Round 33: Chase resumes for last four playoff spots

Round 33 of the Turkish Airlines Regular Season will see four qualifiers continue gearing up for the playoffs while others battle to join them in postseason action. Here's your guide to the penultimate round's action.

Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv

Zalgiris (17-15) will look to keep pushing for a place in the playoffs by overcoming a red-hot Maccabi (19-13), which has won six straight games to move within touching distance of a place in the playoffs. The visitors are assured a playoff spot with a victory or a loss by 1 point in regulation time. Zalgiris is concluding a run of four home games out of five and has already won three of those based on an excellent defense that has not allowed more than 75 points at home since early February. But it will not be easy to stop a Maccabi offense which has scored at least 85 points in the last five games.

Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Olympiacos Piraeus

Zvezda (15-17) has already been eliminated from reaching the playoffs but has pride to play for against visiting Olympiacos (23-9), which knows it can wrap up first place by winning in Belgrade. Zvezda gained a memorable triumph when the teams last met, winning 86-90 at the Peace and Friendship Stadium in December behind 22 points and 8 assists from Luca Vildoza. The hosts would love to thrill their fans by wrapping up a season sweep over the league leader on Thursday.

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul

A hugely important Istanbul derby will see Fenerbahce (18-14) look to put at least one foot in the playoffs while reigning champ Efes (16-16) needs the victory simply to avoid elimination. Efes finally found top form last week with victories of 20 and 17 points respectively over Milan and Virtus, but has already lost once to Fenerbahce this season. Dimitris Itoudis's team came out on top, 79-88, in November, with Marko Guduric converting 5 of 6 three-pointers among his 19 points.

Valencia Basket vs. Segafredo Virtus Bologna

Two teams looking to shake off the disappointment of failing to reach the playoffs go head to head at La Fonteta as Valencia (14-18) welcomes Virtus (13-19). With just one win separating the teams, this game could decide which finishes higher in the end of season standings. Host Valencia will make certain of doing so with a win, and also has revenge on its mind after suffering an 89-59 thrashing at Virtus in November when Jordan Mickey powered the Italian team with 16 points and 6 rebounds.

Real Madrid vs. FC Bayern Munich

Two of the most famous sports clubs in the world meet in the Spanish capital as Real (22-10) hosts Bayern (11-21), with the home team determined to finish as high up the standings as possible after already securing home-court advantage in the playoffs. Real, which will be anxious to avoid dropping a place and getting a theoretically tougher opponent, leads the league in rebounding (36.8 per game) and will look to establish physical superiority over an always-tough Bayern.

Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne

Baskonia (17-15) will look to maintain its strong form at Buesa Arena and possibly clinch a playoffs place by downing desperate ASVEL (8-24), which can only hope to avoid finishing in last place after losing 10 games in a row. Baskonia, which has won five of six at home after a 92-69 demolition of Fenerbahce last time out behind 35 points from Vanja Marinkovic, knows that it will quality for the playoffs with a victory if Zalgiris loses earlier on Thursday.

Panathinaikos Athens vs. ALBA Berlin

Friday's opening tipoff is a end-of the-table battle between Panathinaikos (11-21) and ALBA (9-23). With a two-win margin, the Greens know they can secure a higher-placed finish than the visitor by claiming a home victory. ALBA gained its biggest win of the season when the teams last met, cruising home 94-65 in October behind Luke Sikma's huge double-double of 16 points and 15 rebounds. As such, the German squad will also claim head-to-head advantage if it can triumph in Athens for the first time since 2019.

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. FC Barcelona

In-form Barcelona (22-10) will look to limber up for the playoffs by making it five wins in a row and potentially securing a second-place finish with a trip to Milan (14-18), which saw its late-season charge for the playoffs fall short with two losses last week. Barca is the most accurate three-point shooting team in the competition, converting 40.4% of its long-range attempts, but Milan boasts the league's second-best defense in that respect, allowing opponents to make just 34.4% of three-point attempts.

AS Monaco vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade

One team heading for the playoffs hosts another close to securing that status as Monaco (21-11) welcomes Partizan (18-14), which needs one more win to make certain of post-season action. One area for potential Monaco dominance is rebounding: the Roca team leads the league in offensive boards, averaging 12.6 per game, while Partizan ranks last in defensive rebounds with 20.9 per night. Limiting the hosts' second-chance points should be a priority for Zeljko Obradovic's men. Monaco may yet move up from fourth place, but has to win both games left and get help for that to happen.