By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid has already secured the top spot in the regular season standings and Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade took advantage of this.
Despite playing without Yago Dos Santos and Milos Teodosic, the Serbs pushed the Spaniards, who ultimately got the 101-94 win.
Real Madrid now has 26 wins, while Zvezda with a 11-21 record is mathematically out of the postseason.
Dzanan Musa with 30 points, Mario Hezonha with 20, and Guerschon Yabusele with 16 were the top scorers.
“This win shows our character, it doesn’t matter if this win means nothing”, said Musa praising also Zvezda: “They are a great team, they gave a big fight”.
Nemanja Nedovic with 18 points in the first half and 30 in total led the charge for Zvezda, while Adam Hanga added 22.
An unexpected fight night
The guests led by three (47-44) at halftime, despite a 20-13 start by Madrid.
While it was a close contest, there was no sense of urgency in the first 20 minutes of action and Adam Hanga with a three made the score 50-44 to start the third period.
What followed was an 11-5 run by Zvezda to give them a 12-point advantage (61-49). With Hanga climbing to 15 points and making one more three, the Serbs led even by 14 (66-52).
It was time for Real Madrid to make their own 13-0 run and cut the lead to three (70-67). Still, Zvezda closed the period with the scoreboard showing 75-72 in their favor.
Sergio Rodriguez tied it all at 75 to start the last quarter, Zvezda answered back with a 7-0 run (82-75) and the game was far from over.
The score was tied at 88 with three minutes left after a shot by Musa and everything was possible. The Bosnian even gave his team the 89-88 lead, completing a three-point play.
Zvezda got a 93-89 advantage again with Hanga scoring five straight points, however, Madrid didn’t give up and got the lead back (94-93) with two free throws by Walter Tavares.
With the game on the line and 45 seconds left, Heznoja stole the ball and dunk, making the score 96-93 for Madrid. That proved to be the most crucial play of the night.
“We made an extra effort, even if this game didn’t mean nothing on the standings, especially for the fans, for our crowd”, said Madrid coach Chus Mateo, “and that’s why I am proud of my team”.
“Obviously we respect all our rivals and it feels pretty good to win the game”, added Hezonja.
Photo: EuroLeague