In an exciting El Classico match between two Spanish juggernauts and leaders of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague standings, FC Barcelona (12-2) took care of Real Madrid (11-3) 93-80 (24-19, 27-23, 16-16, 26-22).
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
39
|
| Nikola Mirotic | |
| Points | 31 |
| Accuracy | 7-10 |
| Rebounds | 10 |
| Assists | 1 |
The fourth quarter did not start well for Real, with Adam Hanga getting called for an unsportsmanlike foul and Rudy Fernandez receiving a technical. Barcelona converted it to four points, gaining a 15-point lead (76-61).
Sarunas Jasikevicius returned the favor by getting called for a technical foul, helping Sergio Llull cut Real's deficit to 10 (71-81). Walter Tavares brought the visitors within eight (78-86), but Nikola Mirotic was clutch, scoring five straight points and helping Barca win by 13.
"Most of the time, our defense was really, really good," Jasikevicius said post-game. "This is great, there are some character-building wins. It is not important to lead the standings right now. It is important that we are finding solutions with a little bit of problems that we are having."
"People are stepping up, people are responding to some bad games, coming back and playing really good games. This is, for me, important. We are showing character. The standings are really nice to look at, but it is not so important right now."
Real started out hot, with Adam Hanga hitting a 3-pointer against his former team to give the visitors a 9-2 lead. However, Nikola Mirotic went off, converting all six of his 2-pointers, scoring 13 points in the first quarter, and putting his team up by five after one (24-19).
Brandon Davies took over Mirotic's leadership role in the second, nailing a 3-pointer and scoring his 14th point to give Barcelona a 12-point advantage (43-31). Sergio Llull cut Real's deficit to six (41-47), but Barca finished the half well and went into the break with a nine-point edge (51-42).
Barcelona was firing on all cylinders in the first half, converting 70% of their 2-pointers, 50% threes, and 14 of 15 free throws.
The hosts continued playing well on offense, with Nicolas Laprovittola's and-one giving Barcelona a 14-point lead in the third (60-46). However, Nigel Williams-Goss cut Real's deficit to single digits going into the final period (58-67).
Nikola Mirotic was dominant for Barcelona tonight, tying his career-high with 31 points (4/4 2PT, 3/6 3PT, 14/15 FT), 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 turnovers, and 39 PIR. The last time Mirotic scored 31 was back in 2013 when he represented Real Madrid. This was also the most efficient game in his EuroLeague career.
"It was a very difficult game for us, very emotional for me, especially, for my teammates," Mirotic said post-game. We had to play physical against them. We know they have experience and they can come back anytime. I am blessed. It was a special night. All the credit goes to my teammates, coaching staff, and these amazing fans."
Dante Exum made his debut for Barca, supplying 2 points (1/1 2PT, 0/1 3PT), 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 PIR in 12.8 minutes.
Five players score in double-digits for Real, but none of them got past 11 points. As a team, Barcelona finished with an impressive 113 PIR. Meanwhile, Real only had 66 PIR.
Barcelona: Nikola Mirotic 31 (10 REB, 39 PIR), Nicolas Laprovittola 16, Brandon Davies 16, Rokas Jokubaitis 12, Kyle Kuric 9.
Real: Fabien Causeur 11, Thomas Heurtel 11, Walter Tavares 10 (6 REB, 2 BLK), Sergio Llull 10, Nigel Williams-Goss 10.
Nikola Mirotic's performance
Highlights:
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