Third successive away victory in seven days

Real Madrid secured another important victory away to Badalona on matchday six of the Liga ACB, making it three consecutive away wins in the last seven days after beating Zaragoza in the last league game and Barcelona in the EuroLeague. Scariolo's men can also claim victory with low scores and pulled off a hard-fought win against a Joventut side that demanded the highest level of physical effort and commitment from them until the very last moment. It was a good team performance with a balanced attack led by Len in his league debut (12 points in 12 minutes), Maledon (11) and Feliz (10).

The second most repeated match-up in ACB history opened with a marked contrast between offence and defence. Both teams were stronger at the back, which set the tone for the first quarter, ending 17-16 to La Penya. The first basket took a while to arrive, not until the third minute, with subsequent baskets few and far between owing to numerous imprecisions and low shooting percentages from both sides. It wasn't until the 7th minute that the attacks began to rev up. First, with a run by Joventut spearheaded by Ricky Rubio (3 assists) and Tomic (6 points), and then with another by Madrid culminating in a three-pointer by Maledon at the buzzer (17-16, min. 10).

Madridistas improve in attack
The match stayed close and low-scoring throughout the first half, although Madrid improved in attack, with 11 of their 12 players hitting points before the break. For the home side, Hunt and Tomic were the most effective players. With the score at 27-22, Scariolo's team enjoyed three strong minutes to take the lead after a 4-14 run. During this time, Len made his Liga ACB debut, displaying his intimidating power and producing the play of the game: a block, a fast break and an alley-oop finish with a dunk and an additional free throw. The Whites had several possessions to increase their 6-point lead but failed to score, and in the end, Penya closed the gap with free throws (35-37, min. 20).

Madrid upped their defensive game at the start of the third quarter. They impeded Joventut from hitting easy baskets near the hoop and the home team began to struggle without Tomic's scoring. Krämer, Tavares and a superb Feliz, who posted 9 points in this quarter, pushed Scariolo's team ahead 46-57 in the 28th minute. Ricky and Vives revived La Penya to close the gap to 4 points, but their surge was met with the resolute Madrid defence. Maledon and Len countered the green-and-blacks' rally before heading into the final stretch (55-63, min. 40).

Patience and victory
The Franco-Ukrainian connection continued at the start of the final quarter. The centre converted all his baskets with dunks (finishing with 5 and as the team's top scorer). Llull brought the score to 57-71, the biggest lead of the match, and it looked like the game was under control. But that wasn't the case, and a final push was needed. Joventut made a push in the following minutes and Ricky, with six consecutive points, brought the score to 75-76 with one minute remaining. Madrid held firm and refused to be rattled by the electric atmosphere in Badalona. Two good defensive efforts and four points from Campazzo from the free throw line sealed their fifth league victory (75-80, min. 40).

STATISTICS FROM JOVENTUT-REAL MADRID