2021-22Regular SeasonRound 1
Real Madrid 82
Anadolu Efes Istanbul 69
September 30, 2021 CET: 20:45
Local time: 20:45 WIZINK CENTER

Real downs Efes in season opener

Real Madrid had a strong start to the 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season by downing defending champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul 82-69 in Round 1 in the Spanish capital in front of 4,000 Real fans at WiZink Center on Thursday. Guerschon Yabusele and Thomas Heurtel led the winners with 15 points apiece. Edy Tavares added 13 points and 12 rebounds for Real. Shane Larkin scored 21 for Efes and EuroLeague newcomer Filip Petrusev added 17 in defeat. Adam Hanga, Heurtel and Jeffery Taylor led Real to a 32-15 lead after 10 minutes. A three-pointer by Alberto Abalde made it a 21-point game soon after that. Larkin and Bryant Dunston brought Efes within 50-35 at halftime, but little changed after the break as Real boosted its margin to 68-48 at the end of the third quarter and never looked back.

Fabien Causeur got Real going with a finger-roll floater. Hanga and Yabusele each struck from downtown in a 12-0 opening run. Larkin stepped up with a driving basket and a three-pointer and got help from Krunoslav Simon to bring Efes within 16-8. Petrusev bettered Tavares's dunk with a three-point play, but Heurtel downed back-to-back triples for a 24-13 score. Taylor took over with a fast break layup and followed Vincent Poirier's alley-oop slam with a buzzer-beating tip-in that boosted Real's lead to 32-15 after 10 minutes. Sergio Llull, Nigel Williams-Goss and Abalde each struck from beyond the arc to break the game open, 41-20, early in the second quarter. Dunston scored twice down low, Rodrigue Beaubois and Yabusele traded from beyond the arc and Tavares dunked again to make it 46-27. Heurtel fed Tavares for an alley-oop slam and added a floater, but Larkin and Vasilije Micic drew Efes within 50-35 at halftime.

Hanga dunked off a steal soon after the break, but Larkin and Micic each scored around the basket and then Chris Singleton struck from downtown to give Efes hope at 55-42. Tavares dunked again and Williams-Goss hit a triple that gave Real plenty of fresh air. Real found a new go-to guy in Yabusele, but Petrusev brought the visitors within 65-48. Tavares restored a 68-48 Real lead after 30 minutes. Micic and Larkin each struck from beyond the arc early in the fourth quarter, causing the hosts to stop the game at 71-54. Llull buried a fallaway jumper and soon added a couple of baskets in transition to seal the outcome long before the final buzzer.

Pivotal performer

Edy Tavares was a dominant force in the paint and his aggressiveness helped Real to a great win. He finished the game with 13 points on 6-of-6 two-point shooting, 12 rebounds - 6 on each side of the court, 1 assist and 2 blocks for a team-high PIR of 24.

Game-changing moment

Real made the difference late in the first quarter and early in the second. Jeffery Taylor followed a fast-break layup with a high-flying tip-in that gave Real a 32-15 lead at the end of the first quarter. Sergio Llull, Nigel Williams-Goss and Alberto Abalde each hit a triple to boost the margin to 41-20. Real went on to control the game from then on.

Stellar stat

Real stopped Efes's ball circulation in the first half, powering the offensive glass to make the difference in the game. Efes reached halftime with 4 assists and 8 turnovers plus 8 defensive rebounds while allowing Real to pull down 10 offensive boards. Those extra possessions had a big impact on the game's final outcome.

Did you know?

It was the 50th showdown between Real and Efes. The teams faced each other for the first time on October 2, 1997; Efes defeated Real 66-76 in the Spanish capital behind 19 points from Brian Howard. Real has a 27-13 record against Efes and is 15-5 at home against the Turkish powerhouse.

Next game

Both teams return to EuroLeague action on Friday, October 8. Efes takes on CSKA Moscow in a rematch of the 2019 championship game and the 2021 EuroLeague semifinal. Real visits Olympiacos Piraeus in a rematch of the 1995, 2013 and 2015 championship games.

