Joan Plaza has repeatedly said throughout the season that the main goal for this year was to come up with a competitive team. The players proved of being capable of playing at an incredibly high level at any arena and against any rival tonight. Nevertheless, Bullock's and Raül López's brilliant performances weren't enough to defeat a solid Unicaja.

Tonight's game was a matter of life or death for Real Madrid after the defeat at home on Thursday. The Whites needed a victory to stay alive in the playoff series and they showcased incredible drive and a will for revenge from the very moment they took the floor at the Martín Carpena Arena.

The first few minutes saw both teams score intermittently. None achieved a decent lead until halfway through the first quarter, when Unicaja, relying on Ndong and Rodríguez, started to dominate, eventually winning the quarter with an eight-point cushion (20-12).

Real Madrid were having trouble, especially with their shots -0/4 three-pointers, 6/12 two-pointers-, but they looked much better than in the first game. Their defensive work didn't make things easy for the locals, forcing them to make several fouls in offence that helped the Madridistas cut distances short. Louis Bullock netted 12 points in the first quarter and became the team's pillar in offence with Felipe Reyes, who scored five.

A fantastic three-pointer by Tunçeri right at the end of the second quarter allowed the Whites to draw 36-36 and have a fresh start after half-time.

Bullock vs. Berni
The third quarter saw an impressive duel between both team's best men. Bullock continued performing solidly and ended the quarter with a total of 21 scored points. On the other hand, Berni managed to keep his team focused when Madrid were pressurising the most. Failing to make good use of a couple of ventures in attack, Real Madrid eventually spent the rest of the quarter two points behind Malaga. Boniface N’Dong was brought on to battle with Papadopoulos and gave the Greek some trouble, eventually helping his team to win the quarter with a five-point lead (60-55).

The dream ends
Real Madrid fought till the last second in the final quarter, but Carlos Cabezas and Berni Rodríguez pulled rank and helped the locals take the victory. Raül López took the reins of his team and Charles Smith netted two important three-pointers that put Real Madrid in the lead by one point (71-70). The game became incredibly tight and saw both sides making several fouls. Cabeza's missed a free-throw that could have allowed the Madridistas to draw the game and go into overtime, but Berni Rodríguez grabbed the ball and scored with two seconds to go for the final buzzer (88-86).