By Lefteris Moutis
In ten Euroleague regular season games and another six for Top 16, teams fight to start (and finish if it’s necessary) the playoffs at home. However, is home advantage that important in Euroleague quarterfinals?
The change of format at the playoffs to best of five series after the 2008-09 season, gave space to surprises and reduced dramatically the value of that for which everyone fights from October to February; the … precious home advantage.
The statistical sample is sufficient, so shortly before the Game 3 of the playoffs; there are several interesting facts about the course of the series.
- The score in 62.5% of the series after the second game is 1-1! Only 6 out of 16 teams who had home advantage defended their home in the first two games. These were CSKA and Barcelona this year, and CSKA and Olympiacos in seasons 2009-10 and 2008-09. Nobody has been able to start with 0-2.
- Half of the teams that have broken the home advantage in one of the first two games have qualified for the Final Four: Maccabi, Panathinaikos, Siena last year and Partizan two years ago.
- None has qualified with a break in the fifth game. So, the big opportunity for the teams with home disadvantage to turn the tables runs out in the first week.
- It is also remarkable the percentage of the away team’s wins in the third and fourth games. Only in 57% of the games wins the home team. Barcelona is the only team that has qualified in a series after a 1-2 deficit.
- Overall 35% of the games (20 in total 57) have been won by guests.
The breaks in first two play offs games
2011-12
Siena-Olympiacos 1-1
Break in Game 1
Panathinaikos–Maccabi 1-1
Break in Game 2
2010-11
Caja Laboral-Maccabi 1-3
Break in Game 2
Barcelona-Panathinaikos 1-3
Break in Game 2
Real Madrid–Valencia 3-2
Break in Game 2
Olympiacos-Siena 1-3
Break in Game 2
2009-10
Barcelona-Real Madrid 3-2
Break in Game 2
Maccabi-Partizan 1-3
Break in Game 1
2008-09
Barcelona-Tau 3-2
Break in Game 1
Panathinaikos-Siena 3-1
Break in Game 2