Real Madrid played consistently for 40 minutes and beat Fenerbahce 85-80 in Euroleague’s Championship Game to claim the title for a record 10th time.
It was a close derby between the two best teams in Europe this season, but the Spaniards stood tall in the fourth quarter, played very well on both ends of the floor and hit tough shots to win the game, despite the Turks’ effort to make a big come-back.
Fenerbahce weren’t effective defensively, conceding 85 points, while they missed crucial shots and made some wrong decisions offensively that prevented them from winning the title for a second year in a row.
For the winners, Fabian Causeur had 17 points on 4-of-6 shooting, with Luka Doncic adding 15 and Trey Thompkins 10.
Nicolo Melli made an outstanding performance for Fenerbahce with 28 points and six rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to give his team the victory and the title. Brad Wanamaker scored 14 points and dished five assists for the losing squad.
Fenerbahce took an early lead in the game (4-9), but Real Madrid reacted, scored four three-pointers and ended the first quarter in front by four (21-17), thanks to a 17-8 run.
Later, the Spaniards extended their lead to eight points (25-17), but Fenerbahce came back and tied the game (35-35), behind a 18-10 run of their own.
Things didn’t change much in the remaining minutes, with the defending champions ending the first half in front by two (38-40).
In the second half, Real hit some tough shots and reclaimed the lead (50-45, 59-52). Fenerbahce tried to turn things around, but the Madrid squad retained its advantage at the end of the third quarter (63-55).
Although the Turks reacted again (66-61), Real had no problem to extend their lead to double digits, with 5 minutes remaining (74-63). Fenerbahce cut the deficit to three points (81-78), but they ran out of time and Real Madrid emerged victorious from the Stark Arena and became the new Euroleague champions!
