By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid‘s U18 squad got a taste of “El Clasico” and defeated Barcelona 81-78 in overtime, to lift the 2021 Adidas Next Generation Tournament title in Valencia!
This is the team’s second consecutive title and third one overall (2015, 2019, 2021), led by top Bulgarian prospect Konstantin Kostadinov. 2003-born Kostadinov was part of the Real Madrid U18 squad that lifted the 2019 trophy and helped his team pull through with the victory in overtime with 18 points, 12 rebounds in nearly 38 minutes on the court.
Adding up to Kostadinov’s efforts, Spanish Big man Eli Ndiaye (2004-born) had 17 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals for the Real squad to be named the MVP of the final. Sediq Garuba (Usman Garuba’s brother) posted 13 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals as well.
17-year-old guard Michael Caicedo led the race for Barcelona’s U18 squad with 25 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals and Mexican guard Gael Bonilla finished the game with 16 points and 5 assists.
Caicedo joined Ndiaye in the All-Tournament Team, which also includes Kymany Hounsou (ASVEL), Nikola Djurisic (Mega) and James Nnaji (Barcelona).
Photo: EuroLeague