Real Madrid retains the Spanish League crown

Chus Mateo’s men swept Valencia in the finals

For the second time in a row and the 38th time in club history, Real Madrid has won the Spanish League title. After winning 89-75 and 102-96 at WiZink Center in Games 1 and 2, respectively, Los Blancos went to La Fonteta and won 70-81 in Game 3 to sweep the finals series.

Going back to Game 1, there was little to separate Real Madrid and Valencia through the first three quarters, with Los Blancos holding a 64-60 edge, but a 25-15 fourth quarter allowed Chus Mateo’s side to grab an 89-75 victory. That night, Andres Feliz stepped up with 18 points, with Walter Tavares adding 14, Facundo Campazzo scoring 12, and Sergio Llull and Dzanan Musa netting 11 points apiece. Brancou Badio’s 20 points for Valencia proved to be in vain, as were the 10 points by Chris Jones.

A few days later, Real Madrid took a 2-0 series lead by coming out on top in a high-scoring affair. It was 48-45 to Real Madrid at the half, and the teams were tied at 89-89 after 40 minutes, meaning they would have to be separated by overtime. During the extra session, it was Real Madrid which outscored Valencia 13-7 to come away with a 102-96 triumph. Seven Real Madrid players finished in double digits in scoring, led by Campazzo with 18 points and 11 assists. Feliz contributed 14 points, Mario Hezonja appeared with 13 points, Musa scored 12 points, and three players – Bruno Fernando, Usman Garuba and Alberto Abalde – had 10 points apiece. Tavares recorded 9 points and 10 rebounds, too. Valencia’s Jean Montero was the game’s leading scorer with 23 points, while he also had 8 assists. Matt Costello chipped in with 16 points, Xabi Lopez-Arostegui had 14 points and Nate Reuvers poured in 11 points. Jaime Pradilla scored 4 points and grabbed 8 rebounds for the visitors.

In the 70-81 series decider, Hezonja paced Real Madrid with 16 points and 9 rebounds. Bruno Fernando had 13 points and Llull netted 11 points, while Campazzo paired 9 points with 8 assists. Tavares finished with 7 points, 7 rebounds and 5 blocks. For Valencia, Lopez-Arostegui poured in 14 points, Montero finished with 12 points, and Jones and Joel Soriano scored 10 points each.