Anadolu Efes Istanbul is on the verge of sealing a playoff berth in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after coming out of the wilderness into the postseason picture with a seven-game winning streak, capped by Friday night’s dramatic 96-97 overtime victory at Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade

Anadolu Efes emerges as postseason dark horse after smooth run 

[Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/ist/) is on the verge of sealing a playoff berth in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after coming out of the wilderness into the postseason picture with a seven-game winning streak, capped by Friday night’s [dramatic 96-97 overtime victory](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/efes-beats-crvena-zvezda-96-97-to-boost-playoff-hopes/) at [Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/crvena-zvezda-meridianbet-belgrade/red/).

Having climbed up to fifth in the standings, Efes faces [Zalgiris Kaunas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/zalgiris-kaunas/zal/) at home in the final game of the regular season as the battle for playoff berths is headed for a dramatic climax. Four teams, including Efes, are locked on 19-14 records behind fourth-placed [AS Monaco](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/as-monaco/mco/) (20-13) with three top-six spots up for grabs.

Efes was likely written off by some pundits and many of its own fans after a patchy run plagued by injuries and inconsistency, which spilled over into the early stages of head coach Luca Banchi’s tenure.

The Italian tactician, who was hauled in after he parted ways with [Virtus Segafredo Bologna](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/virtus-segafredo-bologna/vir/) earlier in the season, endured a 2-5 start before Efes finally hit top gear when it need to, rekindling the kind of form that saw the club win back to back EuroLeague titles in 2021 and 2022.

The matchup against Zvezda reaffirmed the die-hard spirit that saw Efes become the second Turkish club to win Europe’s premier club competition, following in the footsteps of city rival [Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/ulk/?season=2024-25) which touched the summit in 2017.

Despite fielding a half-fit [Shane Larkin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/shane-larkin/007200/) who was battling a respiratory infection and losing veteran guard [Rodrigue Beaubois](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/rodrigue-beaubois/006590/) to [a leg injury](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/rodrigue-beaubois-out-for-at-least-six-weeks-with-calf-tear/) in the third quarter, Efes stood firm after Zvezda forced overtime with a late comeback.

Much to Banchi’s delight, who singled out both men and the entire team for showing the kind of mettle and character that makes a talent-packed Efes roster unwanted opposition to any of its postseason rivals. 

“I believe the spectators enjoyed a most intense game. We remained focused after Zvezda came back and tied the score at the very end while we approached overtime with great maturity. Small details made the difference in the end, the win giving us the opportunity to look to the future with even more confidence,” Banchi said at the postgame press conference. 

“Unfortunately, we lost one of our pillars in this game because Beaubois suffered a very serious injury but the team responded well to his leadership when he showed the way at the beginning of the third quarter. I also want to underline the effort of our captain Shane Larkin, who led the collective effort. There’s no other way to beat a team like Zvezda in the Belgrade Arena.”

Beaubois sank 10 points in a brilliant individual third-quarter display to spark the visiting team’s 4-20 run, which turned the tide after a 51-44 halftime deficit, forcing Zvezda to play catch-up for the rest of the rip-roaring contest.

The 37-year old Frenchman landed awkwardly after a delightful floater and was carried off the court, forcing Banchi to throw an exhausted Larkin back into the fray after the Efes captain had defied illness to even make the trip to Belgrade.  

‘It didn’t make sense to include him in the roster because he was in no condition to play but he was adamant that he wanted to, especially at the end of the third quarter after the Beaubois injury. That’s what a captain and a leader does, as he and the team went the extra mile to get the win,” said Banchi.

Zvezda, which suffered a second successive home loss following [last week’s 72-78 reverse against Real Madrid](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/real-madrid-edges-closer-to-postseason-with-win-at-crvena-zvezda-72-78/), will be tempted to send early Easter gifts to its former head coach Dusko Ivanovic after he propelled the Serbian team into the postseason.

Ivanovic steered Virtus to [a 90-70 home rout](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/virtus-dominates-italian-derby-90-70-eliminates-milan/) of [EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/ea7-emporio-armani-milan/mil/?season=2024-25) in the Italian derby, handing Zvezda a play-in berth on a silver platter with a game to spare while it also eliminated Milan. Zvezda was also helped by [Zalgiris's 70-66 triumph](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/partizan-out-of-postseason-after-70-66-loss-at-zalgiris/) over [Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/partizan-mozzart-bet-belgrade/par/?season=2024-25) on Thursday, as the result knocked out Zvezda’s bitter city foe out of postseason contention.

