For the second season in a row, Turkish club Fenerbahçe Alagöz Holding has come out on top in FIBA’s EuroLeague Women competition, defeating French club Villeneuve-d’Ascq LM 106-73 with an elite display of unselfish and efficient basketball.
It’s that brand of dominance that international basketball fans have come to expect from Fenerbahçe, particularly over the past three seasons. There was little doubt that Fenerbahçe, which finished the group play phase of the competition a league-best 12-2, was the favorite to win the title; a gifted group of players led by Napheesa Collier, Kayla McBride and regular-season MVP Emma Meesseman put up offensive statistics that were head and shoulders above those of their rivals, and they saved arguably their finest performance for when it mattered most.
The game stats tell most of the story. Fenerbahçe shot a scorching-hot 59.4 percent from the field (68 percent on 2-pointers), knocked down 26 of its 29 free throw attempts and moved the ball with ease and precision, recording an incredible 40 assists as a team.
What the numbers don’t explain, however, is just how easy and natural Fenerbahçe made it all look. EuroLeague Women is typically regarded as the strongest competition of its kind, but with a dynamic qualification…
