February 07, 2012
2009-10 Team Profile: Galatasaray Cafe Crown
Galatasaray Cafe CrownAs one of the oldest sports clubs in the world, Galatasaray Sports Club is mainly known as a successful football club, but its basketball section has proven to be a rising force over recent seasons. The club took its name from Galatasaray Lycee, a school founded in 1482, and the club was created by Ali Sami Yen in 1905. He decided to put together a football club during a literature lesson. Its basketball section was founded in the early 1930s and found instant success, winning three consecutive Istanbul League titles from 1933 to 1936. Once World War II was over, Galatasaray kept dominating Turkish basketball, winning 16 Istanbul League titles, lifting 11 Turkish championship trophies between 1940 and 1966, as well as reaching the Euroleague eighthfinals in 1961 and 1964. The club would add a Turkish League title in 1969 and a Turkish Cup in 1970, but no more trophies would come in the next 15 years. Galatasaray had a great season in 1985, winning yet another Turkish League title and adding the Turkish President’s Cup. That allowed the club to return to the Euroleague in 1986, losing in the preliminary round against eventual champion Cibona. Galatasaray would defend its Turkish League title in 1986 and return to the Euroleague in 1987, but lost against Zalgiris in the last preliminary round. Its last league title came in 1990 and another cup title arrived in 1995 behind David Henderson and Levent Topsakal. Galatasaray stayed competitive, becoming a perennial playoff team and making eight consecutive Korac Cup appearances from 1993 and 2001, reaching the eighthfinals in 2000. In 2006, Gerald Fitch and Jeff Graves helped Galatasaray finish fourth in the regular season and sweep archrivals Besiktas ColaTurka in the quarterfinals before losing against Fenerbahce. In 2007-08, Galatasaray showed it was not the average ULEB Cup newcomer, as it survived the group stage, stormed through the elimination rounds and downed Besiktas in the quarterfinals on a game-winning triple by Cuneyt Erden to climb to the semifinals, though eventual champion DKV Joventut stood in the way of a spot the final. Last season Galatasaray came up short in its bid to reach the Eurocup via the qualifying rounds, but played in the EuroChallenge where it advanced one stage and remained a force in the Turkish League, reaching the semifinals. This year Galatasaray will aim for success on all fronts thanks to the dedicated players, management and fans that make this club a special one.
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Eurocupbasketball.com
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