Real Madrid achieved their second victory of the preseason. Following their victory over Benfica the previous week, they defeated Monaco tonight in a friendly match that was part of the Torneo EncestaRías, which was played at a full Pabellón Municipal de Deportes in Pontevedra. As advertised, the Dream Game featured the defending champions of France and Spain, and it certainly produced a match worthy of the EuroLeague. Deck’s wonderful basket in the last play of the game gave Chus Mateo’s lads the victory. Being undefeated was greatly aided by defense and an outstanding performance from Musa.
As Tavares, Musa, and Hezonja all made their first debuts of the campaign, the madridistas triumphed in a hard-fought, challenging game. Along with Deck and Campazzo, Chus Mateo had all three of them on the court from the beginning. After a period of incompetence from both teams, which was indicative of the early stage of the season, our players started to establish their outside shooting range and pulled ahead in the first quarter with four straight triples – two from Musa, one each from Abalde and Feliz (21-17).
Madrid appears to have a powerful defense.
In the second quarter, the scoreboard calmed down and defense played a bigger role. There were continuous rotations, with Feliz and Ibaka demonstrating flashes of their importance. This season, they will be at the back, with Hugo González providing energy at the other end. After two more Madridista triples and an opportunity to run after putting the rebound beneath the basket, the team established an 8-point lead over Monaco, who faced opposition from Okobo and Korkmaz (35-30, min. 20).
After the intermission, the French team rallied behind points from Motiejunas and a potent offensive rebound, eventually taking the lead at 38-39 with 23 seconds remaining. But Madrid answered right away, scoring two three-pointers from Musa. Campazzo assisted him in coming up with the play, and Deck had a terrific run to regain the lead with a 7-0 run. Inspired by outside sources, Abalde had a response for whatever Okobo and Monaco could come up with (60-55, min. 30).
Deck shows to be decisive. Madrid’s outstanding play from Abalde and Musa allowed them to hold the lead until the 35th minute. The squad led 65–58 and seemed to be in control of the game until Hezonja’s two technical fouls—for which he was sent off—gave Monaco a chance to rally. With three minutes left, Okobo knotted the score at 69. The boys of Chus Mateo did a fantastic job of staying focused, though. They put up a strong fight in defense and gained points from the personal line, but with three seconds remaining, Okobo tied the score at 75. As it appeared that overtime would be played, Deck had other plans. The Argentine, a specialist in buzzer-beaters, drove forward, halted, and scored one of his finest goals as the clock ran out.
