Real Madrid registered its fourth consecutive victory in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season by downing longtime rivals Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 79-63 in the Spanish capital on Wednesday.
Real's defense puts brakes on Maccabi
Game Report
1 min read
Real Madrid registered its fourth consecutive victory in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season by downing longtime rivals Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 79-63 in the Spanish capital on Wednesday. Real improved to 5-4 in the standings while Maccabi dropped to 3-6. Gabriel Deck led the winners with 16 points, his high for the season. Anthony Randolph added 15 points while Sergio Llull and Walter Tavares each had 10. Facu Campazzo dished 12 assists for Real. Scottie Wilbekin led Maccabi with 18 points while Ante Zizic added 14. Real hit 6 of 9 three-pointers to get a 29-18 lead after 10 minutes, extending it to 45-32 at halftime and then again to 68-52 midway through the fourth quarter, enough to seal the outcome.
Regular Season
Round 9 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Wilbekin and Elijah Bryant got Maccabi going, giving their team a 2-4 lead. Alberto Abalde scored around the basket and Randolph sank back-to-back triples to put Real in charge, 10-6. Campazzo bettered Wilbekin's driving layup with a bomb from downtown and fed Deck for a layup, good for a 15-8 Real lead. Zizic stepped up with a tip-in and followed Dragan Bender's layup with a put-back slam but Alberto Abalde and Gabriel Deck joined the three-point shootout for a 24-16 score. Zizic dunked again but Deck and Carlos Alocen made it a double-digit game, 29-18, after 10 minutes. Maccabi's Tyler Dorsey struck from beyond the arc early in the second quarter and Chris Jones followed with a layup as Maccabi closed within 29-23. Tavares hit a jump-hook and Trey Thompkins added a backdoor layup in a 6-0 Real run that Rudy Fernandez capped with a running jumper. Zizic answered with an alley-oop slam and Dorsey added a three-point play but Deck and Campazzo restored a 39-28 Real lead. Zizic scored again but Llull hit a stop-and-pop jumper, getting help from Campazzo and Abalde to keep Real way ahead, 45-32, at halftime.
Wilbekin struck twice from downtown right after the break but Randolph and Deck answered for a 50-38 Real lead. Wilbekin kept pacing Maccabi with a layup and Bender downed a triple that gave the guests hope at 50-43. Tavares dunked and Deck matched Zizic's power layup with a driving basket. Tavares got help from Llull to boost Los Blancos' lead to 60-47. Othello Hunter took over with a three-point play but Randolph gave the hosts a 62-50 margin after 30 minutes. Jones and Randolph each banked in a running shot early in the fourth quarter and Llull made it a 14-point game, 66-52, with 7 minutes left. A fast break layup by Llull sealed the outcome, 72-54, as Maccabi did not recover in the final 4 minutes.
Game Leaders
Pivotal performer
Campazzo did a little bit of everything to make sure Real added another win. He finished the game with 9 points, 4 rebounds, 12 assists, 3 steals and 5 fouls drawn for a PIR of 21. Above all, Campazzo set the right game tempo at all times, giving Real the initiative throughout the game.
Game-changing moment
Maccabi got within 29-23 early in the second quarter, as Real struggled to score. Three players who had been scoreless until then, Tavares, Thompkins and Fernandez, combined for all points in a 6-0 run that restored a 39-28 Real margin. The hosts diversified their offense and went on to keep controlling the game.
Stellar stat
Maccabi was limited to just 8 assists, its lowest mark in the EuroLeague in more than 7 years. It last had 8 assists against Real in Game 1 of the Playoffs on April 10, 2013. Maccabi also picked up 17 turnovers. On the other hand, Real had 20 assists and 13 turnovers, taking much better care of the ball.
Did you know?
It was Real's 10th consecutive home win against the Israeli powerhouse. Maccabi's last win in the Spanish capital, 64-66, came on March 11, 2010. This is the most prodigious showdown in European club competitions, with Real and Maccabi having faced each other as many as 61 times over the decades. Real leads the all-time series 38-23 and now has a six-game winning streak against Maccabi.