The combination of those two outcomes spared Zvezda the daunting task of having to beat reigning champion [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/?season=2024-25) on the road in the final game of the regular season, with Zvezda suffering a dip in form during the home straight.

Game News

Having climbed into the top six, Zvezda lost five of its last seven games and came perilously close to dropping out of the entire postseason picture. The Serbian side was saved by past merits along with [a shock 73-81 win](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/center-less-crvena-zvezda-stuns-olympiacos-73-81/) at table-topping [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/?season=2024-25), which briefly snapped the poor run and turned out to be pivotal in Zvezda’s bid to reach the business end of the competition.

Summing up his team’s effort, head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos was relieved to see other results going Zvezda’s way but also lauded his men for a season-long quest that saw the Serbian champs squeeze into the postseason for the first time since [2016](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/standings/?season=2015-16&type=Traditional&phase=TOP%2016).

 “Like I told the players, we’re in the play-in because of other results going our way, but also because of our own results up to this point,” the Greek tactician said.

“This is very promising for our future as we’ve had some great games, both won and lost. We’ve taken the club to another level and we deserve to be in the play-in. This is a big step for the club and we’ll fight hard to reach the playoffs. Hopefully we’ll have some of our injured players back and I want to thank our fans again from the bottom of my heart and on the team’s behalf for their support.”   

Few teams will fancy a knockout clash with the former champs after their impressive streak 

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2025-04-04T18:00:00.000Z)

EuroLeague top photos of the week

Neal Sako of ASVEL denies Baskonia's Donta Hall

Yanni Wetzell of ALBA Berlin dunks against Olympiacos

Jabari Parker of Barcelona looks to drive past Fenerbahce's Nigel Hayes-Davis

Carsen Edwards of Bayern tries to get by Maccabi's Levi Randolph

Alberto Abalde or Real Madrid corrals the ball in front of Paris's TJ Shorts

Carlik Jones of Partizan emotes after scoring against Zalgiris

Kendrick Nunn of Panathinaikos dribbles by Monaco's Matthew Strazel 

Zach LeDay of Milan holds of Virtus's Matt Morgan for a score

Filip Petrusev of Crvena Zvezda turns away the shot from Efes's Elijah Bryant

Look back at all the action from Round 33 of the regular season by checking out the best photos of the week! 

Top 10 photos of the week: Round 33

Anadolu Efes confirmed on Saturday that guard Rodrigue Beaubois will be sidelined for at least the next six weeks after suffering a partial tear in his calf.

Rodrigue Beaubois out for at least six weeks with calf tear

[Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/ist/) confirmed on Saturday that guard [Rodrigue Beaubois](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/rodrigue-beaubois/006590/) will be sidelined for at least the next six weeks after suffering a partial tear in his calf.

Beaubois had to be helped off the court with 2:07 to go in the third quarter of [Efes's Round 33 overtime victory at Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/efes-beats-crvena-zvezda-96-97-to-boost-playoff-hopes/) in Round 33 last Friday night.

"Our player Rodrigue Beaubois, who injured his left leg in the EuroLeague game against Crvena Zvezda, underwent an MRI scan," read Efes's tweet.

"As a result of the tests, our player was diagnosed with a partial tear in his calf area. Beaubois's rehabilitation process has started and he will be out for at least six weeks."

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">Kızılyıldız ile oynadığımız Euroleague maçında sol ayağından sakatlanan oyuncumuz Rodrigue Beaubois’nın MR görüntülemeleri gerçekleştirilmiştir. <br><br>Yapılan tetkikler neticesinde, oyuncumuza kalf bölgesinde kısmi yırtık teşhisi konulmuştur. Beaubois’nın rehabilitasyon süreci… <a href="https://t.co/iUTrY9cg34">pic.twitter.com/iUTrY9cg34</a></p>&mdash; Anadolu Efes SK (@AnadoluEfesSK) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnadoluEfesSK/status/1908485577583841286?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The 37-year-old Beaubois is an important part of Efes's rotation, averaging 8.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists this season, and has come up with some big performances of late during his team's seven-game unbeaten run.

Efes, now fifth in the standings with a 19-14 record, faces Zalgiris Kaunas in Round 34 and a win will be enough to clinch a direct spot in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

In Beaubois's absence, [Shane Larkin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/shane-larkin/007200/), [Elijah Bryant](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/elijah-bryant/009846/), [Darius Thompson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/darius-thompson/011078/) and [PJ Dozier](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/perry-dozier-jr/012742/) will likely all see an increase in their minutes.

