Olympiacos defeats a heroic Madrid in a thrilling final and wins the Euroleague

The final of finals crowned Olympiacos as the Euroleague champion against a heroic Real Madrid that was close to writing a historic epic. The resistance of the white team when all elements were against them was so admirable that two titles could well have been shared. Facing a packed OAKA turned into a cauldron and after suffering injuries to their three main pivots in less than a month (Tavares, Len, and Garuba), Scariolo’s team stood firm with personality and character and only gave in in the final seconds. The Greek team settled scores with history: they were crowned for the fourth time on the continent, the first since 2013 and after losing three finals, became the first winner of the trophy who also led the regular season, avenged the defeat against Madrid in Kaunas 2023, and reached the sky on the court of their eternal rival, Panathinaikos. Glory to Olympiacos and honors to Madrid.

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It was that inscrutable Madrid who surprised in the first actions precisely in the lion’s den. Hezonja and Lyles scored under the board and Vezenkov committed an offensive foul on his penetration against the Canadian power forward. Without their usual anchors in the paint, Madrid’s interior men alternated their positions to avoid a body-to-body in which they were inferior in centimeters. Olympiacos wanted to step on the accelerator with Dorsey but it was Madrid who ran more and shortened possessions as soon as they saw a shooting opportunity. Inside and outside, the hurricane Lyles swept through, unstoppable due to his mobility, accurate in the low post, and with two triples to sign 10 of the first 12 points for the whites. The chess game had been started winning by Scariolo and another long bingo from Abalde raised the score to 3-15.

The OAKA trembled before Olympiacos’ furious reaction. Vezenkov and Milutinov stepped into the zone to hurt inside and Hall renewed the muscle of Bartzokas’ team. Despite everything, Madrid’s spirit did not weaken, refreshed with the first rotations and with the double point guard formula, Maledon and Feliz. Deck gave the baton to the big men and the white team earned the first timeout at the front (19-26).

There may have been giants missing from the roster, but the white perimeter was firing, fertile ground for survival. Olympiacos raised the toughness in their marking, confident that taking the game to that physical battle could yield dividends. Thus, they bit and tightened the score. Madrid breathed thanks to Lyles’ foot movement, the best unblocker in attack along with the very fast and daring Feliz. The red tide increased the decibels when Llull jumped onto the court. The hero of Kaunas responded with a triple. Olympiacos grew from the offensive rebound (not a single white capture in attack in the entire first half) until Fournier’s magic changed the script (38-36). The Frenchman and Peters exploded from outside and in response, an imposing Lyles rebelled again. He not only covered the pivot’s gap but reached halftime (46-44) with 21 points and five triples. Madrid resisted in hell.

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The all-terrain Hezonja and a sharp-wristed Abalde contained the Greek push after recharging their batteries. McKissic, unseen on the court until then, and Walkup added three-pointers and a clash between McKissic himself and Campazzo further ignited a high-tension clash with minimal distances. Feliz cooled down the oven, again united in direction with Facu. Two defensive rebounds, a drive to the basket, and a triple from the Dominican, plus a steal from Hezonja, returned the momentum to Scariolo’s team (54-60). Olympiacos was sweating more than playing. Their plan was to make the match a continuous assault and yes, Madrid could be physically surpassed, but they resisted by character as their coach had promised. Faith also grabbed rebounds. Nerves gripped Bartzokas’ men, who suddenly did not know what to do with the ball in their hands. A rosary of red turnovers was squeezed by Madrid to maintain control despite Lyles’ blackout and fill OAKA with ghosts (61-65).

The hour of the bravest. A breathtaking scenario and the European championship title at stake. Fournier appeared, the veteran who returned from the NBA to live nights like this. And Maledon, another who does not tremble either. With all his collection of scars on his back, Madrid had the game where they wanted it, in that psychological zone that in Europe they dominate better than anyone. What to say about Hezonja, impassive amid the earthquake to attack the basket for the umpteenth time, score, and grab an offensive rebound. And about Feliz, who as a child dodged bullets in the neighborhood. How could running with all his soul towards the basket scare him.

A wonderful and heart-pounding exchange of successes starred the last seconds of a majestic final. Any shred decided the fate and Madrid felt wronged when a referee review granted a dubious possession to Olympiacos and the referees called fouls by Campazzo on Walkup and by Feliz on Fournier when they could have recovered the ball. The title seemed written when with 36 seconds left the Greek team led 88-80. But this story could not end any other way than with Madrid standing and fists raised. A basket by Lyles, a white steal, a free throw by the power forward, an offensive rebound and foul and three shots for Campazzo, who made two and missed the third. The rebound fell to the whites and Feliz launched a triple to tie… but missed. It was not Kaunas but Athens and it was not Madrid who became European champion but Olympiacos. A great winner and a loser only in the result.

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