By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague adopted the best-of-five format for playoff series in 2009. Out of the 64 series since, 15 of them have gone the distance. To be exact, 13 have been decided already and two more will be decided this week.
The latest Game 5 schedule consists of top-seeded FC Barcelona facing eighth-placed FC Bayern Munich on Tuesday and second-ranked Olympiacos versus seventh-seeded AS Monaco on Wednesday.
Forget the complicated math. In this case, every single winning side played Game 5 at home. This week we will find out if that record is ripe to be broken. For now, let’s recall the Top 5 Game 5s in competition history on our trip down memory lane.
WHO: (G1) Real Madrid – (H2) Power Electronics Valencia
WHERE: Madrid Caja Magica
WHEN: 7 April 2011
WHY: 1-0, 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, 3-2
Coming off breaks on both ends – Valencia prevailing 81-75 in Game 2 at Madrid and Los Blancos recovering the home-court advantage with a 75-66 victory in Game 3, Game 5 was must-see. A couple of Spanish clubs ready to battle it out for a spot in the Final Four. Valencia built a double-digit lead and was in control through the first half, but Real stormed back after the break. The hosts went up 43-42 early in the second half and 60-51 early in the fourth quarter. After Valencia rallied to 62-58, Real scored the last 6 points to seal the win.
FINAL SCORE: 66-58
TOP SCORERS: Carlos Suarez 12, Clay Tucker 12 – Dusko Savanovic 19
WHO: (G1) Panathinaikos Athens – (H2) Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv
WHERE: OAKA
WHEN: 5 April 2012
WHY: 1-0, 1-1, 1-2, 2-2, 3-2
From a convincing 93-73 victory in Game 1 to an overtime loss, 94-92, in Game 2 for Panathinaikos. After suffering a narrow loss, 65-62 to Maccabi, in Game 3, the Greens survived Game 4 with a 78-69 victory to force Game 5. Already considered a classic series, Game 5 was equally exciting down the stretch despite Panathinaikos registering 12-point leads in both the third and fourth quarter. Guy Pnini sank 3 free throws that knotted the game at 85-85 with 9.8 seconds left. Dimitris Diamantidis made a free throw of his own for a one-point lead and missed the second with 5 seconds left. Tal Burstein running out of time after the rebound wrapped up proceedings.
FINAL SCORE: 86-85
TOP SCORERS: Dimitris Diamantidis 25 – David Blu 14
WHO: (F2) Olympiacos Piraeus – (E3) Anadolu Efes Istanbul
WHERE: Peace and Friendship Stadium
WHEN: 26 April 2013
WHY: 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 2-2, 3-2
The home team won every single game in the series. However, Efes coming back from a 2-0 hole to force Game 5 seemed to have gained momentum, especially after going up by 15 points midway through the second quarter. A 7-0 run earned Olympiacos a 5-point lead before the clutch three-pointer by Acie Law sank the dagger into the visitors.
FINAL SCORE: 82-72
TOP SCORERS: Vassilis Spanoulis 19 – Jamon Gordon 14
WHO: (4) AX Armani Exchange Milan – (5) FC Bayern Munich
WHERE: Mediolanum Forum
WHEN: 4 May 2021
WHY: 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 2-2, 3-2
A fourth versus a fifth seed is considered a likely candidate for fireworks. In this series, it came down to a single possession in every matchup except Game 2, including Game 5 itself. The home side jumped to a 17-point lead late in the third quarter, but was up by only 2 points with 12.6 seconds remaining. Saving the day, Kyle Hines with a trademark defensive effort stopped Wade Baldwin IV with 7.9 seconds left and won the subsequent jump ball. Shavon Shields followed up with a free throw and Paul Zipser missed a long-range shot at the buzzer.
FINAL SCORE: 92-89
TOP SCORERS: Shavon Shields 34 – Jalen Reynolds 19
WHO: (3) Anadolu Efes – (6) Real Madrid
WHERE: Sinan Erdem Dome
WHEN: 4 May 2021
WHY: 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 2-2, 3-2
Considered a stretch to even avoid the sweep after dropping both games in Turkey, Real Madrid managed to bounce back versus Anadolu Efes and force Game 5. The Spanish giant was extremely close to a third win in a row after grabbing a late lead at 75-73 and being tied at 80-80. A three-pointer by Krunoslav Simon complemented by 5-of-6 free-throw shooting down the stretch shipped the home side to the Final Four, leading to the first championship in club history.
FINAL SCORE: 88-83
TOP SCORERS: Chris Singleton 26 – Nicolas Laprovittola 17
The remaining Game 5s:
2008-09: Regal FC Barcelona – Tau Ceramica Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 78-62
2012-13: FC Barcelona Regal – Panathinaikos 64-53
2013-14: Real Madrid – Olympiacos 83-69
2013-14: CSKA Moscow – Panathinaikos 74-44
2015-16: Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar– FC Barcelona Lassa 81-67
2016-17: Olympiacos – Anadolu Efes 87-78
2018-19: Anadolu Efes – FC Barcelona Lassa 80-71
2020-21: FC Barcelona – Zenit Saint Petersburg 79-53
Photo credit: EUROKINISSI, EuroLeague