By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid extended its winning streak to four games after taking down ALBA Berlin 89-74 on the road in Round 22 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague to overtake the top of the standings with a 16-3 record. Barcelona now falls to the second place, with a 16-5 record, as Real has yet to play two of its postponed games.
Frenchmen got the job done for Pablo Laso’s squad in Berlin. Thomas Heurtel scored a team-high 17 points and 7 assists, Vincent Poirier had 13 points and 5 rebounds and Guerschon Yabusele added 12 points for Real.
After a close battle in the first half, in which Real led 48-36 at halftime, the deficit skyrocketed at 19 points (79-60) early in the fourth quarter, and from that point on Real was able to remain in charge with no counterplay by the hosts.
“15 points advantage on the scoreboard, OK, we won the game, but we have to give them a lot of credit because they really push you”, said coach Laso after the win. “I don’t think we played a great game but we were consistent offensively and defensively, better five on five, but running up and down is hard because Berlin plays with a lot of energy.”
Maodo Lo came close to his season-high and paced the Berlin side with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. Ben Lammers and Marcus Eriksson both scored 10 points each for ALBA, which has now lost five of its last six games to fall to a 6-13 record.
Real also managed to keep a rare streak alive, as they grabbed their 12th victory against ALBA in respective games throughout their meetings in the modern EuroLeague era.
Photo: EuroLeague