More Efes News

The injury occurred during Efes's Round 33 win at Crvena Zvezda

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

A brilliant performance in a direct battle for home-court advantage in the playoffs has earned Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens guard Kendrick Nunn his third MVP of the Round honor this season.

Round 33 MVP: Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens

A brilliant performance in a direct battle for home-court advantage in the playoffs has earned Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens guard [Kendrick Nunn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kendrick-nunn/012774/) his third MVP of the Round honor this season.

Panathinaikos beat AS Monaco 76-88 and Nunn starred with 37 points, making 9-of-12 two-pointers and 5-of-5 threes. Nunn also made all 4 free throws, had 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 1 steal while drawing 6 fouls. The Greens’ guard accumulated 43 PIR, the highest of his career and tied for the second highest in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague this season. This is the fourth time in his career that Nunn has been the MVP of the Round, and three of those have come over the last eight rounds.

Behind Nunn sit two players with 32 PIR. In a 92-100 win over ALBA Berlin, Olympiacos Piraeus guard [Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/) had 22 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 block. Meanwhile, [Carsen Edwards](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/carsen-edwards/011987/) of FC Bayern Munich netted 33 points on 9-of-18 three-point shooting, along with 5 assists and 4 rebounds, in a 93-90 loss at Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv.

[Alec Peters](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/alec-peters/008829/) netted 33 points on 8-for-9 three-point shooting, finishing the game with a PIR of 30. Rounding out the list of Round 33 top performers is [Mario Hezonja](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/mario-hezonja/003108/) of Real Madrid, who had a 29 PIR in a 105-104 win over Paris Basketball, scoring a season-high 26 points and also collecting 3 rebounds and 2 steals.

### Individual highs: Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos, 37 points

Nunn led all scorers with 37 points. He increased his EuroLeague-best average to 20.8 points per game.

FC Barcelona’s [Joel Parra](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/joel-parra/007464/) had 12 rebounds, more than any other player in this round. [Joel Bolomboy](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/joel-bolomboy/009035/) of Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade leads the league in this category, averaging 8.3 rebounds per night.

Three players had 10 assists in Round 33: [TJ Shorts](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tj-shorts/012608/) of Paris Basketball and ALBA's duo of [Martin Hermannsson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/martin-hermannsson/008780/) and [Will McDowell-White](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/will-mcdowell-white/008062/). Shorts is the league leader in assists with 7.5 per game.

Barcelona’s [Jabari Parker](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jabari-parker/012745/) and Parra each had 3 steals, the most in Round 33. Bayern’s [Nick Weiler-Babb](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nick-weiler-babb/010391/) remains atop the steals charts with 1.6 per contest.

[Khalifa Diop](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/khalifa-diop/008072/) of Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz and [Vincent Poirier](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/vincent-poirier/004887/) of Anadolu Efes Istanbul each had 3 blocks in this round. Real Madrid center [Walter Tavares](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/walter-tavares/005791/) is the EuroLeague’s top shot-blocker with 1.4 rejections per game.

There were three double-doubles in Round 33: Shorts (24 points, 10 assists), his Paris teammate [Tyson Ward](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tyson-ward/012610/) (18 points, 10 rebounds), and Parra (15 points, 12 rebounds).

This the fourth such award of Nunn’s career

Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fans, we have our 33rd winner in this season's EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge! Greg Korkoliakos beat everyone else in Round 33 with his team 'Montreal3', which had a Fantasy Challenge score of 263.35.

EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge Round 33 winner

Turkish Airlines EuroLeague fans, we have our 33rd winner in this season's [EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/)! Greg Korkoliakos beat everyone else in Round 33 with his team 'Montreal3', which had a Fantasy Challenge score of 263.35.

Greg had the following starting lineup: Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul's Nigel Hayes Davies as team captain, then Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens's Kendrick Nunn, TJ Shorts of Paris Basketball, Carsen Edwards of FC Bayern Munich and Vincent Poirier of Anadolu Efes Istanbul. His sixth man was Nigel Williams-Goss of Olympiacos Piraeus. The rest of the bench consisted of Olympiacos's Alec Peters, Filip Petrusev of Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, Wenyen Gabriel of Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens and Melvin Ajinca of LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. His team's head coach was Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz play-caller Pablo Laso.

The prize for finishing first in Round 33 is a free VIP Euroleague TV subscription for the 2025-26 season, so congratulations, Greg!

