In a season filled with variety and surprises, somehow the most normal thing happened. Real Madrid beat Valencia at the Euroleague Final Four. They are inevitable. Emmet Ryan on how even a wounded version of Los Blancos just made it look like normal business.
We really should have seen this coming. I’m sure that many of you didn’t. After the excitement and drama that they brought through the regular season and the playoffs, I felt that surely Valencia had one more win in them at the Euroleague Final Four.
Of course, even with major injury issues for Los Blancos, it wasn’t remotely close to enough. Real Madrid just went about their business and advanced. This was a business transaction for them. They went out and won because that’s what Real Madrid do in elimination games.
Too calm
After the emotional fury that was the first semi-final, the drop in atmosphere was awfully obvious at the start of this one. Scoring was relatively straightforward as a still mostly full but very empty house watched Valencia battle Real Madrid.
The Valencia and Madrid fans tried their best to bring the noise but their small numbers and positioning in the upper corners dulled their efforts. This really didn’t sound like a Euroleague Final Four game by any stretch. It was more like a golf crowd on the second day.
The result was a bit of a phoney war in the first quarter. Valencia took a 28-26 lead after 10 minutes but it felt like a warm-up. Kam Taylor and Mario Hezonja were able to pick shots for fun but we’d yet to see Jean Montero or Usman Garuba get truly unleashed.
An introduction to Real Madrid
For Los Blancos, playing in an unusual environment for a big game is nothing new. They’ve been the big dogs at home, the villains away, and so often used to calmer crowds when being in the day’s ‘other’ game at the Euroleague Final Four.
That led to them doing what Real Madrid does. With a blend of Facundo Campazzo, Trey Lyles, Andres Feliz, and more, they opened up a 12 point lead without breaking a sweat. This was the first real test of nerve for Valencia.
A hostile crowd would probably have been more comforting to them. There was no energy to feed off here beyond their own. That inexperience had the scent of blood for Real Madrid. Even without their star big man Edy Tavares, this was Real Madrid in the old fashioned just get it done mode that we’re all so used to .
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Adjusting to the lights isn’t enough
Two lengthy replay reviews either side of the half may have helped Valencia. It gave them a moment to pause on the floor and regroup. Jean Montero started dishing and they learned to live with what Real Madrid put in front of them.
Pedro Martinez stayed the course with his well-known hockey-subs approach to the sport. Shuffle, attack, repeat. What was lacking up until the third quarter was using it to wear down the opponent. Valencia found that extra bit of juice and forced Real to ease off a couple of times on D to preserve their energy.
Yet Mario Hezonja was still out there doing Hezonja things. His third three of the night pushed the gap that little bit more between the sides. By the end of the third, Los Blancos had essentially ended it as a contest. Once more, at a Euroleague Final Four, they would advance with little trouble.
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They will relish this
Unless a Euroleague Final Four is actually in Madrid, Real Madrid always enter it expecting to be the villains. They know the crowd will be wild, loud, and wishing the worst upon them every time. No matter how passionate the Olympiacos crowd is, this is what they will want.
They have long been Euroleague’s final boss. On Sunday they will face an Olympiacos side that needs to win this title. For Los Blancos, winning titles is just what they do normally. The injury to Usman Garuba will concern them far more than anything outside of their camp.
Valencia will be annoyed they didn’t compete to the degree they look capable of. Naturally, there may well be another shot in the ACB playoffs. Yet here, in their debut on the biggest stage in Europe, they will feel they should have done more. They should seek to feed off that for the summer ahead.