Fenerbahce Beko stunned by ALBA Berlin in Istanbul

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish basketball club Fenerbahce Beko lost 57-66 at home to their German opponents ALBA Berlin in a rescheduled Turkish Airlines EuroLeague basketball game Tuesday.

Fenerbahce Beko were leading the Round 21 game 19-16 in the first quarter, but the Turkish team played a terrible second quarter as ALBA Berlin dominated it, scoring 21 points.

In the whole second quarter, Fenerbahce Beko clocked eight points.

ALBA Berlin took a double-digit lead, making it 37-27 before the break, and the German team never looked back during the rest of the game.

ALBA Berlin's Polish forward Yovel Zoosman led his team to score 20 points at Istanbul's Ulker Sports and Event Hall.

The German team's US guard Jaleen Smith added 14 points.

Melih Mahmutoglu was the sole Fenerbahce Beko player to score in double digits.

The Turkish shooting guard produced 16 points.

The Round 21 game was postponed over COVID-19 cases on the German team and then rescheduled for an available date.

Following their loss, Fenerbahce Beko rank 12th with a 9-16 win/loss record in the regular season.

ALBA Berlin got their 11th win to be in ninth spot in the EuroLeague standings.

The German club previously lost 14 games, but they have still hope for the next stage of the tournament.

Only the best eight teams out of 15 will be in the knockout stage.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, AX Armani Exchange Milan and Olympiacos have already qualified for the 2022 playoffs, which will start on April 19.

In the next fixtures, Fenerbahce Beko will take on Bayern Munich of Germany on April 4 in Istanbul, while ALBA Berlin will visit Istanbul's Anadolu Efes on April 1.