Maccabi Tel Aviv was overwhelmed by Real Madrid 99-70 in a game that was never close as their Euroleague record dropped to 5-5 with a crucial matchup against ALBA Berlin up next on Thursday night. Los Blancos not only featured 5 players in double digits but all 12 players dressed found the bottom of the basket to take the easy win.

Walter Tavares came out on fire as he scored at will in the paint for Real Madrid with 15 first quarter points while Facundo Campazzo managed the offense to perfection as the visitors took a 36-21 lead after ten minutes of play. Josh Nebo tried tried to get Maccabi Tel Aviv back into the game but points by Dzanan Musa kept Chus Mateo’s team in front 52-41 at halftime.

Tavares was up to his old tricks to begin the third quarter with points a plenty, Wade Baldwin scored from the inside and outside while Lorenzo Brown and James Webb also went from deep to cut the lead down to just 6-points, but Mario Hezonja and Musa sent Los Blancos on a 14-2 run to end the period with a double digit 74-56 lead after thirty minutes of action.

This is an absolute work of art. https://t.co/6Xd9Ab2CVb

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Vincent Poirier dunked to get the final frame off and running and added another monster jam off a behind the back pass from Sergio Rodriguez as Real Madrid polished Maccabi Tel Aviv off by 29-points to take the win.

Brown led Maccabi with 16 points and 9 assists while Nebo added 14 points in the loss. Tavares paced Madrid with 19 points, Hezonja added 16 points and Musa chipped in with 15 points in the win.

“It’s never easy to play against Real especially the way they played today and scored the ball like that,” Maccabi Tel Aviv coach Oded Katash said. “But to beat a team like that you need to be focused for 40 minutes and we are not there. Defensively we were not aggressive enough, using foul and we have to learn from this game. We had a run in the third quarter but they hit some tough shots and to be honest they controlled the game. In 48 hours we have a totally different game and a very important one against ALBA.”

“We did a good job today and we played a very serious game,” Real Madrid head coach Chus Mateo said. “40 minutes concentrated and focused on the strengths that Maccabi is very good at. They finished us with the roll and rebounds We were able to solve that in the second half. We shared the ball with 29 assists and turned the ball over only 7 times. We scored 65% on 2’s and 34 on 3’s.”

Next up for Maccabi Tel Aviv will be a date with ALBA Berlin on Thursday as they look to get back onto the winning track after a pair of losses to the Spaniard clubs. The German team is sitting in the Euroleague’s basement with a lone win and a 1-9 record on the season.

“Physically we need to recover because this game wasn’t easy and the guys played a lot of minutes,” Katash said. “Mentally we went through a lot of situations both this year and last. We will react and I trust the guys as they will recover from that. We have a very important game in 48 hours.”

Josh Nebo, who had a strong performance against Real Madrid in a losing effort, reflected on the game that was while also looking ahead to the ALBA Berlin clash coming up, “It wasn’t our best game today, we didn’t come out with the right effort defensively and we had no answers. We have to have a short memory and we have another game in 48 hours and get ready for ALBA Berlin. It’s an important game for us as we don’t want to lose 3 in a row. We have to forget this game and get focussed for the next one.”

Lorenzo Brown who has had his ups and downs this season also gave his thoughts on the where he sees Maccabi’s issues and how to turn things around in a positive way, “It came down to us playing harder at the end. I guess we didn’t push ourselves enough and it happens. We are in a funk right now, but next game is always important. We have to keep our eye on the next game and push each other, practice every single day and hold each other accountable, which we do for our mistakes and push each other for the positive things we do.”

Wade Baldwin, who recently returned to action has yet to make a massive impact in a way that can help the yellow-and-blue and in fact, picked up a pair of technicals and was ejected against Barcelona is still searching to find his stride.

Katash knows what Baldwin can do for his team and is aware that getting him back on track may take some time, “We know Wade and he is emotional and competitive, he knows that and he knows when he has to handle himself. We like his energy and his emotions and that helps us, but he also knows when it crosses the line. I believe in the team and its character. This is challenge right now as to how we will react in 48 hours. Wade came into this season after a good summer and the back injury really set him back but Wade is a leader and very important for us. We trust him and we all will help him.”

The biggest challenge for Katash and Maccabi is still trying to keep focus on the task at hand which is challenging when the team plays in an empty arena in Belgrade, “There was a lack of focus of course but this entire season we all know that this is going to be a challenge. We will need to come out of this stronger. We see what the soldiers and the families in Israel are going through, so we have nothing to complain about. We are together and that is our challenge. Many people think that the ALBA game will be easy, but of you have seen them play you know that it won’t be easy for us to beat them in 48 hours if we are not focussed.”

“In terms of basketball, not playing at home is difficult. We had the best home record last season and the fans are a big part of that so without them things are different as we have to find our inner energy and it’s not always there. It’s tough. The Euroleague is a tough competition and without a home court advantage it’s almost an impossible mission, but that is the challenge. For the 1.5 years that I have been here we have had challenges and we have been able to stand up to them.”