Anadolu Efes wins 2019 Turkish President’s Cup

Anadolu Efes Istanbul tipped off the 2019-20 season on the right foot on Thursday. They defeated rivals Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in a derby game to claim the 2019 Turkish President’s cup. As per tradition, the President’s Cup is played between the Turkish League Champions (Efes) and last season’s Turkish Cup (Fenerbahce).

This capped off the official preseason and the thrilling 79-74 victory by Efes keeps the trophy in their case. It also serves as a good warm-up game for both clubs as the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season is set to get underway in early October.

Fenerbahce claimed the initial advantage in the game, finding themselves up by one point, 19-20 at the end of the first quarter. Anadolu Efes would come back at them with full force and seize control of the game. They commanded the second and third quarters and established a lead in their favor.

Krunoslav Simon was scorching-hot from downtown and knocked down a perfect 6-of-6 3-pointers en route to 22 points for Efes. Their offense was successfully facilitated by Vasilije Micic who chipped in 16 points and dropped nine dimes for the winners. Derrick Williams was the top performer for Fenerbahce with 16 points.