Real Madrid grabbed its sixth consecutive win by edging Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 72-70 in the Spanish capital on Thursday. Real improved to 11-2 in the standings while Maccabi dropped to 7-6.
Yabusele leads Real past Maccabi, 72-70
Thomas Heurtel led the winners with 15 points, Guerschon Yabusele added 13, including the game-winning basket, and Vincent Poirier had 11 for Real. Scottie Wilbekin led Maccabi with 14 points and Ante Zizic and Keenan Evans each scored 10 for the guests.
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Yabusele got Real going with a fast break slam and Jeffery Taylor added a put-back layup for a 4-0 lead. Wilbekin banked in an off-balance floater and Kameron Taylor downed a jumper but an outstanding Yabusele kept the hosts in charge, 9-4. Hanga followed a triple with a layup which Thomas Heurtel followed with a floater to make it a double-digit game, 16-6. Zizic rescued the guests with a tip-in with a driving layup and Reynolds dunked to bring Maccabi within 18-12. Nigel Williams-Goss sank a floater that Reynolds erased with a layup. John DiBartolomeo took over with a four-point play that fixed the score at 20-18 after 10 minutes.
Williams-Goss scored in the low post early in the second quarter. Reynolds dunked and James Nunnally and Wilbekin bettered Yabusele's layup with a three-pointer to give Maccabi its first lead, 24-25. Poirier hit a jumper that Yabusele followed with a put-back layup. Williams and Evans helped Maccabi regain a 28-30 edge. Tavares hit a jump hook and Sergio Llull banked in a close shot, but Wilbekin quickly tied it at 32-32. Zizic followed an alley-oop layup with a fast break basket and got help from Wilbekin to give Maccabi a 34-38 lead. Rudy Fernandez trimmed the deficit to 37-38 at the break.
Hanga hit a floater after the break and Tavares added a tip-in but Williams and Zizic answered with consecutive reverse layups for a 41-42 Maccabi edge. Roman Sorkin scored around the basket. Yabusele banked in a close shot, but Blayzer hit a corner three-pointer to boost the visitors' lead to 43-47. Poirier matched Reynolds's jumper with a backdoor layup and Heurtel took over with a three-point play that tied it at 49-49. Evans followed a jumper with a floater and Blayzer struck again from beyond the arc to give Maccabi fresh air at 50-56. Wilbekin gave the visitors a 50-59 advantage at the end of the third quarter.
Poirier dunked early in the fourth quarter and Fabien Causeur gave Real hope, 54-59, with over 8 minutes left. Poirier capped a 6-0 run from the foul line before Wilbekin took over with a one-handed floater in the lane. Reynolds added a tip-in that made it 56-63 with 6 minutes left. Poirier and Evans exchanged baskets and Causeur buried a floater for a 60-65 score. Heurtel buried a three-pointer off the dribble, but Evans answered with a driving layup. Tavares dunked for a 65-67 Real deficit in the next-to-last minute. Heurtel struck again from downtown to complete Real's comeback, 68-67. Heurtel hit a one-handed turnaround jumper but Williams struck from downtown to tie it, 70-70, with 13.3 seconds remaining. Real drew a play for Yabusele, who scored around the basket to win the game, as Maccabi did not get a shot up in time in the game's final possession.