EuroLeague Women: Quarterfinals preview

Star-studded Turkish club Fenerbahçe Alagöz Holding enters the EuroLeague Women postseason as a popular choice to win it all. The field is plenty strong, too, with well-balanced teams like ZVVZ USK Praha and Çukurova Basketbol Mersin.

The field for the 2024 EuroLeague Women postseason is set, and the first round will tip-off on Wednesday, Feb. 21. Also known as the quarterfinals, the first round will feature eight of Europe’s best basketball clubs, each having qualified for the playoffs via EuroLeague Women group play, competing in a best-of-three format. They’ll also be cross-matched by group to ensure matchups different than those from the group phase.

Here are the clubs that will be competing in the 2024 EuroLeague Women quarterfinals:

• Beretta Famila Schio (Italy)
• Casademont Zaragoza (Spain)
• Çukurova Basketbol Mersin (Turkey)
• DVTK HUN-Therm (Hungary)
• Fenerbahçe Alagöz Holding (Turkey)
• Perfumerias Avenida (Spain)
• Villeneuve-d’Ascq LM (France)
• ZVVZ USK Praha (Czech Republic)

Last season, there was little doubt that Fenerbahçe would be crowned EuroLeague Women champion. The Turkish club repeated its 12-2 group phase performance this season, featuring an offense (85.6 points and 25.2 assists per game) that was once again head and shoulders above the competition. A well-balanced roster starring Emma Meesseman, Kayla McBride and Napheesa Collier makes Fenerbahçe a popular pick to win it all, and the defending champs topped FIBA’s most recent postseason power rankings.

Fellow Turkish club Mersin will be out for revenge, however, after losing to Fenerbahçe in last season’s championship game. Marina Mabrey led EuroLeague Women group play in scoring at 19.2 points per game, and she’ll be flanked by new addition Kahleah Copper, who Mersin recently signed in hopes of putting the club over the top. With the former EuroLeague Women MVP on board, Mersin has the firepower to compete with just about anyone.

Then there’s Praha, which had another outstanding group phase thanks to breakout seasons from young stars like Ezi Magbegor and Nyara Sabally. Praha dominated group play, going 12-2 and easily winning the top playoff seed in Group B with the competition’s second-best scoring average (75.4 points per game) and best rebounding average (39.9 rebounds per game).

Will Fenerbahçe make it two championships in a row, or is this the year Praha leapfrogs the competition’s strongest club? Will we see an underdog advance to the semifinals? Can Mersin integrate its new pieces in time to make another deep playoff run?

These are all storylines to follow as the EuroLeague Women postseason begins. The games will be streamed live and for free on FIBA’s EuroLeague Women YouTube channel. Here’s a brief rundown of what to watch for in each matchup.

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EuroLeague Women Quarterfinals schedule

Fenerbahçe Alagöz Holding (12-2) vs. Perfumerias Avenida (8-6)

Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 11 a.m. ET

Game 2: Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 2:30 p.m. ET

Game 3: Wednesday, March 6 at 11 a.m. ET (if necessary)

Notable players: Napheesa Collier, Kayla McBride, Emma Meesseman, Nikolina Milić, Yvonne Anderson, Kitija Laksa (Fenerbahçe Alagöz Holding); Sika Koné, Alexis Prince, Bernadett Határ, Arica Carter, Silvia Dominguez (Perfumerias Avenida)

Matchup details: Fenerbahçe got some bad news over the weekend when Meesseman injured her ankle in a Turkish league game. While the club didn’t provide a timetable for her recovery, it doesn’t sound like she’ll be suiting up for the first few games of the EuroLeague Women playoffs. This is obviously a huge blow for the reigning champs, as Meesseman played at an MVP level during group play (17.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.9 steals per game) and was a major reason why Fenerbahçe’s ball movement was a level above everyone else’s. Although Fenerbahçe still has more than enough talent to get it done, Meesseman’s absence will even the playing field a bit for Avenida, particularly in the frontcourt. Koné averaged 7.4 rebounds per game during group play and shot 55.4 percent from the field. If she and the 6-foot-10 Határ are at the top of their games, Fenerbahçe will have a hard time matching them physically.

