Real Madrid got its 10th victory in its last 11 EuroLeague games by beating ALBA Berlin 91-62 in the Spanish capital on Tuesday.
Real thrashes ALBA in Madrid
Game Report
1 min read
Real Madrid got its 10th victory in its last 11 EuroLeague games by beating ALBA Berlin 91-62 in the Spanish capital on Tuesday. The no-doubt-about-it win lifted Real's regular-season record to 11-5 while ALBA dropped to 6-9. Real led 19-18 after 10 minutes and took off after that, extending its margin to 45-30 at halftime and then to 72-44 at the end of the third quarter to seal the outcome. Edy Tavares led Madrid with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Usman Garuba added 15 points and Fabien Causeur scored 10 for Real. ALBA got 13 points apiece from Maodo Lo and Luke Sikma.
Sikma and Tavares traded jump hooks to get their respective teams going. Jayson Granger hit a jumper, which Garuba bettered with a corner triple for a 5-4 Real lead. Neils Giffey and Johannes Thiemann each scored around the basket, but Jeffery Taylor tied it with a three-pointer. Garuba struck from beyond the arc and Tavares added a put-back basket, but Thiemann downed back-to-back triples for a 13-14 ALBA edge. Nico Laprovitolla and Garuba rescued Real and Taylor scored in penetration for a 19-18 lead after 10 minutes. Causeur took over with a driving layup and found Sergio Llull for a rainbow three-pointer. Llull scored in penetration, but Louis Olinde hit a three-pointer to make it 26-21. Trey Thompkins scored twice down low and Causeur buried back-to-back triples to make it a double-digit game. Olinde kept pushing ALBA with a tip-in, but Rudy Fernandez struck from downtown and Tavares added a wild alley-oop slam to break the game open, 41-26. Lo cut ALBA's deficit to 45-30 at halftime.
Giffey buried a jumper soon after the break and Granger erased Tavares's floater with a driving layup. Jaycee Carroll downed consecutive three-pointers and got help from Laprovittola and Tavares to boost the hosts' lead to 63-36. Sikma struck from downtown, but Garuba dunked twice for a 67-39 Real margin. Laprovittola buried a triple and Tavares scored in the paint. Lo kept ALBA within 72-44 after 30 minutes. ALBA kept struggling to score early in the fourth quarter and Gabriel Deck and Taylor kept Real way ahead, 76-49. Little changed in the final 6 minutes as Real cruised to a well-deserved win.
Game Leaders
Pivotal performer
Since he's developed an effective offensive game, Tavares has become one of the best players in the competition and proved it again on this night. He finished the game with 16 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth consecutive double-double, adding an assist, 3 steals and a block for a PIR of 27.
Game-changing moment
ALBA came within 26-21 on a three-pointer by Olinde. Real found its flow on offense as Thompkins scored twice in the paint, Causeur downed a couple of three-pointers, Fernandez also struck from beyond the arc and Tavares added a big alley-oop dunk. All of a sudden, Real led 41-26 and there was no way back for the German champs.
Stellar stat
Real outrebounded ALBA 39-23 with 11 offensive boards. It also dished 26 assists - 10 more than its opponents. Real made 20 of 29 two-pointers (69.0%); ALBA took more two-point shots (34) and made fewer baskets (16), which led to a much-worse percentage (47.1%).
Did you know?
Real remained undefeated at home against ALBA with eight wins in as many games in the Spanish capital. Real is also on an 11-game winning streak against the German champs, whose last victory against Los Blancos came in November 1999.