in a crazy gamehe real Madrid beat Partizan this Wednesday (98-94) and made history by qualifying for the Final Four of the euroleague overcoming a 0-2 against, something that no team in the history of the competition had achieved before. Not only that, the whites they had to raise an adverse difference that came to be 18 points. In a frenzied clash, the thrust and magic of the chacho rodriguez (19 points; 26 PIR) infected a team that believed in victory at the moment when it seemed most difficult.
The Serbs had gone into the break with a sixteen-point margin (39-55) in an involuntary invitation to the feat of a team that is once again among the best on the continent after a historic tie. In Kaunas, on May 19 Madrid will face FC Barcelona, while Monaco and Olympiacos will face each other in the other semifinal.
A feat for Real Madrid
Feat, feat, feat, epic… An endless number of words and adjectives could be used in many different ways to describe what Real Madrid achieved this Wednesday against Partizan Belgrade, but it all fits in a single word: basketball.
This basketball that is capable of change the course of history in a few tenths of a seconddepending on whether a metal ring receives the ball or expels it, which can lead to unpredictable scripts and chronicles that have to be retouched over and over again because, in a flash, a cold-blooded shooter is capable of improvising an unexpected scene with a shot that makes the network sound even though it is completely impossible to enjoy that magical sound even for the players themselves.
The ticket to the Final Four in Kaunas is taken by the whites, but the Serbian team has forced him to force the machine in a way that few expected. In these five games there have been imperial performances, such as those of Tavares in Belgrade; devastating baskets, sniper almost without a pulse, like Punter’s in the first of the clashes. There has been a blackboard and strategy. Also a lot of muscle. And unfortunately a fight that will take time to forget.
Obradovic must be recognized for calming down the spirits as soon as that game was over ahead of the games in Serbia. A true winner of nine European Cups, he put common sense, ethics and the respect that he professes for this sport before taking advantage of that horrible scene.
Mateo bet on Ndiaye
This was the context and packaging of this tie. The fifth game, this Wednesday, the one that resolved the historic contest began with Obradovic repeating Smailagic’s staging in his starting lineup, looking to get Tavares out of the area and punish the white defense with an outside shot. In front, Chus Mateo put Eli Ndiaye in contentionwho turned 18 in those first minutes.
But Madrid started stiff, while the Serbs seemed to use more variants in attack. Those of Chus Mateo, yes, they closed with more success than on previous occasions the outside shot of the Serbs. It was noticed in the faults. Both teams were already on bonus after six minutes of play. The score remained at 22-23 at the end of the first quarter.. In total 15 fouls and 18 points scored from the free kick. Triples? Only one for those of Obradovic. The perimeters were heavily guarded.
Partizan gets 18 up
In the second quarter the Serbian three-pointers appeared and the anxiety of the madridistas. Madrid was not capable of stopping the external machine of Partizán. The game began to darken for the whites. Tavares committed the third foul and the whites received a second technique. Thus, the anxiety of the first two games returned to the Madrid side. A festival of Serbian triples left a difference of 16 points in their favor at halftime (39-55). Chus Mateo’s team riddled again before the halftime break. Again with Punter in a stellar plan. 16 points and a PIR of 20 up to that point. Allowing 55 points at halftime reflected a host of deficiencies and errors.
The third quarter was all or nothing for Madrid. It was the moment when Sergio Rodríguez brought out all the basketball that he is capable of inventing on the court. It reached the last ten minutes with 69-76 on the scoreboard. In the last stretch of the clash it was the man from Tenerife who ignited the fans and infected his teammates to dream of a comeback. He led Madrid, gesticulated, accelerated and believed.
Chacho was the architect of the Wizink going crazy. Llull, somewhat subdued and mired in Punter’s impossible defense, put Madrid ahead after a three-pointer (86-83, min35). Madrid turned the game around. The unthinkable, the terrain that only optimists and dreamers frequent. Partizán tried, but Punter’s success (28 points) was not enough. History dressed in white.
Data sheet:
98 – Real Madrid (22+17+30+29): Williams-Goss (10), Hanga (7), Musa (20), Tavares (12) and Ndiaye (4) -starting five-, Causeur (3), Hezonja (13), Randolph (2), Sergio Rodríguez (19 ), Rudy Fernández (0) and Llull (8).
94 – Partizan (23+32+21+18): Punter (28), Leday (9), Papapetrou (10), Smailagic (4) and Madar (5) -starting five-, Nunnally (9), Exum (16), Trifunovic (0) and Lessort (13).
Referees: Borys Ryzhyk (UKR), Olegs Latisev (LET) and Mehdi Difallah (FRA). Ely Ndiaye (m.31) and Alen Smailagic (m.32) were eliminated by five personal.
Incidents: Fifth and final matchup of Euroleague playoff C played at the Palacio de Los Deportes (WiZink Center) in Madrid in front of 12,867 spectators. The Real Madrid players had to come out to say hello after entering the locker room entrance to the cheers of the fans.