Real Madrid slammed Gescrap BB 89-73

Real Madrid bounced back from its first home loss in this Turkish Airlines Euroleague season by downing Gescrap BB 89-73 in Top 16 Group F in the Spanish capital on Wednesday. Madrid improved to 2-1 in Group F while Gescrap dropped to 1-2. Both teams meet again in Bilbao next week. Sergio Rodriguez led the winners with 20 points on 6-of-6 shooting and 7 assists. Ante Tomic added 15 points, Mirza Begic had 12, Jaycee Carroll got 11 while Kyle Singler contributed 10 for Madrid. Marko Banic led Gescrap with 18 points. Alex Mumbru had 17 while Kostas Vasileadis had 13 for the guests. Rodriguez and Singler shined early to lead Madrid to a 26-16 margin. Begic had all of his points in the second quarter to boost the hosts' lead to 50-32 near halftime. Madrid kept a 69-53 margin late in the third quarter but Banic and Mumbru fueled a 0-12 run that brought Gescrap back to life, 69-65. Tomic and Rodriguez led an 11-1 run that sealed the outcome, 80-66, as Gescrap never recovered.

Mumbru got Bilbao going with a turnaround jumper but Rodriguez answered from downtown and fed Tomic for a layup that gave Madrid a 5-2 lead. Banic scored around the basket, as Bilbao tried to slow down the game tempo. Mumbru beat the shot clock with a driving layup, but a free throw by Mirotic tied it at 6-6. Singler nailed a catch-and-shoot three-pointer and Rodriguez matched Banic's layup with a jumper off the dribble. Singler kept pacing Madrid with a step-back jumper before a jump hook by Tomic boosted the hosts' lead to 15-9. Tomic shined with a reverse layup, however D'or Fischer matched it with a driving basket. Rodriguez fed Carlos Suarez for an easy basket and then found Mirotic for a layup in transition that made Gescrap call timeout at 21-12. Raul Lopez tried to change things with a stop-and-pop jumper, but foul shots by Mirotic and a three-pointer by Carroll made it a double-digit game, 26-14. Free throws by Vasiliadis brought Gescrap within 26-16 after 10 minutes.

Carroll nailed a jumper early in the second quarter, but Fischer briefly silenced the crowd with a wild put-back basket. Begic took over with a three-point play before Roger Grimau quickly answered with a layup in transition. Begic insisted with another layup-plus-foul and Carroll scored again to break the game open, 36-20. Vasiliadis tried to ignite the guests' comeback with a long two-pointer and Axel Hervelle added a mid-range jumper to get within 36-24. Felipe Reyes fed Begic for a layup while Dimitrios Mavroeidis and Sergio Llull traded quick baskets for a 40-26 score. Begic stayed on fire with a put-back layup and Marty Pocius added a jumper but Mavroeidis kept Gescrap within 44-30. Begic hit a jump hook and a fast break layup by Pocius made it an 18-point game. Mumbru and Banic made foul shots, but Tomic kept Madrid way ahead, 50-32. Banic followed a driving basket with a coast-to-coast layup to get Gescrap within 50-36 as both teams headed back to the locker rooms.

Banic buried a mid-range jumper right after the break that Rodriguez bettered with a three-pointer for a 53-38 Madrid lead. Mumbru answered from downtown - Gescrap's first after 10 missed attempts - and buried another one to bring his team within single digits, 53-44, after a 3-12 run. Rodriguez fed Tomic for an easy basket, but Mumbru erased it with free throws and a layup by Banic brought Gescrap even closer, 55-48. Rodriguez hit a step-back jumper and Carroll copied him off a timeout to give Madrid some fresh air at 59-48. An inspired Rodriguez buried a six-meter shot and Carroll scored in penetration. Gescrap called timeout to find better options on offense and Vasiliadis stepped up with a five-meter jumper. Reyes and Vasiliadis traded free throws, but Llull took over with an open three-pointer that restored a 69-53 Madrid margin. Mavroeidis rolled off a high-post pick to score and get Gescrap a bit closer, 69-55, through three quarters.

Lopez struck from downtown early in the fourth quarter and a backdoor layup by Banic brought Gescrap back in the game, 69-60. Vasileadis buried a big three-pointer and collected a steal that allowed Banic to score in the other end and make it a four-point game, 69-65, after a 0-12 run. Tomic made free throws and a triple by Llull sent the crowd to their feet, 74-65, with 6 minutes to go. Gescrap struggled to score right when it mattered and a fast break layup by Singler forced coach Fotis Katsikaris to call timeout at 76-65. Rodriguez made free throws to cap a 9-0 run, as Madrid started to use longer possessions midway through the fourth quarter. A layup by Singler sealed the outcome, 80-66, with over 3 minutes to go, but both teams kept fighting for points differential. Rodriguez followed his third three-pointer with free throws to round his near-perfect game, as Madrid restored a 86-68 margin and cruised to a well-deserved win.