Dubai 78-77 Real Madrid: Xavi Pascual gets revenge in Europe | OneFootball

The Emirati side claimed the win thanks to a spectacular Bacon (24 points, 31 PIR). Los Blancos went into halftime 6 points ahead and Feliz missed the decisive shot

A warning to all. The EuroLeague will be tougher than ever with “new” giants like Dubai. The team coached by Xavi Pascual got its revenge for the SuperCup against Real Madrid. Pedro Martínez’s men once again showed the identity that is set to define them, but in the closing minutes they missed the shots that players like Wright and Bacon—who was outstanding—made. Despite the defeat, the feeling was positive. They had the ball to win the game, the new signings are starting to click, and the team is progressing well.

Dubai came out biting, but Madrid tried from the start to seize the initiative with aggression. Luwawu, who looked a little rushed, was swatted by Kabengele, setting the tone for the great start by Xavi Pascual’s side, led by a superb Dwayne Bacon. The shooting guard opened the game by scoring 8 of the 15 points in the run, capping it all with a huge dunk over Jantunen. At 15-7, Pedro Martínez was forced to stop the game, and the response worked. Madrid answered with Sarr converting an and-one, Maledon with a block that ended in points at the other end, and Campazzo picking Walkup’s pocket and being stopped by Diakhite, who was called for the new flagrant foul. The white comeback was completed by JaimePradilla, who stopped Shengelia on defense and then finished his great sequence with a spin move and a hook shot to make it 15-16, capping a 0-9 run for Los Blancos. Dubai called timeout and punished Madrid’s mistakes in transition, with Shengelia burying a buzzer-beating three to make it 20-16.

The second quarter set the tone for the game. A constant trading of blows in which neither side seemed able to impose itself. Dubai was solid on defense and shot quickly in transition, as Bertans finished off. Madrid looked to solve the problem, and Jantunen got on the board with a three and a pass to Tavares that he couldn’t finish because of the extraordinary defense from Kabengele, who then served up an easy basket for Wright. After so much chaos, the game slowed down, and coming out of it there was another surge. Maledon tied it and Luwawu put his team ahead. Okobo looked for Kabengele, but Tavares denied the alley-oop and sparked the break that Jantunen again finished with another three, forcing Xavi Pascual to stop the game at 25-30.

The wind was blowing in favor of whoever called timeout. Dubai answered with a 7-0 run, once again led by Bacon, who found his partner in Diakhite, formerly of Baskonia. Pedro Martínez asked for speed, and once again the Frenchmen stepped up. Luwawu and Maledon, including a steal from Wright and an and-one, put Los Blancos back in front (33-38), and with another basket by Tavares and a banked three from Abalde, they produced a 0-11 run and a 10-point lead (34-44). The Emirati side trimmed the margin with a three from Kabengele, who took advantage of Sarr’s defensive shortcomings, so they went into halftime 6 points behind a Madrid side that seemed to have the game under control.

After the break, the missing man appeared. Elie Okoboled a 0-9 run with 6 points of his own. To stop the bleeding, Damien Jones showed up to finish a pass from Maledon. Madrid’s new big man showed some very promising flashes in the quarter. After the timeout called by Pedro Martínez, he completed another alley-oop, a dunk and a tip-in to reach 10 points. Before that, Diakhite and Pradilla had shown their outside touch, and Bacon again put his team ahead with 2 straight baskets and another highlight-reel dunk.

In the final quarter, Los Blancos once again stamped their authority with a 2-8 run that forced Xavi Pascual to stop the game. Madrid had a small 5-point lead (65-70) that Tavares extended with a hook shot off a baseline pass from Campazzo. Dubai went all in with Bacon creating points for himself and Petrusev knocking down a three to tighten the game, but then Andrés Feliz appeared. “El Tigre” from Huachupita drilled a three and a tough layup after getting past Okobo to, at the key moment of the game, give Madrid a 6-point lead (71-77).

Dubai once again depended on Bacon and Okobo, who hit another buzzer-beater to make sure the game reached boiling point. That madness spilled onto the court when it turned into an end-to-end battle where everyone wanted the ball and no one could control it, until Kabengele appeared and drew a foul that once again cut the gap to just 2 points (75-77). Luwawu-Cabarrot could have been the hero, but he couldn’t create an advantage in his one-on-one against Kabengele and the shot rolled out. Dubai struck quickly on the break when Madrid least expected it and, with 51 seconds left, McKinley Wright, who had been quiet, used a fake on Feliz and knocked down a three that put the Emirati side ahead and set the final score at 78-77.

Madrid did not give up so easily. With the shadow of another overtime like in the SuperCup, Campazzo created space for himself and floated one up that the rim spat out. Dubai wanted to burn seconds off the clock and ended up with a shot-clock violation. With 10 seconds left, Los Blancos put the ball in Andrés Feliz’s hands. The Dominican, riding his hot hand, attacked the rim, but unable to get a comfortable shot, ended up missing.

The miracle comeback fell short this time. Real Madrid lost in Dubai, a venue that is already off the list after facing an opponent that looks set to be near the top. In a game either side could have won, Xavi Pascual’s team knew how to stay in the chase in the closing minutes and, when it mattered most, made the key shots. Madrid now turns its attention to Sunday, when it will begin its Liga Endesa season against Unicaja at the Movistar Arena. The signs are positive, and the team seems to have the tools to compete.

Box score

Dubai: Okobo (8), Wright IV (12), Bacon (24), Petrusev (3), Kabengele (9) -starting five- Blossomgame (0), Mintz (3), Bertans (3), Diakhite (6), Shengelia (5) and Walkup (5)

Real Madrid: Campazzo (6), Luwawu-Cabarrot (11), Abalde (3), Pradilla (5), Tavares (8) -starting five- Procida (0), Maledon (11), Jantunen (10), Feliz (9), Jones (10) and Sarr (4)

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.