Madrid dominates Red Star with 105 points

The Real Madrid shook off the defeat from the previous week against Panathinaikos with one of their best nights of the season. Despite having five key players absent, including Facundo Campazzo and Théo Maledon, the team led by Pedro Martínez executed a high-level offensive and defensive basketball to dominate Crvena Zvezda, who came into the game with three consecutive wins and the best defense in the Euroleague, allowing just 74 points per game.

A devastating start

The match was decided in the early stages. Gabriele Procida was the catalyst for the white attack, scoring ten points in the first five minutes. A 19-9 run forced Ibon Navarro to call the first timeout, during which the Vitoria coach also received a technical foul. Madrid was functioning with surgical precision: they were making almost everything they threw, dominating the rebound with a 16-4 in the first quarter, and had contributions from Nick Smith Jr., Olivier Sarr, and Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot from beyond the arc. The quarter concluded with a resounding 38-20, the best figure for a first period for the whites throughout the campaign.

Red Star closes the gap but doesn't recover

The Madrid lead reached 24 points at the start of the second quarter (44-20), but it was then that Madrid experienced a dip. With Tyson Carter leading the Serbian team, Red Star made a 2-19 run that brought them dangerously close, within seven points (46-39) with two minutes to go before halftime. The whites reacted in time thanks to two threes from Jaime Pradilla and Smith, allowing them to head into halftime with a more comfortable lead of 56-41. This passage showed that while Madrid had control, the opponent was not giving up, and their defense, considered the best in the competition, could cause problems if the whites lowered their intensity.

The second half was practically a Madrid monologue. Luwawu-Cabarrot came out of the locker room scoring five consecutive points, cutting off any hope of a comeback from Red Star. Andrés Feliz, with 11 points and 7 assists in the game, was crucial in the third quarter, scoring nine points and pushing the game on the fast break. Madrid won that period 26-18 and entered the final act with a 23-point advantage (82-59) that practically sealed the game.

Unstoppable white offense

The last ten minutes were just an administrative formality. Three-pointers from Alberto Abalde, Sergio Llull, and Chuma Okeke extended the lead to its historic maximum in the game: 31 points (92-61) with seven minutes remaining. With the game completely decided, Ibon Navarro gave minutes to his entire bench, allowing Red Star to slightly improve the scoreboard in the final quarter.

The individual figures reflect the solidity of Madrid's performance. Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot finished with 22 points, while Gabriele Procida had a great showing with 19 points and four threes. Madrid distributed the scoring evenly, hitting 13 of 26 three-point attempts, a percentage of 50% that indicates absolute control of the offensive rhythm. On the Red Star side, Tyson Carter was the top scorer with 18 points, but Ibon Navarro's team never found a way to stop the white offensive machine.

A dominance from rebounding and defense

Beyond scoring numbers, Madrid completely controlled the defensive and rebounding aspects. The superiority in transition play, where Andrés Feliz was fundamental, allowed the whites to maintain a high pace without letting Red Star breathe. The control of defensive rebounding, especially in the first quarter where they won 16-4, was decisive in preventing second chances for the opponent and maintaining control of the game's tempo.

The final result leaves both teams with an identical record of 7-4, but with very different trajectories. Madrid bounces back from their previous stumble and shows that even with five key players absent, they can display a very high level of basketball. Red Star, despite coming in with three consecutive wins and the best defense in the competition, could not stop the white offensive onslaught and suffered their first defeat in this streak.

This victory is especially significant because Madrid not only won, but did so decisively against a rival that arrived in excellent defensive form. The ability to maintain the offensive level during the three crucial quarters, without depending on a single player and distributing the workload among multiple scorers, shows a team that has found its rhythm in European competition. With Procida and Luwawu-Cabarrot leading the offense and the rest of the team fulfilling their roles, Madrid demonstrated why they are one of the favorites in the Euroleague.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Madrid domina al Estrella Roja con 105 puntos