Çukurova Basketbol Mersin (9-5) vs. Casademont Zaragoza (9-5)

Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 11:30 a.m. ET

Game 2: Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 2 p.m. ET

Game 3: Wednesday, March 6 at 11:30 a.m. ET (if necessary)

Notable players: Kahleah Copper, Marina Mabrey, Stephanie Mavunga, Olivia Epoupa (Çukurova Basketbol Mersin); Tanaya Atkinson, Leonie Fiebich, Mikayla Pivec, Aleksa Gulbe (Casademont Zaragoza)

Matchup details: On paper, the addition of Copper makes Mersin seem scary, and there’s no question that the Turkish club has a higher offensive ceiling than it did in group play. However, its defense may suffer without Elizabeth Williams (8.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game in group play), who Mersin now will be unable to play in EuroLeague Women due to the competition’s limit on the number of non-European players each club can roster. We’ll see how newcomer Mavunga, who played nine games for KGHM BC Polkowice during the group phase, fares for Mersin against Zaragoza in Williams’ place. Zaragoza is a young club, but its roster proved its worth during group play, routinely playing its best basketball against higher-profile clubs and beating out several of them in the standings. Zaragoza prefers to play slower-paced games and focus on its edge on the glass (38.5 rebounds per game), but it also has one of the competition’s better outside shooters in Fiebich (41.4 percent on 3-pointers), and the club’s defense had made things difficult for opponents all season long. Mersin may have the bigger names, but don’t expect Zaragoza to be an easy out.

DVTK HUN-Therm (9-5) vs. Villeneuve-d’Ascq LM (8-6)

Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 12 p.m. ET

Game 2: Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 2 p.m. ET

Game 3: Wednesday, March 6 at 12 p.m. ET (if necessary)

Notable players: Kaila Charles, Darcee Garbin, Réka Lelik, Nina Aho (DVTK HUN-Therm); Kennedy Burke, Kamiah Smalls, Shavonte Zellous, Bethy Mununga, Kariata Diaby (Villeneuve-d’Ascq LM)

Matchup details: DVTK took a massive step forward this season, starting group play 7-1 and maintaining enough momentum to finish in second place in Group A. The Hungarian club often played greater than the sum of its parts, relying more on team defense and rebounding than any one player, and thus finished with the lowest cumulative point differential (+11) of any EuroLeague Women club. Villeneuve-d’Ascq, on the other hand, wants to get up and down the court, having averaged 74.5 points per game (but also allowed 70.4); Burke had a tremendous season, leading the competition in steals, and though she reached an agreement with Villeneuve-d’Ascq to leave early in order to play in the WNBA this summer, the club anticipates having her through the EuroLeague Women quarterfinals. DVTK will probably want to keep the score of these games lower; if Villeneuve-d’Ascq is able to play at a faster pace, DVTK might not have the offensive capability to keep up.

ZVVZ USK Praha (12-2) vs. Beretta Famila Schio (9-5)

Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 1 p.m. ET

Game 2: Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 2 p.m. ET

Game 3: Wednesday, March 6 at 1 p.m. ET (if necessary)

Notable players: Ezi Magbegor, Nyara Sabally, Maite Cazorla, Maria Conde, Valériane Ayayi (ZVVZ USK Praha); Dorka Juhász, Arella Guirantes, Robyn Parks, Jasmine Keys (Beretta Famila Schio)

Matchup details: This matchup is between two clubs that have been there before, and chances are will give us some good games. Schio enters the postseason as one of EuroLeague Women’s hotter teams, and has a well-balanced roster, featuring one of the competition’s better shooting duos in Parks and Guirantes, as well as plenty of size up front. Praha has been excellent all season long, however, and while its frontcourt of Magbegor and Sabally will get most of the credit, don’t overlook the contributions of perimeter scorers like Ayayi and Conde. This is a veteran club that has a great mix of rising stars and veterans, as well as a coach who has won at the highest level in Natalia Hejkova. Both Schio and Praha have size and scoring, making this series a very appealing one.