Marko Djukic and his team 'Kughat' remains the leader of the [EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/) overall standings with 5,674.44 points.

Trades are now open for Round 34. Remember, four trades are allowed before each round until the end of the regular season. You can either trade up to four players, or a head coach and three players.

The first game in Round 34 tips off on April 10, as ASVEL hosts AS Monaco and Bayern welcomes Fenerbahce, both games tipping off at 20:00 CET, 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. 

A strong finish to the EuroLeague regular season has propelled Anadolu Efes into the postseason picture and with one round to go, with the Turkish side downing another key team in the postseason race, KK Crvena zvezda.

Efes rolled on with another impressive road win

A strong finish to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular season has propelled [Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/anadolu-efes-istanbul/ist/) into the postseason picture and with one round to go, the competition’s former champs have every chance of securing an automatic play-off berth.

Efes is on the verge of a top-six finish after [a dramatic 96-97 overtime win at Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/efes-beats-crvena-zvezda-96-97-to-boost-playoff-hopes/), the Turkish side’s seventh in a row ahead of the final regular-season clash at home to already eliminated Zalgiris Kaunas.

The spectacular see-saw battle in the Serbian capital produced everything a basketball fan could ask for. Audacious off-balance three-pointers from Zvezda’s [Isaiah Canaan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/isaiah-canaan/010612/) were countered by monster dunks by Efes big man [Vincent Poirier](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/vincent-poirier/004887/), who claimed the player of the game accolade as he came up big down the stretch.

Poirier, who racked up 14 points, 4 assists and 3 boards, was level-headed after an absorbing contest in which the lead kept changing hands time and again before Efes came out on top on the back of a 0-7 blitz in overtime.

“It was a great game, we stayed in it all the way and that’s always hard here with the fans getting behind their team,” Poirier said in his postgame comments. ”We knew it was going to be difficult so I am proud of the team and now there’s one more game to go until the end of the regular season.

“Defense was decisive tonight as we conceded 51 points in the first half but we improved in the second. We raked up a lot of rebounds and forced some turnovers and that was the key.”

Efes looks a different team under Italian head coach Luca Banchi, who heaped praise on both sides and lauded his team for staying strong in the face of adversity, having seen Zvezda wipe out a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit.

“Congratulations to both teams and it was amazing how Zvezda came back,” said Banchi. “They never gave up, while we approached the third quarter as a top team after trailing at halftime.”

“I am so proud of the team, especially how they reacted in overtime after the frustration of letting victory slip away from our grasp in regulation. Great focus, great energy coming from some key stops.”

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">📢 <a href="https://twitter.com/Migros_Turkiye?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Migros_Turkiye</a> ile Kızılyıldız karşılaşmamızın en iyisi Vincent Poirier!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Poirierile%C4%B0yisin?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Poirierileİyisin</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BenimYerimBuras%C4%B1?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BenimYerimBurası</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MigrosHepimize%C4%B0yiGelecek?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MigrosHepimizeİyiGelecek</a> <a href="https://t.co/JMkjqs3gXr">pic.twitter.com/JMkjqs3gXr</a></p>&mdash; Anadolu Efes SK (@AnadoluEfesSK) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnadoluEfesSK/status/1908255241914482891?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Despite the loss, Zvezda was able to clinch a play-in berth, the club’s first postseason involvement since 2016. Having lost to Efes, Zvezda faced an anxious wait for the Italian derby result to go its way.

The outcome duly played into the Serbian team’s hands, as [Virtus Segafredo Bologna drubbed EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 90-70](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/virtus-dominates-italian-derby-90-70-eliminates-milan/) and condemned its perennial domestic rival to elimination from the business end of Europe’s premier club competition.

Zvezda’s head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos was pleased with his injury-hit team’s effort, as the Serbian outfit missed several key players. The shorthanded roster came close to forcing a final twist and was given a rousing send-off by its fervent 16,000 home crowd.   

Congratulations to the players,” Sfairopoulos said. “I am very proud how we performed as we played really hard despite having so many absentees.”

The Turkish giant got the better of Crvena Zvezda in a spectacular clash 

The picture looks a bit more rosy for Baskonia after six straight home wins, with a big summer awaiting coach Pablo Laso as he looks to make his side a postseason team once again.

Baskonia showing green shoots heading into next season

[Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/baskonia-vitoria-gasteiz/bas/) came into Round 33 knowing that it has zero chance of reaching the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague postseason, but coach Pablo Laso is already laying the groundwork for a bounce-back campaign next year.

