Crvena Zvezda suffered another defeat in the premier European competition, as the reigning champion, Real Madrid, proved superior. The result at the “Stark Arena” was 72:58 in favor of the visiting team.
The team from Belgrade was competitive only in the opening quarter when they took a 14:6 lead with eight points from Adam Hanga. After hitting several three-pointers, Real Madrid got back into the game, and after ten minutes, the score was 20:20.
The guests built a significant lead in the second quarter. The main issue for Crvena Zvezda was the shooting percentage, which the current EuroLeague champion knew how to exploit. Crvena Zvezda only made one three-pointer out of six attempts, while on the other side, Mario Hezonja and company were accurate, leading 45:34.
The second half was relatively inefficient on both sides, but Real Madrid adapted much better to the whole story with a double-digit advantage from the early stages of the game. At one point, they even had a plus 18 lead in the third quarter, and in the end, the final period was just a formality for the Spanish team.
The top scorer for the winning team was Mario Hezonja with a double-double performance of 17 points and 10 rebounds. Vincent Poirier stopped at 14 points. In the ranks of Crvena Zvezda, the duo of Luka Mitrovic and Milos Teodosic led the way, each scoring 14 points.
The Belgrade team currently has a record of 5-10, and in the next round, they will face Maccabi Tel Aviv. Real Madrid maintained the top position with only one loss after 15 games played.