By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Anadolu Efes made a statement in Madrid and defeated Real 80-75 in Round 21 of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague to exceed its winning streak to six games. At the same time, the Turkish team pulls away in the battle of the standings with an 18-3 record. This victory also marks Ergin Ataman’s first one in Madrid and the first one for Efes under the new format.
“First of all, I am very happy because, in my coaching career, it is my first victory in this court, in Madrid. For Efes, I believe it is the first victory after 15 years. I think the team deserved this. We talked about this in the morning meeting, that in the last 15 years any Efes team didn’t win here, but I saw that this team is ready to win everything”, said Ataman after the game.
Shane Larkin stepped up once again for Efes with another big-time performance of 32 points, four assists, three rebounds, and two steals for a PIR of 36. “We are just playing really well as a team. I am not going to be able to do any of these things without my teammates, so I will credit my teammates, my coaching staff and hopefully, we can just keep doing what we are doing”, he mentioned.
Tibor Pleiss also came in clutch in the fourth, ending the game with 13 points.
On the other end of the court, Trey Thompkins and Sergio Llull paced Real with 15 and 13 points each.
Larkin and Pleiss step up big time
The battle between the top-tier teams of the competition started off with a balanced performance by both in the first period (20-20), while Pleiss gave the visitors a 43-40 advantage at halftime.
Efes enjoyed a 57-53 lead with two minutes remaining in the third period and kept a short 59-55 before heading into the fourth. A 5-0 run paced by Larkin put the visiting side into a vantage point early in the fourth, though soon enough the hosts made it a one-point game again. Pleiss helped the Turkish side get ahead 76-72 with less than two minutes remaining, an advantage they managed to maintain until the end.
For the Madrid side, this marks their third consecutive defeat, tying CSKA Moscow and FC Barcelona for the second place in the standings.
Photo: EuroLeague