The sickest thing about Gescrap Bilbao Basket’s 93-69 crushing of Liga Endesa rivals Real Madrid in Euroleague play last night? Well, there were a lot of sick things about it, actually. Like the 34-14 score in favor of the home side after one quarter. Like how Bilbao started on a 13-of-14 shooting spree. Like how as a team they finished at 66.0% overall shooting, including a ridiculous 72.9% (27-of-37) on twos.
BiE’ll say no more, because this should be seen to be believed. Highlight clips (including one of those compelling Koyaaniqatsiesque time-lapse videos of arena preparation) and official Euroleague game writeup follow.
(Euroleague) – Gescrap Bilbao Basket sent a message that echoed all around the Euroleague by downing Real Madrid 93-69 in front of a sellout crowd of over 9,000 fans in Bilbao, Spain, on Wednesday. Gescrap and Madrid are tied for second place in Top 16 Group F each with a 2-2 record. Gescrap, however, got the tiebreaker advantage if both teams remain tied at the end of the Top 16 and will advance to quarterfinals if it beats Montepaschi Siena at home and Unicaja Malaga downs Madrid in the Spanish capital.
Kostas Vasileadis paced the winners with 19 points. Alex Mumbru added 16, Aaron Jackson 15, D’or Fischer 11, while Axel Hervelle got 10 for Gescrap. Jackson added 10 assists for a double-double. Nikola Mirotic led Madrid with 18 points. Novica Velickovic added 17 for the guests. Gescrap made 9-of-10 two-pointers and 4-of-4 triples in a near-perfect first quarter in which Vasileadis and Mumbru led the hosts to a 34-14 lead after 10 minutes. An outstanding Vasileadis allowed Gescrap to get a 26-point margin, 52-26, at halftime. Velickovic tried to change things after the break and a three-pointer by Kyle Singler got Madrid within 70-51 late in the third quarter but Jackson, Fischer and Vasileadis stepped up to lead Gescrap to one of the biggest wins in club history.
Vasileadis got Gescrap going with a catch-and-shoot three-pointer and a close basket by Hervelle gave his team a 5-0 lead. Madrid went scoreless for more than two minutes and an eight-meter bomb by Mumbru set the crowd on fire, 8-0. Jackson dished his third assist to Hervelle, whose fast break layup capped a 10-0 Gescrap run.
Mirza Begic scored down low but Mumbru banked in a driving shot and added an easy basket for a 14-3 Gescrap lead. Mirotic followed a bomb from downtown with free throws, as Madrid played more aggressive once Gescrap picked up its fifth team foul. Vasileadis buried his second triple and a driving layup by Jackson made Madrid call timeout at 19-8. Jackson kept pacing Gescrap with a layup-plus-foul, and Roger Grimau copied him right after that to make it a 17-point game, 25-8. Sergio Llull shined with a floating layup that Fischer erased with foul shots. Felipe Reyes and Vasileadis traded layups but free throws by Mirotic got the guests a bit closer, 29-14. A jump hook by Marko Banic and a three-pointer by Raul Lopez made it a 20-point game, 34-14, after 10 minutes.
Madrid improved its defense early in the second quarter and Mirotic shined with a tip-in – and the free throw that came with it. Gescrap struggled to score for more than two minutes unitl Banic fed Grimau for a backdoor layup. Dimitrios Mavroeidis got the crowd to their feet with a hard-fought put-back basket, good for a 38-17 Gescrap margin.
Kyle Singler stepped up with a reverse layup and Begic scored again but a wild three-point play by Mavroeidis restored a 20-point Gescrap margin, 41-21. Velickovic banked in a close shot, but Jackson found Banic for a baseline jumper. Singler shined with a follow-up layup that Fischer erased with a tip-in; Vasileadis and Jackson then gave Gescrap a 48-25 margin. Madrid could not find the way to the basket and the hosts kept running the floor through an outstanding Jackson. Vasileadis split free throws and nailed an unbelievable three-pointer that boosted Gescrap’s margin to 52-26 as both teams headed back to the locker rooms.
Mirotic made free throws immediately after the break and a tip-in by Begic gave Madrid some hope at 52-30. Mumbru stepped up with foul shots and Gescrap entered the foul bonus quite early in the third quarter but Vasileadis buried a wild shot from downtown for a 57-30 lead. Velickovic sank free throws and followed that with a three-pointer that kept Madrid within 59-35.
The game turned into a physical battle, with both teams getting aggressive. Hervelle took over with a dunk that Velickovic matched with a mid-range shot, but he didn’t find much help around. Mumbru buried a fadeaway jumper and free throws by Jackson made it a 28-point game, 65-37. Mumbru set the crowd alight with a rainbow three-pointer but Velickovic answered from downtown for a 68-40 Gescrap edge. Hervelle split free throws but a triple by Sergio Rodriguez got Madrid within 69-43. Velickovic scored again but Madrid kept missing foul shots, as Gescrap had started to use long possessions to run the game clock down. Velickovic and Singler buried back-to-back triple but a fallaway jumper by Lopez gave Gescrap a 72-51 margin after 30 minutes.
The outcome was clear already but Madrid kept fighting for point-differential considerations, which may be a decisive issue for both teams at the end of the Top 16. Jaycee Carroll struck from downtown – his first points – but Vasileadis buried a catch-and-shoot three-pointer to restore a 75-54 margin.
Carroll kept trying to change things with a put-back basket and a floating layup by Rodriguez got Madrid even closer, 75-58. Fischer stepped up with back-to-back jumpers that forced Madrid to call timeout at 79-58. Carroll buried another triple but Fischer shined again with an alleyoop layup and Jackson hit a one-handed jumper in the lane to keep Gescrap way out of trouble, 83-61. Hervelle and Mirotic traded baskets but a shot by Jackson made it 87-63 with over three minutes to go. Mumbru hit a turnaround jumper in the lane and even when Mirotic and Llull kept trying, everything was said and done already, as Gescrap fans were celebrating that their team had cruised to a well-deserved, pivotal win.
As a side note, Jackson and Singler were ejected in the final seconds.
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