By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid did it again. After turning the EuroLeague quarterfinal series around being 0-2 down, defeating Olympiacos for the 11th European title after trailing for most of the game, Chus Mateo’s players beat Real Betis 79-77 in Round 34 of ACB, after being seven points down with two minutes on the clock.
Betis had a big seven-point lead after Jean Montero’s basket with 02:25 on the clock, and from that point on, it was Nigel Williams Goss’ show. He scored nine straight points, the last two-pointer with six seconds to go for the win.
The US player finished the match with 11 points, as much as Mario Hezonja and Fabien Causeur each had. Guerschon Yabusele was the leading scorer with 14 points, Dzanan Musa and Edy Tavares added ten each, with the Cape Verdean center grabbing nine rebounds.
Before starting the last regular season round match, Real Madrid presented the newly won EuroLeague trophy to its fans in WiZink Center.
👏 Nuestro equipo ofrece la Copa a los #Madridistas en el WiZink.#CHAMP11ONS pic.twitter.com/JDyArwTxXa
— Real Madrid Basket (@RMBaloncesto) May 24, 2023
Montero led the Sevillian team with 19 points, Tyson Perez had a strong double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds, Anzejs Pasecniks added 14, and Aleksandar Cvetvkovic 11 points for the losing side.
With the loss to Madrid and Granada beating Joventut 73-62, Real Betis got relegated to LEB Oro, along with last-placed Fuenlabrada.
Barcelona 1st in the standings, Baskonia follows
At the same time, Barcelona defeated Murcia 86-57 to stay at the top of the standings before the playoffs, with Sertac Sanli scoring 15 and Jan Vesely 11 points.
Cazoo Baskonia finished second after a 75-70 win over Basquet Girona, thanks to 16 points and five assists from Darius Thompson.
Valencia barely made the playoffs after a defeat at home to Breogan, 77-80. Chris Jones had 20 points, Bojan Dubljevic 12 with ten rebounds, Ethan Happ led the winning side with 18 points and 11 boards, and Justus Hollatz finished with 17.
👀 ¡Así queda el CUADRO del #PlayoffLigaEndesa con los emparejamientos de cuartos de final DEFINIDOS!@FCBbasket 🆚 @valenciabasket @Baskonia 🆚 @Penya1930 @RMBaloncesto 🆚 @GranCanariaCB @CB1939Canarias 🆚 @unicajaCB pic.twitter.com/o9GgFzZ7o6
— Liga Endesa (@ACBCOM) May 24, 2023
Barcelona will face Valencia in the quarterfinals, Baskonia will meet Joventut, Real Madrid will fight with Gran Canaria for the semis, while also Lenovo Tenerife and Unicaja will cross spears.
ACB playoffs (quarterfinals):
(1) Barcelona – Valencia (8)
(2) Baskonia – Joventut (7)
(3) Real Madrid – Gran Canaria (6)
(4) Tenerife – Unicaja (5)
* quarterfinals will be played in best of three series, starting from May 27