Valencia Basket and Surne Bilbao Open the Endesa League Quarterfinals with a New Record. Valencia Basket and Surne Bilbao begin their battle for a place in the Endesa League semifinals. Valencia leads in key statistics, while Bilbao returns to the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
Valencia is preparing for the start of the Endesa League quarterfinal series against Surne Bilbao—a team making its first playoff return in a decade. The opening game will take place on Wednesday, June 3, at 19:00, and the matchup is already attracting heightened attention: Valencia Basket finished the regular season in second place, setting a record for the number of 100-point games in the past 37 years.
This season, under Pedro Martínez, the Valencia side dominated across several statistical categories: the team led in average points per possession (1.24) and was the most reliable defensively (1.09 points allowed per possession). In addition, for the first time in Endesa League history, Valencia Basket topped the rankings in efficiency, points, rebounds, assists, and made three-point shots.
For Surne Bilbao, this playoff run is a special milestone. The club had not reached the postseason for ten years, and this year not only broke the streak but also set a personal record for regular season scoring (84.8 points per game). Five Bilbao players featured in all 34 rounds without missing a game—more than any other top club in the championship.
The playoff history between these teams is filled with unexpected outcomes. In 2011, Surne Bilbao, finishing sixth in the regular season, knocked out Valencia Basket and reached the final. Four years later, Valencia avenged that defeat, winning in Bilbao despite not having home-court advantage. This season, Valencia Basket convincingly won the first encounter (72-116), but in the second round Surne Bilbao closed the gap with 31 points and 8 three-pointers from Jaworski (88-83).
The series will be played in a best-of-three format: the second game will take place on June 5 in Bilbao, and if necessary, the decisive match will be held on June 7 in Valencia. This format has already led to unexpected results more than once, when playing at home did not become the deciding factor.
In previous seasons, when Valencia Basket finished second in the regular season, the team either reached the final or stopped just short. In the 2002-03 season, Valencia reached the final, and in 2013-14 they lost in the semifinals after a dramatic ending. Last year, the club once again made it to the final, and now the fans are waiting to see if the team can repeat that success.
For Surne Bilbao, this playoff is a chance to repeat the feat of 2011, when the team unexpectedly reached the final, starting with a victory over Valencia Basket. This season Bilbao also found success on the European stage by winning the FIBA Europe Cup, which adds confidence ahead of the series against one of the championship favorites.
Series schedule: June 3 — Valencia, June 5 — Bilbao, and June 7 (if necessary) — again in Valencia. Similar encounters have often become central events in Spanish basketball, and interest in them rivals that of the finals of other tournaments, as was recently the case in the opening of the Torneo Apertura final in Colombia.
For reference: The Endesa League is Spain’s top basketball tournament, featuring the country’s strongest clubs. Valencia and Bilbao have traditionally ranked among the teams capable of challenging the favorites, and their head-to-head encounters often become season highlights. In 2026, interest in the playoffs is fueled not only by sporting results, but also by the return of historic rivals to the decisive stages of the tournament.
