Euroleague: Real Madrid demolishes Barcelona

EuroleagueA Friday of huge derbies closed Round 8 of the Euroleague. Firstly, CSKA Moscow remained top with a win over Zalgiris Kaunas. That game was merely a warmup for huge games in Turkey, Greece, and Spain.

Galatasaray edged Darussafaka Dogus in the Istanbul derby. In Greece, Panathiniakos brought Olympiacos to Athens and conceded the game to their Piraeus outfit. In Spain, Barcelona played host to Real Madrid. What followed was one of the most memorable El Clasicos in history as Los Blancos delivered a masterclass.

CSKA Moscow vs. Zalgiris Kaunas, 95-86

Reigning champs CSKA Moscow was forced to produce a big second half to see off Zalgiris in the Russian capital. The victory means the club gets back to winning ways after dropping a game for the first time in Round 7. CSKA remains top of the standings with a 7-1 record. Zalgiris on the other hand drops down to 2-6 at the bottom of the league. The guests led 40-41 through halftime, but CSKA woke up on the second half with 55 game winning points that made it comfortable in the final minutes.

CSKA, without MVP Nando De Colo, turned to Milos Teodosic with 25 points and 5 assists. Aaron Jackson added 19 points, while Cory Higgins added 15 points and 6 assists and Jeff Ayres with 13 points and 7 rebounds.

Paulius Jankunas was hot for Zalgiris with a game high 30 points and 8 rebounds, followed by Kevin Pangos with 14 points.

Galatasaray Istanbul vs. Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul, 85-81

A nervy Istanbul derby saw Galatasaray double its Euroleague tally for the season with an important win. The hosts moved to 2-6 in the standings with some confidence now behind the team. Darussafaka drops to 5-3 but is still in the mix near the top of the standings. Galatasaray controlled large parts of the game and secured a 10 point lead through thirty minutes, with the scoreboard on 65-55. However, Darussafaka rallied in the fourth quarter to make it tense through the final act.

Tibor Pleiss topped the winning effort with 22 points and 8 rebounds, while Emir Preldzic secured 17 points, and Vladimir Micov managed 16 points.

Will Clyburn scored 22 points for the visitors, with James Anderson hitting 15 points.

Panathinaikos Athens vs. Olympiacos Piraeus, 77-79

The Greek clash between Panathinaikos and Olympiacos lived up to its reputation as one of the hottest derbies on the continent. This time, the spoils went to Olympiacos, the club travelling to the capital city and taking out Panathinaikos. The guests built its victory from a good first half, taking a 39-47 lead through the long break. The hosts recovered in the second half with a big run, but ultimately The Greens fell short and Olympiacos celebrated.

Vassilis Spanoulis topped the winners with 22 points, while Georgios Printezis nailed 16 points.

Chris Singleton and K.C. Rivers sent 14 points apiece through the bucket for Panathinaikos.

FC Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 63-102

The biggest game in Europe set alight Round 8 of the Euroleague with the El Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid. It was something of an historic game as Real Madrid delivered one of the most devastating results in the history of this rivalry. Los Blancos tore apart Barcelona on the road to send a message throughout the Euroleague. 54 first half points stunned the hosts and left Madrid with a 23 points lead. The visitors continued to press in the second and passed a century of points on the way to embarrassing their rivals.

Sergio Llull secured 20 points in the win, while Jaycee Carroll added 19 points and Anthony Randolph secured 18 points.

Tyrese Rice scored 23 points for a dejected Barca.

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