Thomas Heurtel - Real Madrid - EB21
Thursday, September 30, 2021
Euroleague.net
Referees: LOTTERMOSER, ROBERT; LATISEVS, OLEGS; PATERNICO, CARMELO
Attendance: 4050
By Quarter1234
Real Madrid32181814
Anadolu Efes Istanbul15201321
End of Quarter1234
Real Madrid32506882
Anadolu Efes Istanbul15354869
Real Madrid
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
0 WILLIAMS-GOSS, NIGEL 16:23 9 0/3 3/7   1   1 2   2     1 1 3
1 CAUSEUR, FABIEN 14:41 2 1/2 0/3   1 1 2 2 1 1   1 2 1  
4 HEURTEL, THOMAS 23:37 15 2/3 3/5 2/2 1 3 4 3   3     1 1 16
5 FERNANDEZ, RUDY 20:00     0/4     6 6 1 1   1   3   2
6 ABALDE, ALBERTO 17:33 5 1/1 1/3   1 3 4 3 1 1       1 11
8 HANGA, ADAM 15:43 8 2/3 1/2 1/2   3 3 1 1       3 1 8
12 ALOCEN, CARLOS DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
17 POIRIER, VINCENT 16:48 4 2/5     1 2 3     3 1 1 4 3  
22 TAVARES, WALTER 23:12 13 6/6   1/2 6 6 12 1   2 2   2 1 24
23 LLULL, SERGIO 15:04 7 2/2 1/4     1 1 2         3   4
28 YABUSELE, GUERSCHON 27:59 15 2/4 3/5 2/2 1 3 4 4   1 1   2 1 18
44 TAYLOR, JEFFERY 9:00 4 2/2 0/2   1 1 2     2     3   -1
Team           3 2 5     1         4
Totals 200:00 82 20/31 12/35 6/8 16 31 47 19 4 16 5 2 24 10 89
        64.5% 34.3% 75%
Head coach: LASO, PABLO
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Anadolu Efes Istanbul
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
0 LARKIN, SHANE 33:33 21 2/2 3/6 8/9   4 4 6 1 1       8 35
1 BEAUBOIS, RODRIGUE 22:46 3 0/5 1/5   1 1 2     2   1   2 -5
2 SINGLETON, CHRIS 15:37 3 0/1 1/2     2 2 1   1     3    
4 BALBAY, DOGUS 7:34           1 1               1
18 MOERMAN, ADRIEN 24:23 4 1/1 0/1 2/2   1 1           1 2 5
19 TUNCER, BUGRAHAN 2:31     0/2                       -2
21 PLEISS, TIBOR 9:22   0/2                     1 1 -2
22 MICIC, VASILIJE 24:22 9 1/4 2/6 1/3       2 1 3   2 1 3  
23 ANDERSON, JAMES 9:03   0/1       3 3 1   1         2
33 PETRUSEV, FILIP 16:05 17 6/8   5/7 1 1 2       1 1 1 4 18
42 DUNSTON, BRYANT 12:38 4 2/4             1 1 1 1 2 1 1
44 SIMON, KRUNOSLAV 22:06 8 2/4 1/1 1/1   3 3 1   1     1 2 10
Team           2 1 3     1         2
Totals 200:00 69 14/32 8/23 17/22 4 17 21 11 3 11 2 5 10 23 65
        43.8% 34.8% 77.3%
Head coach: ATAMAN, ERGIN

Head Coaches

LASO, PABLO
Real Madrid

"Of course, I am happy! Beating the champs - what else did I expect from tonight's game? I think we did a great job defensively and offensively in the first half, and then we were able to maintain the difference against a great team. I am very happy. I think the tone was set from the beginning, defensively and offensively. We were aggressive and even when I was asking for more, let's say, aggressivity offensively for some of my players - open jumpers taken. We work to get those jumpers and have to recognize those situations offensively, that we can do better. But also defensively, I think the team did a great effort.

"I think that our start of the game was probably decisive, both on defense and offense. We had the best offensive moments of the season, and got a 17-point lead at the end of the first quarter. We handled that lead very well after that through our defense. They scored 15, 20, 13, 21 points in each quarter, and we had the feeling of being solid on defense, which added to the lead that we had after the first quarter, it was decisive in the game. I am happy for the win and for my players. We had very good teamwork, but this had just started. Obviously, it is an important game against the champion and it is a great way to start the competition, but we know this has just started. It was a beautiful day to win - the first EuroLeague game, against the champion, with our fans back in the stands."

ATAMAN, ERGIN
Anadolu Efes Istanbul
"I think that we lost the game in the first quarter. Our performance was horrible in the first quarter, so it has been a long time... I have never seen my team have that kind of a first quarter. We had 0 assists in the first quarter and 6 turnovers. Finally, in the scouting, I saw it was 47-23 in rebounds. It is like we came to Madrid for touristic travel and Madrid is ready to beat us. This is the only analysis of the game. For other things, it is difficult after you get 32 points in the first quarter and a 17-point difference and then play a regular game. It is impossible. So congratulations to Madrid. It is a terrible start for us."

Players

HEURTEL, THOMAS
Real Madrid
"We started the game in a very good way. We didn't let its backcourt players score, only Larkin had a great game, but the rest of them didn't score a lot and that was one of our goals. I believe that everyone played well, those who started the game and those who came off the bench. It is a great win to start the season."
TAVARES, WALTER
Real Madrid
"It is a good start for us. We played against the team that won last year; we were close to win in the playoffs, so I think it looked like yesterday when we played against them. It was good to get the win at home. When you have an advantage like that, you have to control the game. I think we controlled the game. We played in our place and that gave us the control to play the whole game solid."
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