Shane Larking majestic performance clinched Anadolu Efes spot in the EuroLeague postseason after the Turks won 87-77 vs ALBA Berlin. Efes improved to 15-11 and mathematically qualified to the next round while ALBA dropped to 11-15.
With this result, AS Monaco also reaches the playoffs for the first time in the history of the team. Shane Larkin led the winners with 28 points as Efes played without leading scorer Vasilije Micic.
“We had some players out, Vasa [Vasilije Micic] was out, Rodri [Rodrigue Beaubois] was out, so I just tried to step up and help the team in any way that I could, and it just went in my favor tonight,” Larkin said.
ALBA took a 15-point (19-34) early in the game before Efes stormed back with a 17-5 run to close the first half down 36-39. Efes took its first lead since the opening basket at the start of the second half with Larkin.
Both teams went back and forth during the third quarter as Efes took a 62-57 lead after 30 minutes of play. ALBA remained close until Adrian Moerman a jump hook for an 80-73 lead late in the fourth before Larkin seal the deal with his six three in the game to gave Efes an 83-75 lead.
ALBA was unable to recover and conceded a loss that drop the Germans out of the playoff race. The Turks climbed 5th in the standings with tonight’s win.
Key of the Game: The home side made some big shots during the last part of the game and prevailed against a tough opponent, who was also playing without many key rotational players.
MVP: Shane Larkin is the main reason the hosts secured its place in the EuroLeague playoffs with his 28 points and PIR of 36.
ALBA Berlin will face Panathinaikos on April 6 in a EuroLeague round 19 makeup matchup. Efes play Bayern Munich next in a crucial game for the playoff seeding of both teams.
Baskonia closes EuroLeague season with win over Zalgiris
Baskonia played its last game in the EuroLeague for the 2021-22 season closing the year with a comfortable 96-79 win over Zalgiris Kaunas.
That was the fifth in the last six games for the Basques, who were out of the playoff contention after EuroLeague round 32 defeat at the hands of AS Monaco last week.
Baskonia took control of the game from the start and take a 35-15 lead at the end of the first quarter as the Spaniards cruised to a wire-to-wire victory.
Steven Enoch and Rokas Giedratis combined for 35 points with Enoch leading the team with 18 on 6-of-10 shooting and five made free throws. For Zalgiris, Lukas Lekavicius finished with a game-high 20 points.
Zalgiris dropped to 7-20, while Baskonia improved to 12-16 to end the season. Zalgiris has one game remaining to end its fruitless season in the competition, a game against Crvena Zvezda on Sunday.
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