Facundo Campazzo was once again everything Hapoel Tel Aviv simply isn’t in this series. The veteran point guard came out again and delivered a masterclass of precision and efficiency, a display of individual skill and team intelligence, a concert of composure and winning mentality. Statistically, that meant 23 points on 5/5 from two and 4/7 from three, along with 6 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals against just one turnover, for an efficiency rating of 30 in under 26 minutes. Campazzo isn’t a big guy, but at 179 cm he proved for the second time in just over 48 hours in Madrid that he’s simply too much for Hapoel Tel Aviv, at least until proven otherwise in Sofia after a dominant 102–75 win that puts Madrid up 2–0 in the series.

Game 1, especially its closing minutes, left the Reds with hope that they could steal home-court advantage if only a few more open shots had fallen. But on the floor, Real Madrid were better even without being at their best, even without Edy Tavares, even with a “not fully locked-in” Mario Hezonja.

The sense that Hapoel was close to a win on Wednesday led Dimitrios Itoudis to stick with the same formula he’s relied on all season and that’s a mistake that could cost them the series. He needed to pull out something new, because right now he’s staring at a fourth straight loss to Los Blancos.

For those who haven’t read similar breakdowns elsewhere, let’s clarify again: Itoudis’ offensive formula, which has brought 23 EuroLeague wins so far, isn’t complicated. It starts with a high pick-and-roll and almost always ends in one of two ways: if the defense doesn’t switch, the ball moves quickly inside (either to the big man or via a guard drive). If there is a switch, the ball slows down and the offense becomes isolation either exploiting the size of Oturu/Odiase in the post or the guards’ speed off the dribble.

Sergio Scariolo didn’t change much on his end either. Tavares out? Alex Len in. That was a gift to Dan Oturu, who feasted early in the pick-and-roll against slower bigs. Madrid’s best stretches, like in Game 1, came when Campazzo both ran the offense and scored punishing any defender who dared go under screens with three-pointers. Occasionally Hezonja demanded his share, and Hapoel didn’t mind as long as the ball wasn’t in Campazzo’s hands.

Hapoel went up by six late in the first quarter but again lost focus, allowing a 9–0 Madrid run in the final two minutes. The trend continued early in the second quarter, when Itoudis put out a very strange lineup: two players who don’t defend (Micic and Jones), two who don’t score (Malcolm and Edwards), and one Odiase who contributed almost nothing on either end. Ironically, that’s when Scariolo handed a gift back by giving Sergio Llull his usual minutes. Itoudis responded, and the veteran Spaniard got both the honor and the defensive assignment of Antonio Blakeney. It worked for Hapoel, who came back from down seven to lead by two at halftime, once again with hope they could repeat the comeback and get a different result.

That’s where Madrid stopped giving gifts. Llull didn’t return in the second half and neither did Hapoel. Scariolo brought in Garuba and switched on pick-and-rolls. Hapoel’s guards fell into the trap, launching 3’s (0/6) instead of feeding Oturu inside (just three attempts in the half). On the other end, Madrid moved the ball until they found Hapoel’s weakest defender. Feliz and Campazzo attacked Micic until he was benched, and Garuba went straight at Oturu, who played cautiously until picking up his third foul. If not for Garuba needing rest allowing Malcolm to score 9 quick points against Len’s slow feet, the game would’ve been over in the third quarter.

Instead, it ended early in the fourth. Micic’s poor performance culminated in a loss of composure and a technical foul that sent him to the bench right after converting an and-one. Blakeney tried to go solo and got blocked, Bryant tried and missed, then turned it over. Hapoel’s isolation-heavy offense played right into Madrid’s hands, as they kept targeting defensive weaknesses. On a terrible night from Odiase, and with Motley not even considered by Itoudis, Oturu stayed on the floor and was hunted repeatedly by Feliz and Campazzo, who either shot over him or drove past him. Even when they missed, Garuba cleaned up with five offensive rebounds. Within two minutes, the gap doubled from 10 to 20, and both teams began thinking about Game 3.

As enjoyable as it is to watch Campazzo, and as much as I’d like to give more credit to Hapoel, the truth is Real Madrid didn’t do anything extraordinary to win and to win comfortably. And that’s fine. The burden of proof isn’t on the most decorated club in the competition it’s on the team trying to upset a stronger, more experienced, and more cohesive opponent.

Itoudis’ rigidity, same game management, same rotations hurt yet again. To quote the (excellent) parody of Eli Gutman from “Bouba Shel Layla”: “we saw it in the second half”—62 points conceded, while Hapoel scored just 33 with a miserable 5 assists. His logic (the same one that got Hapoel to sixth place, to be fair) in completely removing Yam Madar and Jonathan Motley from the rotation didn’t hold up. That same logic led him to stick with Micic and Jones despite poor performances, giving them unlimited freedom to dribble into traffic because they knew there were no alternatives. It also forced Oturu into foul trouble early, because everyone from Madrid to Timbuktu knows Hapoel has no bench alternative.

Two games into the series, Hapoel Tel Aviv is still three wins away from the Final Four but also one loss away from heading to Mediterranean beaches (in European terms). Game 3 will take place in Bulgaria. I don’t expect many changes from the Spanish side: Campazzo will be brilliant, Hezonja will keep shooting without hesitation, Alex Len will keep searching for himself, and Sergio Llull will keep getting his second-quarter minutes. Real Madrid will keep being Real Madrid.

The big question is: who will Hapoel Tel Aviv be? A team playing for its entire season, one that must show qualities we haven’t seen from it all year. Itoudis has to change something, because Hapoel’s current formula doesn’t work against Campazzo and Real Madrid. Hapoel’s basketball has lost to Madrid’s basketball not once, not twice but four times. And you know what they say about doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.