By Antonis Stroggylakis / info@eurohoops.net
Fenerbahce Beko vs. Anadolu Efes. Anadolu Efes vs. Fenerbahce Beko. There’s little denying that this has been one of the most highly acclaimed Turkish Airlines EuroLeague classics in the modern era of the competition.
The upcoming edition of this encounter will be hosted by Efes at the newly constructed Basketball Development Center. A state-of-the-art jewel of an arena that was built where the legendary Abdi Ipekci Sports Hall previously stood in Istanbul.
It’s only fitting that the first-ever EuroLeague game to be played at the Basketball Development Center is a meeting between the competition’s two Turkish powerhouses – two perennial Final Four contenders.
Abdi Ipekci is synonymous with the history of Turkish hoops. It is the dream of Turkiye’s basketball authorities that this new gym will carry that legacy, expanding it and pushing it to new heights.
“The establishment of the Basketball Development Center will shape the future of Turkish basketball,” said long-standing Turkish Basketball Federation president Hedo Turkoglu during the arena’s opening ceremony. “This facility has all the necessary infrastructure to elevate Turkish basketball to a world-class level.”
Of course, as Turkoglu also emphasized, the arena is just a material structure. What will give pulse to it are the games themselves, the performances of the players and, of course, the atmosphere that the fans create.
We expect to see a combination of all the above on a grand scale during the upcoming Anadolu Efes vs. Fenerbahce derby. Looking ahead to this game on Thursday night, we have taken a look at five unforgettable past clashes between the two sides.
1. One Shane Larkin to rule them all
The situation: The opener of the 2019 EuroLeague Final Four
The stakes: Whoever wins advances to the EuroLeague Championship Game
The outcome: 92–73 win for Efes
The hero: Shane Larkin
Those inside Vitoria’s Fernando Buesa Arena witnessed the first time that these Turkish powerhouses had met at the EuroLeague Final Four. On the one hand, the 2018-19 Fenerbahce team was carrying the lessons of four consecutive trips to the Final Four and three straight appearances in the championship game. On the other, that Efes team was pretty much a rookie in these kinds of games as the last time the club had made the EuroLeague Final Four was back in 2000.
Yet, what Efes lacked in experienced it made up for in hunger. Shane Larkin, in particular, was voracious: 30 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists for a 43 PIR, a Final Four PIR record that still stands to this day.
Vasilije Micic, Larkin’s partner in crime, delivered his own strong contribution of 25 points and 5 rebounds. Jan Vesely led Fener with 14 points.
2. “The best ‘3’ in Europe is still me. And it will be me.”
Will Clyburn after dropping 21 points over Fenerbahce in a BIG road win for Efes
“If anybody had any doubt who the best ‘3’ in Europe is, it’s still me. And it will be me.”
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/RacMweKbN7
— Antonis Stroggylakis (@AStroggylakis) April 5, 2024
The situation: Round 33 of the 2024-25 EuroLeague regular season
The stakes: A play-in spot for Efes, possibly a top-four spot for Fenerbahce
The outcome: 82–80 road win for Efes
The hero: Will Clyburn
Fenerbahce and Efes entered the penultimate game of the 2023-24 regular season with different goals in mind. In the end, it was the survival instincts of Efes that kicked in and led the team to a precious victory that pushed them closer to a spot in the inaugural the Play-In Showdown.
While the game provided plenty of intense moments and a fittingly thrilling finale, no highlight became as viral as Will Clyburn’s post-game comments. After tying his season high with 21 points to lead Efes to a victory, the former Final Four MVP told EuroLeague TV that no one should question that he remains the best small forward around.
“If anybody had any doubt who the best ‘3’ in Europe is, it’s still me. And it will be me.”
Clyburn’s statement was clearly in reference to the praise that Fenerbahce forward Nigel Hayes-Davis received when he became the first player to score 50 points in a EuroLeague game against ALBA Berlin one week prior. That performance had everyone talking about how Hayes-Davis is the top EuroLeague player in that position, so Clyburn had to make his rebuttal in the one place he knows best – on the floor.
3. On the road to the Final Four
The situation: Round 7 of the 2014-15 Top 16
The stakes: First? Qualification for the Playoffs. Second? Claiming home-court advantage
The outcome: 77–71 road win for Fenerbahce
The hero: Drew Goudelock
Both Fenerbahce and Efes were sitting on a 4-2 record six rounds into the EuroLeague Top 16 before tipoff. Efes, led by the late, great Dusan Ivkovic, was widely considered the favorite to grab the win and gain an advantage in the race for the quarterfinals.
The game was decided in the very last minute. With 35 seconds left, Drew Goudelock came off a screen, received a pass from Emir Preldzic and rapidly fired away for the go-ahead three-point bucket.
Goudelock had just 7 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field until that moment, but showed how cold-blooded he was when it mattered most.
It was like this victory gave wings to Fenerbahce as it went on to win five straight games (including some in tough places on the road, like CSKA Moscow and Olympiacos Piraeus) en route to securing home-court advantage and, later, a first-ever Final Four appearance.
4. A first EuroLeague meeting
The situation: Round 7 of the 2013-14 Top 16
The stakes: Qualification for the playoffs
The outcome: 71–63 road win for Fenerbahce
The hero: Bojan Bogdanovic
February 21, 2014, was a historic day in Turkish basketball as Fenerbahce and Efes faced each other for the first time in the EuroLeague.
The game wasn’t a pretty one by any means, and it was decided in large part thanks to Fenerbahce’s tremendous defensive effort in the last period, when Zeljko Obradovic’s players allowed just 10 points from their opponents.
In the long run, the result didn’t change anything for both teams. Fenerbahce had a 1–5 record over the next six games before closing the season with an 84–65 win over Efes, which wasn’t enough to push them to the quarterfinals. The latter closed the round in the last place of Group E with a 2–12 mark.
5. My gain, your loss
The situation: Round 6 of the 2015-16 Top 16
The stakes: Qualification for the playoffs
The outcome: 77–73 road win for Fenerbahce
The hero: Melih Mahmutoglu
Fenerbahce had already been a Final Four team the previous season and was beginning to cement itself as a EuroLeague powerhouse. Zeljko Obradovic’s team looked unstoppable at the beginning of the Top 16, too, starting with a 5–0 record.
Efes, looking to make their own leap to the next level in the EuroLeague, was 3-2 in the group and this game was an early “final” for them in the race for the playoffs.
As was often the occasion in such battles, it was another close affair between the two sides. The one who stepped up to make the difference was perhaps an unlikely protagonist: Fenerbahce captain Melih Mahmutoglu. He scored 8 of his 14 points in the final period, including the dagger triple that made it 70–77 entering the last minute.
While this victory further helped Fener toward winning the group and setting the foundations for a return to the Final Four, Efes’s defeat proved to be costly eventually as it was eliminated in the tiebreaker with Crvena Zvezda.