Fenerbahce becomes the second team to lock up a playoff spot

The Turkish giant, having won 11 of its last 14 games, is playoff bound

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul has become the second team this season to clinch a spot in the 2025 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs, making this the third straight year that the fans on the Asian side of Istanbul will be watching playoff basketball.

To secure its playoff berth, Fenerbahce needed to overcome Paris Basketball at home in Round 31, which it did with a memorable 101-100 victory thanks to Nigel Hayes-Davis's game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer.

Strong start and a strong finish

Fenerbahce’s journey to its 11th playoff trip this century had some ups and downs in the first part of the season as the team was hit hard with injuries to key backcourt players. Scottie Wilbekin suffered a season-ending injury in Round 1, Wade Baldwin and Devon Hall were both absent for a significant amount of time, and Marko Guduric and Sertac Sanli missed games, too.

None of that prevented Fenerbahce from having a strong start to the campaign, winning nine games in the opening 11 rounds to sit atop the standings.

However, late in November and throughout December, with the forementioned injuries piling up, Fenerbahce went on a losing stretch by five of its next six games, including a 30-point home drubbing against Monaco and a 27-point road loss at FC Barcelona.

But with the turn of the new calendar year and players slowly coming back post-injury, head coach Sarunas Jasikevicius steadied the ship. Fenerbahce has been one of the best teams ever since.

Led by All-EuroLeague forward Hayes-Davis and key contributions from Guduric and Hall, Fenerbahce went on a run. With its Round 31 win against Paris, Fenerbahce has now won 11 of its last 14 games.

That streak included a road win against Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, a 10-point triumph in Piraeus against a league-leading Olympiacos, as well as big wins in Paris and Milan.

Despite a balanced offensive contribution coming from much of the roster, the key to Fenerbahce’s success – its ability to overcome injuries – has come from its defensive effort. Fenerbahce has allowed the fourth-fewest points per game (80.8 PPG), and that defense has been particularly stiff around the rims where Fenerbahce has held opponents to 9.5 offensive rebounds, the second-fewest in the league, and the fourth-lowest two-point shooting at 53.9%.

Looking to continue playoff winning habit

So far, Fenerbahce has won six of its 10 playoff series, but it has an even better percentage when you consider that it has won six of eight best-of-five series.

Fenerbahce made five Final Fours in a row, from 2014 to 2019, and won the championship in 2017. It also reached the Final Four last season before falling in the semis against Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens in Berlin.

While there is still a battle in the fight to secure home-court advantage in the playoffs, Fenerbahce is now assured that it will be engaging in battles in April and May to make its seventh EuroLeague Final Four appearance.