Real Madrid-Olympiacos:Whites out to win to force fifth match
The Whites will be aiming for a victory tonight at the Movistar Arena in the fourth game to play for a place in the Final Four in Athens (9 pm CEST).
This evening, Real Madrid face another crunch match in the EuroLeague playoffs against Olympiacos. After Tuesday’s victory at the Movistar Arena, which made it 2-1 in the tie, Chus Mateo’s charges will be looking for another win in the fourth game of the series to continue the comeback and force a fifth and final game in Athens.
The Whites earned another chance to keep alive a series that had become tricky with Olympiacos' two victories in Greece. But the Madridistas managed to get a win that boosts their confidence ahead of today's clash. Everything comes down to the defence. The team excelled in this section and held the Greek giants to 72 points, in what is their third best defensive performance of the season in this competition (64 points against Zalgiris and 67 against Virtus Bologna).
Collective play will once again be essential because it is the team's true strength. Musa, Hezonja and Tavares carried Madrid’s offensive burden in the third game, but the contribution at critical moments of other players like Feliz, Abalde, Garuba, Ibaka, Llull and Campazzo proved definitive in beating the Athenians, a team that never gives up. Madrid also limited their turnovers and were able to force their opponents into 11 losses thanks to their defence.
Fournier did not play, which was a significant loss for the visitors, but he will certainly try to be available for tonight's clash. Whether he plays or not, Olympiacos are a very balanced team with a big roster. Vezenkov led the way again with impressive numbers and was joined by ex-Madrid player Williams-Goss and Lee. However, it was not enough, because Madrid minimised the rest of the players who had been essential in the series in Athens, such as Milutinov, McKissic and Peters.
The fourth game
In the last five playoffs that Madrid have reached the fourth game, they have gone on to win it. Two seasons ago, in the historic comeback against Partizan, they levelled the series at two all in Belgrade. In 2020/21, they also tied the series at 2-2 against Anadolu Efes on Madridista home court. Against Panathinaikos in 2017/18, the Whites sealed their place in the Final Four with a 1-3 win. One season earlier, in 2016/17, they did the same against Turkish side Darussafaka, and in 2014/15 they also clinched the fourth game against Anadolu Efes to reach the Final Four in Madrid. In three of these seasons, the Madridistas would go on to win the trophy.