn their respective opponents.

Fenerbahce will play the winner of the Play-in Showdown game between [Real Madrid and Paris Basketball](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/game-center/2024-25/real-madrid-paris-basketball/E2024/307/) which is set for April 15, while Olympiacos will have to wait until Friday, April 18 to learn whether it faces Real, Paris, FC Bayern Munich or Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade.

Check out the [2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs calendar](https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/0274e36c-a55f-4e73-88a2-81c8d4c25bf5.pdf).

The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs will tip off on April 22

The final round of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season saw a career game from one of its biggest stars, as Nikola Mirotic dominated for EA7 Emporio Armani Milan and took home the 10th MVP of the Round award of his 276-game career.

Round 34 MVP: Nikola Mirotic, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan

The final round of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season saw a career game from one of its biggest stars, as [Nikola Mirotic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nikola-mirotic/000796/) dominated for EA7 Emporio Armani Milan and took home the 10th MVP of the Round award of his 276-game career.

Mirotic posted a personal-high PIR of 40 in Milan’s 111-89 win over Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz. Mirotic scored 23 points on 5-for-8 two-point shooting, 3-of-4 triples and 4-of-4 free throws. He pulled down 10 rebounds, had 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block, while drawing 6 fouls. All of that in just 24 minutes on the floor. His 10th MVP of the Round award sees him tie Vasilije Micic for the sixth most all-time.

The next-best PIR, 35, belonged to [Kendrick Nunn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kendrick-nunn/012774/) of Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens. In a 111-104 win over Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, Nunn netted 31 points, making 3-of-8 twos, 6-of-10 threes and all 7 of his free-throw attempts, while dishing 10 assists and pulling down 3 rebounds.

[Nigel Hayes-Davis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nigel-hayes-davis/008962/) of Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul had a 32 PIR in his team’s 77-89 win at Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. Hayes-Davis collected 24 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and a block. Milan’s [Zach LeDay](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/zach-leday/008987/) posted 31 PIR, scoring 32 points on 6-for-10 shooting from both two-point and three-point range, along with 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Rounding out the list of top performers in the final round of the regular season are [Juancho Hernangomez](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/juancho-hernangomez/012712/) of Panathinaikos and [Neal Sako](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/neal-sako/010545/) of LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne, each with 29 PIR. Hernangomez had 18 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals, while Sako finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds in a 78-83 loss against AS Monaco.

### Individual highs: Zach LeDay, Milan, 32 points

 

Zach LeDay led all scorers in the regular-season finale with 32 points. Nunn finished as season’s top scorer with an average of 21.1 points per game.

 

[Trevion Williams](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/trevion-williams/012604/) of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv pulled down 13 rebounds, the most in Round 34. [Joel Bolomboy](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/joel-bolomboy/009035/) of Crvena Zvezda took the honors as the regular season’s top rebounder with 8.3 boards per night.

 

[Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/) of Olympiacos Piraeus had 13 assists, more than any other player in this round. [TJ Shorts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tj-shorts/012608/) of Paris Basketball leads the league with 7.5 dimes per contest.

 

Paris center [Kevarrius Hayes](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kevarrius-hayes/010390/) had 4 steals in the final round of the regular season. [Nick Weiler-Babb](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nick-weiler-babb/010391/) of FC Bayern Munich tops the steals charts with 1.6 per game.

 

ASVEL’s [Andre Roberson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/andre-roberson/013405/) had 3 blocks, the most in this round. [Georgios Papagiannis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/georgios-papagiannis/005844/) of Monaco is the league’s top shot-blocker with 1.4 per game.

 

There were eight double-doubles in Round 34: ASVEL’s duo of Roberson (14 points, 12 rebounds) and Sako (20 points, 11 rebounds), Panathinaikos pair Nunn (31 points, 10 assists) and [Juancho Hernangomez](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/juancho-hernangomez/012712/) (18 points, 11 rebounds), Maccabi’s Williams (17 points, 13 rebounds), Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade’s [Isaac Bonga](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/isaac-bonga/006760/) (14 points, 11 rebounds), Real Madrid’s [Serge Ibaka](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/serge-ibaka/003583/) (11 points, 10 rebounds), and Mirotic (23 points, 10 rebounds).

The veteran forward ended his regular-season campaign on a high 

Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fans, we have our 34th winner in this season's EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge! Noam Schvartz beat everyone else in Round 34 with his team 'Schvartz5', which had a Fantasy Challenge score of 243.30.

EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge Round 34 winner

Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fans, we have our 34th winner in this season's [EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/)! Noam Schvartz beat everyone else in Round 34 with his team 'Schvartz5', which had a Fantasy Challenge score of 243.30.

Noam had the following starting lineup: Nikola Mirotic of EA7 Emporio Armani Milan as team captain, then Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens's Kendrick Nunn, Carsen Edwards of FC Bayern Munich, Mikael Jantunen of Paris Basketball and Moses Wright of Olympiacos Piraeus. His sixth man was Olympiacos's Alec Peters. The rest of the bench consisted of Filip Petrusev of Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, Roman Sorkin of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, Sylvain Francisco of Zalgiris Kaunas and Kevin Punter of FC Barcelona. His team's head coach was Paris play-caller Tiago Splitter.

The prize for finishing first in Round 34 is a free VIP Euroleague TV subscription for the 2025-26 season, so congratulations, Noam!

Marko Djukic and his team 'Kughat' remains the leader of the [EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/) overall standings with 5,854.24 points.

Trades are now open for Round 1 of the Play-in Showdown, and the number of trades is unlimited.