The Baskonia players put on a show for the fans inside Buesa Arena on Friday night, romping away to [a dominant 36-point win (111-75) over LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/baskonia-wipes-the-floor-with-asvel-111-75/). That margin of victory is tied for the fourth highest in club history.

What the triumph also meant was a sixth straight win at home. Baskonia started this run with impressive victories over Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (91-77) and FC Barcelona (88-86) before downing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (89-82) and Zalgiris Kaunas (66-65). Before downing ASVEL, its previous home game was another high-scoring affair as Baskonia poured in a season-high 112 points in a 112-89 win over playoff-chasing FC Bayern Munich.

One sign of a Baskonia team that is functioning well is how it performs at Buesa Arena, but things were not going the way of Coach Laso's squad earlier in the season. Amazingly, you have to go all the way back to Round 10, 11 home games ago, to find a time that Baskonia lost by more than one possession. So maybe this is just the law of averages.

Still, the Spanish play-caller was appointed by Baskonia in late June, at which point many players on the roster had already been signed or it was clear that they would not be moving. In that sense, Coach Laso has had to learn how to get the best out of his players... and the last two home wins over Bayern and ASVEL show that progress has been made on that end.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="es" dir="ltr">¡Ya son 🔟 triunfos consecutivos en casa, baskonistas!<br><br>Nos dais 🔋🔋🔋<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoazenBaskonia?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GoazenBaskonia</a> <a href="https://t.co/0RwzmesPAX">pic.twitter.com/0RwzmesPAX</a></p>&mdash; Baskonia (@Baskonia) <a href="https://twitter.com/Baskonia/status/1908254306454614426?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Heading into an important summer for Baskonia, it has everyone under contract apart from [Chima Moneke](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/chima-moneke/012201/), [Luka Samanic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/luka-samanic/007579/) (he has an option for next year), [Sander Raieste](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/sander-raieste/008850/) and [Ognjen Jaramaz](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/ognjen-jaramaz/004058/). Retaining Moneke, in particular, will be priority number one for the Baskonia front office, but the good news is that Coach Laso has a much better feel for the roster than he did when he first arrived.

What has become clear is how important it is to have a fit and healthy [Markus Howard](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/markus-howard/011948/), particularly when he's on fire like he was against ASVEL with 25 points. The same could be said about captain [Tadas Sedekerskis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/tadas-sedekerskis/007230/), whose team-first approach and calmness make Baskonia a better team. 

A pleasant surprise has to be the emergence of [Trent Forrest](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/trent-forrest/013367/) into a reliable EuroLeague guard, posting 13 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals in Round 33. [Khalifa Diop](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/khalifa-diop/008072/) is reminding fans why he was the BKT EuroCup Rising Star as well, recording a career-high 3 blocks in the triumph over ASVEL. [Nikos Rogkavopoulos](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nikolaos-rogkavopoulos/011085/) and [Donta Hall](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/donta-hall/011196/), when both are locked in, are two important weapons for Baskonia, too.

A fourth season from five without postseason basketball is hardly what Baskonia fans would have wanted before the 2024-25 campaign started, but the team has shown green shoots of late and that has to be a positive for Coach Laso.

It has turned Buesa Arena into a fortress once again

Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz v LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (2025-04-04T18:30:00.000Z)

Olympiacos BC returned to the top of the EuroLeague standings after a stellar performance by Alec Peters, who went a career-best 8 for 9 from downtown en route to a career-high 33 points.

Alec Peters thrived in Olympiacos’s enforced small-ball system at ALBA

Georgios Bartzokas saw his frontcourt options run out heading into [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/)'s Round 33 road game against ALBA Berlin. With both Moustapha Fall and Nikola Milutinov sidelined with injuries and Moses Wright having recently returned from long-term absence, [Alec Peters](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/alec-peters/008829/) was assigned with the tough task to fill in by featuring at center position on Friday night.

Wright did start and netted 8 points in 13:47 on the floor, but it was Peters who carried the team on his shoulders. The Olympiacos forward helped the guests to stretch the floor and thrived in the chaos that was created in ALBA’s defense. Peters went a career-best 8 for 9 from deep, recording a career-high 33 points in just 24:32.

Yet, when asked about his sublime outing at Uber Arena after the game, he demonstrated why his mentality and work ethic have allowed him to compete at the highest level.

