Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul did away with its three-game losing streak by downing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 65-75 on the road on Thursday.
Fenerbahce bounces back in Tel Aviv
Game Report
1 min read
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul did away with its three-game losing streak by downing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 65-75 on the road on Thursday. Fenerbahce improved to 3-3 in the standings while Maccabi dropped to 2-4. Ali Muhammed led the winners with 17 points, Nando De Colo added 13 while Jarell Eddie had 11 for Fenerbahce. Scottie Wilbekin paced Maccabi with 23 points, Ante Zizic posted 11 points and 10 rebounds and Chris Jones scored 10 for Maccabi, which led for the best parts of the opening three quarters. Dyshawn Pierre. Muhammed and De Colo made the difference down the stretch.
Regular Season
Round 6 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Dragan Bender got Maccabi going with a three-pointer, which Zizic followed with a put-back layup for a 5-0 lead. Jan Vesely scored down low and De Colo hit a backdoor jumper to bring Fenerbahce within 7-4. Elijah Bryant downed a five-meter shot, igniting a 6-0 run which Wilbekin capped with a reverse layup to boost Maccabi's lead to 13-4. Ahmet Duverioglu rescued the guests with a layup-plus-foul and Eddie struck from downtown, but Wilbekin kept Maccabi in charge, 18-10. Muhammed came off the bench and buried back-to-back triples. Edgaras Ulanovas swished a jumper to bring Fenerbahce within 22-18 after 10 minutes. Jones downed a jumper early in the second quarter, but Muhammed and Melih Mahmutoglu each struck from beyond the arc. Eddie buried a turnaround jumper to give Fenerbahce its first lead, 24-26. Oz Blayzer joined the three-point shootout, starting a 7-0 run that Jones capped with a fastbreak layup that prompted the guests to stop the game at 31-26. De Colo and Vesely stepped up for Fenerbahce and Muhammed buried his fourth triple, but Zizic and Wilbekin kept Maccabi ahead, 38-35, at halftime.
Zizic and Lorenzo Brown exchanged baskets right after the break and Wilbekin restored a 42-37 Maccabi lead. Eddie downed a three-pointer and erased Wilbekin's triple with another shot from downtown. Bryant scored in penetration, but Brown tied it at 47-47. Jones hit a floater and Angelo Caloiaro dunked only to see De Colo and Johnny Hamilton give Fenerbahce the lead, 54-56, after 30 minutes. Muhammed and Mahmutoglou nailed back-to-back three-pointers early in the fourth quarter. Bryant answered from downtown, but Muhammed scored in penetration and Pierre followed a three-point play with a close basket for a 58-69 Fenerbahce lead with under 6 minutes left. Wilbekin tried to change things with 5 quick points, however, Vesely scored down low to make it 63-71. Zizic scored on a tip-in, but De Colo matched that with a jumper that sealed the outcome, 65-73, with a minute to go.
Game Leaders
Pivotal performer
Muhammed turned back the clock with a stellar performance, stepping up every time Fenerbahce needed him. He finished the game with 17 points, his most in the EuroLeague since the 2019 playoffs, on 5-of-6 three-point shooting, and a PIR of 15.
Game-changing moment
Fenerbahce started the fourth quarter with a 54-56 lead and quickly found good shots from beyond the arc. Muhammed nailed his fifth from as many attempts and Mahmutoglou buried his second for a 54-62 score. Fenerbahce managed to keep control of the game from that moment until the final buzzer.
Stellar stat
Three-point shots and free throws made the difference in this game. Fenerbahce downed 11 of 22 shots from downtown (50.0%), limiting Maccabi to just 5-of-26 three-point shooting (19.2%). Maccabi made 10 of 15 free throws (66.6%) and Fenerbahce was near-perfect from the foul line, 12 of 13 (92.3%).
Did you know?
Maccabi pulled down 21 offensive rebounds, matching the second-best mark in club history. Maccabi had 22 offensive rebounds in a 90-83 win against Real Madrid on November 9, 2017, and previously had 21 in an 88-79 victory against Panathinaikos OPAP Athens on December 19, 2019.