Pinar Karsiyaka - Turk Telekom

Turkey - TBSL, Playoffs, Semifinal

The Basketball Expert

Pinar Karsiyaka played an impressive Game 2 on Tuesday. Turk Telekom didn’t take the lead for a single moment. In the period when they managed to equalize (72:72), it was followed by an 8-0 run by Ufuk Sarica's team. It has become a tradition over the years for Pinar Karsiyaka's form to improve as the season progresses. And now they have reached their peak in the playoffs. In the previous four games, they showed their best basketball in this campaign. Pinar Karsiyaka have a large number of different solutions in offense. Angel Delgado is an unstoppable force in the paint, Brian Angola signed a contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv for the next season for a reason, while Vitto Brown continues to play well. If Errick McCollum also picks up the rhythm, Pinar Karsiyaka might be able to win the title just like in 2015.

Turk Telekom was the best team in the Turkish Super League regular season for a reason, but the impression is that they didn’t maintain the level they had in the previous months. They allowed 77.7 points to opponents in the regular season, while that number increased to 86.8 in the playoffs. Their defensive intensity is nowhere near where it needs to be and that is something they will need to fix if they want any chance in this series. Turk Telekom don’t have enough points in its hands or depth in the roster to win games by a large number of points. Especially not at this stage of the season. Their five foreigners play great, but as soon as one gets into foul trouble, the concept breaks down.

Pinar Karsiyaka was at 13-2 in the Turkish Super League regular season at home in Izmir. They also defeated Bursaspor in the playoffs on their home court. They have one of the loudest crowds in the country and it’s not at all pleasant to play on their floor. In the first two semifinal games in Ankara, Pinar Karsiyaka made a better impression than Turk Telekom. There is no reason why this series should not continue in that direction. Coach Sarica's team is playing with a lot of confidence and it is realistic that they will lead by 2-1 after Game 3.

Pistol Pete

Attack, attack and only attack – that's the recipe for Karsiyaka's excellent shooting team in the Turkish Super League playoffs this spring. In this way, they will try to win a place in the final, in the series against Turk Telekom.
The team from the suburbs of Izmir Karsiyaka has played four matches in the playoffs so far - and scored at least 91 points in each. In the last 20 games in all competitions, since the end of January, Karsiyaka scored at least 84 points in 17 of them. This is an exceptional score for the team led from the bench by the once famous Turkish basketball player and now coach Ufuk Sarica. Karsiyaka is a two-time champion of Turkey and is looking for a way to reach the final for the fourth time, the first time since the historic title in 2015. In their arena, they count on incredible support from fantastic fans and have many reasons to believe in their attacking game this June.
On the other hand, Turk Telekom team doesn't have a problem to accept the rhythm of the game that suits the opponent from Izmir. Since the team lost the fight for the Eurocup trophy at the beginning of May, they won six in nine games. In those nine matches in the domestic championship, seven times the club from the Turkish capital Ankara scored at least 82 points. The assessment of the basketball public in Turkey is that this is theur best squad in the history of the Ankara club.
The victory of Turk Telekom in the first match of the semifinals 98:94 is an indication of the extent to which this team can see off Karsiyaka in the fierce transitional rhythm of the game. The rival responded with a 92:81 victory away from home... Now it will be much more difficult for Turk Telekom, on the "hot" field in Izmir - but they have the quality of exceptional individuals to match the host.
The starting five of Turk Telekom is absolutely the quality of a Euroleague team: guards Tony Taylor and Jerian Grant, center Michael Eric, forwards Bouteille and Jones... All of them have experience of difficult playoff games, so we should not expect the visitors' game to suffer due to pressure expectations, that they have to return the break.
On the other hand, the impression is that Karsiyaka plays with a more varied rotation and that the domestic Turkish players have a slightly more important role. The key figure is the playmaker, the American Errick McCollum – but also the Dominican center Angel Delgado, who marked the previous game. It is extremely difficult to defend their pick-and-roll game in the rhythm of short and fast attacks, especially in the Karsiyaka arena.
Overall, there are enough reasons to believe that the third match of the semi-finals will also be a spectacle of attacking basketball, with a potentially uncertain ending. The Turkish Super League thus stands out as potentially the most entertaining end of the national championship in Europe this June.