Madrid defeated and will now play Bayern Munich for a place in playoffs

Real Madrid will have a second and final chance to qualify for the EuroLeague playoffs on Friday after the defeat against Paris Basketball. The Whites will face Bayern Munich, also in a one-off game, at the Movistar Arena to attempt to secure the last place in the playoffs for the title. Campazzo, with 17 points and 23 in PIR, was the standout performer for Chus Mateo's team against the French side.

As expected, it was an electric game from the start, with Paris Basketball loyal to their direct approach, without being speculative and with continuous rotations by Splitter. Madrid started very aggressively and worked collaboratively in an attack that hit three-pointers (3), placing an emphasis on defensive balance. The Whites curbed the Parisian counter-attack, but TJ Shorts did some damage in the paint through his points and assists for Hayes' baskets. The free throws missed by Madrid and the four extra possessions Paris had made the difference in the first quarter with Tavares going to the bench four minutes later after a personal foul and subsequent technical foul (22-27, min.10).

Madrid trailing
The Madridistas managed to limit the visitors' scoring in the second quarter, but they stalled in attack. In contrast to their opponents, who took advantage of the Madridistas' troubles in rebounding to open up a gap with Hifi on a hot streak. Campazzo and Garuba pulled Chus Mateo's team back into the game but a basket from TJ Shorts made it 36-46 at the break.

Madrid struggled to get things going and committed a few rash errors in attack. Luck was not on their side either, as each turnover ended up in the opposition's hands. TJ Shorts increased the gap to 12 points at 43-55 in the 24th minute. But at the most critical moment, Chus Mateo’s team showed their grit and character. The introduction of Feliz and Ibaka (Tavares committed his fourth personal foul) gave some freshness and energy at both ends of the court. This came from defence, leaving the opposition scoreless for five minutes, and with the Dominican point guard spearheading a 15-7 run, the Whites changed the momentum at the end of the third quarter (58-62, min.40).

Madrid gave it a go but had no luck
The hosts changed their side, but struggled to mount a comeback. Every time they had a possession to take the lead, they didn't take advantage of it, and that proved decisive. Despite the tremendous final effort with Campazzo, Deck and Ibaka, Paris Basketball managed to find a way to defend the lead until the end (73-81, min.40) with three-pointers from Hifi and Jantunen.

STATISTICS FROM REAL MADRID-PARIS BASKETBALL