“It’s a great game – career high,” Peters told EuroLeague TV. “But I think what’s sticking with me is that I had like 0 rebounds. I know there’s going to be some people that’ll give me sh\*t about that. There’s always stuff to get improved on.”

Surprisingly, his PIR of 30 was not the highest for the visitors, with [Nigel Williams-Goss](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/nigel-williams-goss/007982/) pulling off another extraordinary performance as Olympiacos’s main floor manager in Thomas Walkup’s absence. The 30-year-old guard registered a season-high 22 points to go with 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals for a career-high PIR of 32.

More importantly, this win saw the Reds climb back to the top of the standings and end a three-game losing slide.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">📸 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Euroleague?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Euroleague</a>, Round 33: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BEROLY?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BEROLY</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OlympiacosBC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OlympiacosBC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreOlympiacos?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreOlympiacos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TogetherWeFight?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TogetherWeFight</a> <a href="https://t.co/2gu6Ks8GXK">pic.twitter.com/2gu6Ks8GXK</a></p>&mdash; Olympiacos B.C. (@Olympiacos_BC) <a href="https://twitter.com/Olympiacos_BC/status/1908267268414361799?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“I think we were kind of in a little bit of a funk after three losses,” Peters admitted. “It didn’t matter how we did it, we just needed to get it done. We needed to get the win to put us back in first place to control our destiny in the last game.

“It’s just kind of an energy boost for the team going into the playoffs. You’ve spent this whole season grinding, trying to be the best team, trying to show you’re the best team. Being first after the regular season I think is important for the club.”

A victory at home against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the last round of the campaign will be enough for Olympiacos to clinch the top seed for the second time in three seasons. 

Both Fall and Milutinov are expected to return to action next week, but Peters proved on Friday night that he can thrive in a small-ball lineup that offers Olympiacos an ace up its sleeve – a potential curveball for the Reds' opponents in the playoffs.

The forward featured at the ‘5’ to cover for the absences of Moustapha Fall and Nikola Milutinov

ALBA Berlin v Olympiacos Piraeus (2025-04-04T18:00:00.000Z)

Virtus Segafredo Bologna dominated from start to finish, sinking the visiting EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 90-70 on Friday night. The win in the Italian derby improved Virtus to 9-24 ahead of the final round of the regular season, while this loss eliminated Milan, which dropped to a 16-17 record, from postseason contention.

Milan scored the first basket of the game, but that happened to be one of only two field goals in the first quarter, at the end of which Virtus led by double digits and never looked back. Matt Morgan led the scorers on the winning team with 16 points. Tornike Shengelia had 14 points, Will Clyburn and Ante Zizic scored 13 points apiece, while Nicola Akele had 10 points. Zach LeDay led Milan with 19 points, while Stefano Tonut and Giampaolo Ricci scored 10 apiece in the loss.

Game Videos

Freddie Gillespie opened the scoring with a dunk, but that was the only basket Milan scored in the opening 5 minutes. Meanwhile, Will Clyburn scored 7 points on the other end, including a transition triple, to help Virtus open a 9-2 lead. Milan made 5 free throws but no field goals, while Clyburn and Tornike Shengelia scored inside and Matt Morgan from the outside to open an 18-7 advantage. The visitors ended their drought with a put-back layup from Guglielmo Caruso, but Marco Belinelli’s buzzer-beating jumper made it 22-9 after 10 minutes.

Shavon Shields opened the second quarter by making a floater, but Shengelia hit a jumper and set up Momo Diouf for an easy dunk and a 15-point margin. Shengelia had 5 more points, including a triple to open 31-25, before Nikola Mirotic and LeDay hit a triple apiece and Shields drained a long jumper. A three-point play from LeDay cut the deficit to 37-27, but Morgan scored 5 points to end the half, including a three-pointer to make it 44-29 at halftime.

Akele scored 7 points in the first 3 minutes and 20 seconds of the third quarter, including a corner triple, to open a 53-32 margin. A triple from Daniel Hackett gave the hosts a 58-34 lead, before Mirotic, Tonut and Ousmane Diop got the visitors going. However, Isaia Cordinier’s triple helped the hosts take a 65-42 lead into the final quarter, during which the lead grew to 70-42 and 73-45 after a triple from Achille Polonara. Milan never got closer than 19 points the rest of the way.

In its home finale, Virtus registered its biggest home win of the season

Virtus dominates Italian derby, 90-70, eliminates Milan

Virtus Segafredo Bologna v EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (2025-04-04T18:30:00.000Z)