Walter Tavares suffered a knee injury, with his status for Game 2 to be determined.
Real Madrid center Walter Tavares couldn't finish the game against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade due to an apparent knee injury.
At the end of the second quarter, Tavares awkwardly landed on his foot after Sergio Rodriguez's lob pass and immediately asked for a substitution.
The 31-year-old went straight to the locker room before halftime and even played for a couple of minutes in the third quarter.
However, Tavares was substituted with 7:26 left in the third quarter and didn't return to action for the remainder of the game.
Real Madrid head coach Chus Mateo confirmed that Tavares suffered an injury but didn't want to go into the details, and his status for Game 2 remains unknown.
"I don't know what will happen with him," Mateo said in the post-game conference. "He deals with pain in his knee, and we will have to check tomorrow what exactly happened. I don't want to tell anything because I don't know [what the situation is] exactly. Let's wait for the check tomorrow."
Tavares' loss would be obviously a massive blow for Real. In 22 minutes of action, he finished the game with 12 points (5/6 2PT, 2/2 FT), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 20 PIR.
"The plan would be similar to what we did in the second half," Mateo continued. "We have to assess the situation, but he's a very important player for us. He noticed the pain after he was hit in the knee, and he kept feeling pain. There was a problem with one of the ligaments."
After the game, Tavares was noticeably struggling as he was limping towards the exit from WiZink Center.
Real Madrid lost Game 1 after an incredible Kevin Punter's game-winner. Game 2 is scheduled in Madrid on Thursday at 20:45 CET.
