Under normal conditions, it would have been a sold-out game, instead the medical emergency will reduce it to a big game behind closed doors, without a live audience. Olimpia-Real Madrid is a rivalry that has had its roots in the 60s and although in recent seasons the “merengues” have always had the upper hand, the game story speaks lately of many close games. Real won them all, but it had to give its best, had to fight, including in the last game played by these two teams this season in Madrid. It is a crucial stretch for Olimpia, who needs to get back on track in the EuroLeague and will play after 48 hours in Valencia. Next week Olympiacos will arrive in Milan: it is definitely the key moment of the season. Real Madrid is obviously a terrific opponent: it had a difficult time at the beginning of the season when it lost three games in a row, then they won 13 consecutive games, lost three more and resumed its winning habit. They are riding a streak of five straight wins. Among these, the huge win in Tel Aviv and Istanbul/Fenerbahce, the latter win with a 29-point stunning margin. In the game won against Panathinaikos in the last round, Frenchman Fabien Causeur, forward Anthony Randolph and point-man Sergio Llull did not play. But in terms of injuries, Olimpia has its problems since Sergio Rodriguez, who is averaging 13.2 points and 5.5 assists per game, returned from Kaunas with a sprained ankle and an injury to his left leg.
OLIMPIA – The team resumed its practice activity on Sunday after returning from Kaunas. Out from the Kaunas game, Arturas Gudaitis is available again. Christian Burns is not. In Lithuania, Keifer Sykes and Drew Crawford had a huge impact. The Chicago-native point-guard produced his third double-digit game, is shooting 37.7% from three-point range and set his assist-high with five. The small forward had his highs of minutes and points (13), while playing a lot in combination with Vlado Micov. Ricky Moraschini also returned in the Kaunas game after a seven-game absence.
COACH ETTORE MESSINA – “We face a fantastic team in a game to be played a great sense of urgency from our side. Obviously, it’s going to be weird to play behind closed doors, the team capable to adjust better and quickly will have a better chance to prevail. For us, it’s important to control the boards and their shooters in order to try to win this game.”
THE OPPONENT – Real Madrid won the European title in the Pablo Laso era in 2015 and 2018 and has made the Final Four six times in the past seven years. The 2.20 mt.-center Walter Tavares, the reigning defensive player of the year, is the only one who has always started this season (he’s averaging 6.9 points and 6.9 rebounds); the playmaker Facundo Campazzo (10.3 points, 7.3 assists per game) has started 25 times out of 26. Anthony Randolph has always started when has been available, but he should be out due to a shoulder injury. Gabriel Deck is now starting at the power forward position, while averaging 8.2 points per game. The Swede Jeffery Taylor has often been used as a starter (he’s shooting 40.4% from three-point range) both at the guard and small forward spots. Obviously, Rudy Fernandez (42.0% from three), the bomber Jaycee Carroll (42.6% from the arc), the multidimensional big man Jordan Mickey (9.0 points, 67.7% from two), the other big Trey Thompkins (10.9 points, 47.5% from three-point range, 91.7% from the line) have big roles inside the team. In the absence of Sergio Llull, Nicolas Laprovittola, who had been MVP of the Spanish league last year in Badalona, also is playing meaningful minutes.
THE LAST TIME WE MET – Real Madrid won 76-67 by turning the game around in the second half after Milan had close the first half ahead by nine points, 39-30. Vlado Micov had an amazing game with 22 points and 4/5 by three-point range, Luis Scola scored 11 points, Jeff Brooks only two but he grabbed nine rebounds. Kaleb Tarczewski had a double eight in points and rebounds. The decisive player for Real Madrid was Anthony Randolph, 16 points with five made threes. Facundo Campazzo scored seven points with 12 assists. Olimpia played without Nemanja Nedovic.
HISTORY LESSONS – In European competitions Olimpia Milano and Real Madrid met 31 times, with a 22-9 record for Real Madrid who prevailed in the last 13 games. Olimpia’s last win dates back to the 2008/09 season: 70-61 with 23 points from Marco Mordente who made 5/6 from three. Mason Rocca had 14 points, David Hawkins had 13. Real Madrid-Olimpia was the final of the European Cup in 1967 in Madrid and the Cup Winners’ Cup in Ostend in 1984: in both circumstances Real Madrid won. 16 times this game was played in Madrid and Real is leading the all-time series 15-1. Milan’ only win in Madrid dates back to the 2003/04 Uleb Cup. He finished 62-61 (11 points were scored by Lonnie Cooper and Claudio Coldebella; Antonis Fotsis made 19 for Real who then lost the final against Hapoel Jerusalem). Olimpia was coached by Attilio Caja. In Milan the game was played 14 times (8-6 Olimpia). Once it was played on a neutral court (Ostend, in fact, 0-1). In the sixties, Real Madrid won the title four times in five years, the only exception being 1966 when Olimpia (which Real had eliminated in the semifinal in 1964) became European Champion. Real was eliminated in the equivalent of the quarterfinals by Olimpia: in Madrid Emiliano Rodriguez scored 20 points and Real won 71-66, but in the Palalido retour-match Simmenthal played a prodigious game, and won 93-76 with 40 points scored by Gabriele “Nane” Vianello and 27 by Bill Bradley. So it qualified for the Final Four where he defeated CSKA Moscow and then in the historic final in Bologna on April 1, 1966, Slavia Prague. The following season Real Madrid and Olimpia Milano faced each other again in the final, but in the only game in Madrid, Real took the trophy by winning 91-83 (29 Emiliano; Red Robbins scored 32 points for Milan).
THE REAL MADRID CONNECTION – Sergio Rodriguez has played for Real Madrid for six seasons, returning from the NBA and before moving to Philadelphia. In these six seasons, he won the EuroLeague in 2015, he was the MVP of the competition in 2014, he won the Spanish title three times, the King’s Cup four times, the Spanish Super Cup three times. Twice he led the Spanish league in assists. Last year, with CSKA Moscow, he beat Real Madrid in the semifinal on the way to his second European title. Ettore Messina has coached Real Madrid for almost two years with a 23-13 record in the EuroLeague. Among his players at that time he had Sergio Llull and Felipe Reyes, as well as Sergio Rodriguez. Michael Roll was a teammate in the Tunisian national team of Salah Mejri and played briefly with Fabien Causeur in Vitoria. Gudaitis and Laprovittola played together in Vilnius.
THE ARGENTINA CONNECTION – Luis Scola won the silver medal at the last World Cup playing together with Nicolas Laprovittola, Facundo Campazzo and Gabriel Deck, all from Real Madrid. They could all play the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. In the 2019 Beijing World Final between Spain and Argentina, Sergio Llull and Rudy Fernandez were playing in addition to the four Argentines
.SCOLA AND REYES – Felipe Reyes is the oldest player in the competition ahead of Luis Scola. They are the only two players who took part in the inaugural EuroLeague season in 2000/01. Reyes was born on March 16, 1980, Luis Scola on April 30 also in 1980. Reyes has played 350 games with 3014 points scored and 1785 rebounds grabbed. Scola boasts 2301 points and 926 rebounds. However, by a curious coincidence, the two never played against each other in a EuroLeague game, not even in the first leg when Reyes was not available.
