Basketball: Anadolu Efes advances to finals

ANKARA

Anadolu Efes beaten Darussafaka Dogus 88-83 Saturday and advanced to the Spor Toto Basketball League Finals after sweeping the series 3-0.

Darussafaka Dogus and Istanbul’s Anadolu Efes squared off in Izmir for the third game of the Turkish basketball league playoffs, where Darussafaka needed the win to stay alive in the series.

Playing on the brink of elimination, Darussafaka led by two points in the first quarter, and grew their advantage to 10 points after scoring 28 in the second quarter, going to the locker room with a 48-38 lead.

Anadolu Efes, with the help of their wing players, cut the lead to six points after the third quarter, trailing 65-59.

The last period of the match was a nail-biter, as Darussafaka only led by two points, 81-79, entering the last two minutes.

That's when Anadolu Efes took over, outscoring Darussafaka 9-2 to book themselves a ticket to the final.

For Anadolu Efes, Jayson Granger scored 17 points and dished out 4 assists, while point guard Thomas Heurtel scored 15 points.

Young standout Cedi Osman also contributed 13 points and 7 rebounds to his team's victory.

For Darussafaka Dogus, who have lost all 20 games they played against Anadolu Efes in their history, center Semih Erden's 23 points and 9 rebounds were not enough.

Scottie Wilbekin, who scored 10 points and 5 assists, went ice-cold in the last quarter, failing to help his team preserve its lead.

Anadolu Efes will now wait for the other semi-final series to conclude, as Euroleague's runner-up Fenerbahce is leading 2-0 against FIBA EuroCup winner Galatasaray Odebank in the series.

The third game between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray will be played on Sunday in Istanbul's Abdi Ipekci Arena at 5 p.m. Turkish time (1400 GMT).