Basketball: EuroLeague regular season ends

By Fatih Erel

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey's Fenerbahce Beko finished at top in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular basketball season and will face Lithuania's Zalgiris Kaunas in the playoffs.

In the final round of the regular season, the leader Fenerbahce Beko beat Israel's Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv 78-75 on Friday.

The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular basketball season wrapped up tonight.

Italy's AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan missed its last chance to qualify for the playoffs after losing to Turkey's Anadolu Efes 101-95 Thursday in the final round of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague regular basketball season.

The Turkish side maintained fourth place in the standings. Barcelona Lassa secured fifth place and will face Anadolu Efes in the best-of-five playoffs.

Turkey's Fenerbahce Beko, who were last season’s finalists, top the league and are set for the playoffs.

Three Spanish and two Turkish teams and one team each from Russia, Lithuania and Greece will compete in the playoffs.

Fenerbahce Beko, Anadolu Efes, Real Madrid, CSKA Moscow, Barcelona Lassa, Baskonia, Panathinaikos and Zalgiris have claimed the playoff spots.

Competing in the regular season of the league were sixteen teams -- including four Spanish, three Turkish, two teams from Russia and Greece each, and one team each from Germany, Italy, Israel, Lithuania and Montenegro.

Turkey was represented by Anadolu Efes, Fenerbahce Beko and Darussafaka Tekfen. Two of the Turkish teams will compete in the EuroLeague playoffs.

The top eight teams will compete in playoffs from April 16 to 30.

Winners will advance to the Final Four between May 17-19 at Fernando Buesa Arena in the Spanish city of Vitoria-Gasteiz in single elimination matchups.

The playoff matchups are as follows:

Fenerbahce Beko (Turkey) - Zalgiris (Lithuania)

CSKA Moskova (Russia) - Baskonia (Spain)

Real Madrid (Spain) - Panathinaikos (Greece)

Anadolu Efes (Turkey) - Barcelona Lassa (Spain)