FC Barcelona achieved a huge win and remained alone atop of the EuroLeague standings after their win over arch rivals Real Madrid. Nikola Mirotic had a night to remember for the Catalans’ fans against his former team.
In Monaco, EuroLeague legend Sergio Rodriguez completed an amazing milestone as he tied Vassilis Spanoulis in the all-time three-pointers list in Milan’s victory over AS Monaco Basket.
Nikola Mirotic making noise in ‘El Clasico’
FC Barcelona was able to pass by Real Madrid on Friday night as Nikola Mirotic continued his MVP-type of performances in the EuroLeague this season.
Nikola Mirotic had an outstanding performance in Round 14 with 31 points, matching his career-high, along with 10 rebounds and a PIR of 39.
The last Barcelona player to score more than 30 points in a EuroLeague game was Juan Carlos Navarro, who also got 31 against Zalgiris back in 2006.
He also tied the second best mark in club history regarding PIR. Ante Tomic still holds the record with a PIR of 40 against Anadolu Efes Istanbul in 2014.
“It was a very difficult game for us, very emotional for me, especially, for my teammates. We know how important the game was,” Mirotic said after his incredible performance.
“The beginning of the game was huge. We had to play physical against them. We had a not very good third quarter but kept fighting and never basically gave them the chance, because we have so much respect for this team.”
Sergio Rodriguez the third EuroLeague legend in all-time three-pointers list
Sergio Rodriguez had a special night as Milan put an end to a four-game losing skid after getting a tough win over AS Monaco Basket.
The veteran point guard was instrumental with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists on Friday night. He also reached another milestone in his illustrious career after hitting 3 of his 6 attempts from beyond the arc.
The Milan veteran drained his second and third three-pointer of the night back-to-back early in the fourth quarter to move to 518, equalling the output of retired superstar Vassilis Spanoulis.
The all-time leader is fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Navarro, who buried 623 three-pointers in his EuroLeague career. Sergio, 35, may need to play a little more to reach his former teammate in the Spanish national team.
“I am very happy with the win. We have a lot of experience and we know it’s not easy to come into a game when you lose four games in a row. We have to learn from this and keep playing hard,” Rodriguez said on the win vs Monaco.
