Valencia Basket-Real Madrid: tough EuroLeague away day on the horizon
Scariolo's boys are set to play at the Roig Arena for the first time - their fourth game in a row on the road (8:30 pm CET).
With their first ever visit to the Roig Arena this evening (8:30 pm CET), Real Madrid conclude a run of four successive games away from home. The last three of those will have come inside just 5 days: they got underway last Friday at the Palau with victory in the Clásico, before keeping up the good work with a win in Badalona - now, tonight, they'll be hoping to make it three on the bounce against Valencia Basket in Round 10 of the EuroLeague. Then, to finish off this week's double-header in the competition, the madridistas host Panathinaikos on Thursday.
The two teams sit level on points in the table with five wins each - but Madrid edge tonight's opposition on basket average. Scariolo's boys will be looking to pick up further points on the road, but Valencia Basket won't make life easy. They've only lost to Hapoel (93-100) so far at their new arena, and they sit top of the League standings. They did lose to Zalgiris in Kaunas last time out, before beating Dubai Basketball by two points at home. The madridistas have won on their last two visits to Valencia, and have taken all four of the last clashes between them in the EuroLeague.
Tonight marks the latest in a string of demanding tests for Real Madrid, who will have to show their impressive mental strength - just as they did at the Palau on Friday. Staying focused for the full 40 minutes will be key against an opponent who favour a direct approach, with lots of possessions and high point-scoring. In fact, they currently boast the EuroLeague's second best offense - while also conceding several points (90 per game both for and against). They're a physical outfit, strong on the offensive rebound, who top the list for blocks to far.
Madrid boast a deep squad, though. Lyles is proving a key man, topping the numbers for our boys in the competition with 14.6 points and a PIR of 17.3. In the Clásico, he delivered his highest scoring game, with 29. At the same time, Maledon is growing with each passing game and has proved decisive at the key moments.
Madrid start strong
A common theme in these early stages of the campaign has been the madridistas' impressive introduction to games. In seven of their nine EuroLeague games so far, they've won the first quarter (+11 Barcelona, +9 Fenerbahçe, +10 Maccabi, +5 KK Crvena zvezda, +12 Partizan, +8 Asvel and +5 Virtus), going on to take the half in six - not to mention a record-high points scored against Barcelona (58). Tonight, it's all about taking an inaugural win at the Roig Arena.