By Fatih Erel
ISTANBUL (AA) – For the first time in history, two Turkish clubs will play against each other in a Turkish Airlines EuroLeague basketball tournament Final Four match, guaranteeing a spot in the final match for a Turkish team.
Turkey's Anadolu Efes defeated Spain's Barcelona Lassa 80-71 on Wednesday, advancing the club to the Final Four for the first time since 2001.
Fenerbahce Beko also advanced to the EuroLeague Final Four after beating Zalgiris Kaunas 99-82 last Thursday.
The victory earned Fenerbahce its fifth consecutive Final Four ticket in the league.
Fenerbahce won the EuroLeague title in 2017, but lost in 2016 and 2018 in the final game.
This year is the first time ever that two Turkish clubs have advanced to this level, making Turkey the fifth country to accomplish the feat since 1988 after Spain, Italy, Greece and Russia.
There is no chance for both Turkish teams to advance to the final as Anadolu Efes and Fenerbahce Beko will face each other in the semifinal.
CSKA Moscow and Real Madrid are the other two semifinalists.
The Final Four will be played in single-elimination matchups on May 17-19 at Fernando Buesa Arena in the Spanish city of Vitoria-Gasteiz.
