Madrid shines against Hapoel and achieves its 12th consecutive home victory in the EuroLeague

Real Madrid continues to make the Movistar Arena an impregnable fortress, now accumulating 12 consecutive victories in the EuroLeague. Today, as in the match against Maccabi deemed high-risk, they overcame the absence of their fans and achieved an undeniable and doubly valuable victory against Hapoel Tel Aviv, a direct rival for the playoff. First, because they move up to third place (closing the gap on Fenerbahce and Olympiacos, who lost this round) and surpass them in the standings; and second, because in a hypothetical tie between the two, Scariolo's team would come out ahead. A great defensive performance by the team, which finished with five players in double-digit scoring, led by Hezonja (15 points, 10 rebounds, and a 23 rating) and Maledon (13 points and a 19 rating).

Campazzo set the pace right from the opening tip-off, scoring 10 consecutive points without a miss, giving Madrid an offensive momentum that saw them dominate clearly during the first five minutes (15-10). However, defensively, they were less consistent and, after a strong start, conceded too many points in the paint and rebounds to Hapoel, who found their scoring sources in Oturu and Bryant, once he managed to escape Abalde's marking. Maledon, with three free throws ensuring the team's perfect record in this quarter (10 out of 10), held off the visitors' surge (24-19, min. 10).

Madrid finds balance
They improved defensively and turned the tide on rebounding in the second quarter with great work from Tavares and Hezonja (6 rebounds by the Croatian). After a brief but continuous exchange of baskets between Deck and Motley, our team began to control the game's pace. They moved the ball well on offense and found various contributors to score (Maledon, Llull, and Hezonja). The 41-28 score reflected their best moment of the game. If not for a late surge by Jones and several open shots that missed, the halftime lead would have been larger (45-35).

Scariolo's team opened a significant gap at the start of the third quarter. Their defensive fundamentals were working perfectly, controlling the defensive rebounds to enable fast breaks and minimizing the contributions of Micic and Bryant. Additionally, the three-pointers started to fall. Four in total, with two from Hezonja, one from Abalde, and another from Okeke, to stretch the lead to 18 points at 63-45 (min. 26). However, Hapoel did not give up. Jones continued to lead his team, managing to reduce the deficit to 11 points by the end of the third quarter (71-60).

Another great victory
Madrid did not allow the visitors to contest the victory. They responded decisively in the final quarter, and although the Movistar Arena could not enjoy another stellar performance from our team, they completely neutralized a team as potent as Hapoel. Feliz ended Jones's resistance, and our team, on fast breaks, definitively broke the game open, showcasing a very high shooting accuracy (39.1% in two-point shots and 25 of 28 free throws made). Feliz and Lyles joined Hezonja, Maledon, and Campazzo in the group of players with double-digit scoring, in a final stretch where the lead extended to 22 points (92-83, min. 40). Our team, undefeated at home in Europe for five months, will host Anadolu Efes in less than 48 hours (Thursday, 8:45 pm CEST; #Vamos) to conclude this week's EuroLeague double-header.

Real Madrid-Hapoel Tel Aviv Statistics