The first Play-in game tips off on Tuesday, April 15 at 20:00 CET, as FC Bayern Munich hosts Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, marking the next round's deadline.

Make new teams now or improve your existing ones and try to become our next round winner!

EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge offers weekly prizes to the top team manager. 

Are you ready to prove that you are the smartest Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fan around? Do you want to win a big prize? You're in the right place! The EuroLeague Playoffs Bracket Challenge is now live, and it's easy to create your bracket. 

EuroLeague Playoffs Bracket Challenge: Big prizes on offer!

Are you ready to prove that you are the smartest Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fan around? Do you want to win a big prize? You're in the right place!

The [EuroLeague Playoffs Bracket Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/10/bracket) is now live, and it's easy to create your bracket. Here's what you need to do:

- Log in to your EuroLeague ID account.
- Log in to your EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge account. If you don't have an account, create one.
- Follow this link: [**https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/10/bracket**](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/10/bracket).
- Create your bracket. You can create up to three per account.
- Make sure your bracket or brackets are submitted before the first Play-In Showdown game.
- After creating your bracket, you can modify it until the start of the first game.
- That's it. Easy!

### What prizes can you win?

The grand prize in the EuroLeague Playoffs Bracket Challenge are two tickets for the 2026 EuroLeague Final Four. 

Coming in second place overall will result in four Turkish Airlines EuroLeague tickets for the 2025-26 regular season for any game(s) selected by the winner.

And third place will receive one EuroLeagueTV Annual Pass for the 2025-26 season.

So what are you waiting for? Make your bracket now and share it with your friends and family!

Barcelona veterans Kevin Punter, Jan Vesely and Tomas Satoransky all stepped up to help send their team to the EuroLeague Playoffs in Round 34.

Veterans made key, clutch plays for Barcelona to punch playoff ticket

[FC Barcelona](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fc-barcelona/bar/) is playoff bound. Few thought that would be the case when Barcelona lost four of its last five games and was 14-13 at the end of February, sitting outside the postseason spots in 11th place.

However, fifth-placed Barcelona is now pitted against [AS Monaco](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/as-monaco/mco/) in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs, having completed a big turnaround with [a hard-fought and dramatic 91-87 win over long-eliminated Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/barcelona-fights-off-virtus-91-87-clinches-playoff-berth/) on Friday night.

“They are a good team, despite the record,” said [Kevin Punter](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kevin-punter/009862/), the game’s top scorer with 20 points on 4-for-5 three-point shooting. “Glad we were able to pull it out.”

Pull out the win they did. After Barcelona controlled the game for the first three quarters, Virtus stormed in front in the fourth and led 76-81 with under 4 minutes to play.

“We were struggling there at the end, but we found the way to win, that’s the most important,” said [Tomas Satoransky](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tomas-satoransky/002939/), who collected 11 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds.

“We knew how to stay in the game. We made some big plays at the end, made big free throws and good defense. It was a game to win in whatever fashion.”

Even though it was [Joel Parra](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/joel-parra/007464/) who scored a layup that made it 89-87 and put Barcelona up for good with 31.7 seconds to go, and [Jabari Parker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jabari-parker/012745/) made game-sealing free throws some 20 seconds later, it was Barcelona’s seasoned EuroLeague veterans – former All-EuroLeague players – who had key roles.

Barca makes key plays in last 60 seconds

For starters, Punter forced a jump ball at mid-court with 58 seconds left when he knocked out the ball from Isaia Cordinier. Virtus did win the jump ball, but the remaining 8 seconds on the shot clock were not enough to score.

On the ensuing possession, Punter and [Jan Vesely](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jan-vesely/000925/), back in the lineup after missing 10 games, played high-low, finding a cutting Parra under the basket for an easy layup and a go-ahead bucket.

After a timeout, Virtus had a chance to tie or take the lead, but Vesely played perfect pick-and-roll defense, then with the help of Punter and Satoransky forced Matt Morgan to travel.

Barcelona got the ball, Parker made free throws and the game was over, with the playoff celebrations ready to start. 

“I think we deserved to be in the playoff, and to be in the fifth position,, head coach Joan Penarroya said. “Our season was very complicated, with many problems with injuries. The team fought, fought, fought every game. For Barca, it is not enough to play in the playoffs, but it is a day to enjoy.”

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">QUARTERFINALS MOOD 😄 <a href="https://t.co/UdEAmkUxmt">pic.twitter.com/UdEAmkUxmt</a></p>&mdash; Barça Basket (@FCBbasket) <a href="https://twitter.com/FCBbasket/status/1910808765668221409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Barca has had really had terrible luck with injuries. In addition to Vesely, it has lost key players such as point guards [Nico Laprovittola](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nicolas-laprovittola/006435/) and [Juan Nunez](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/juan-nunez/010106/), as well as big man [Chimezie Metu](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/chimezie-metu/013379/), to season-ending injuries.

“A lot of adversity this year, and we were able to finish fifth,” Punter said. “A true testament of us being a team, sticking together through good times, bad times. We were able to finish strong and now we get ready for the playoffs.”

There, Barcelona will face Monaco, a team it beat both times this season.

“Monaco is a great team, with a lot of stars, a lot of great individual players,” Satoransky said. “We beat them twice this season, but that does not play a role in the playoffs.”

Kevin Punter, Jan Vesely and Tomas Satoransky came up huge in a playoff-clinching win

FC Barcelona v Virtus Segafredo Bologna (2025-04-11T18:30:00.000Z)