EuroLeague Final 2005: Maccabi back to championship at the expense of surprising Baskonia

por Roberto Anidos publicado en 2005 Baskonia Decade 2000 EuroLeague Maccabi Tel Aviv

This season 24 teams begin where in the first phase are framed in three groups of eight teams. After a league of 14 days will qualify the top five of each group and the best sixth team for the TOP16

REGULAR PHASE
GROUP A
FORTITUDO BOLONIA   (12-2)
EFES PILSEN   (12-2)
CIBONA   (8-6)
REAL MADRID   (7-7)
PROKOM TREFL  (6-8)
ESTUDIANTES   (4-10)
OLYMPIACOS   (4-10)
PARTIZAN   (2-12)
GROUP B
MACCABI   (10-4)
BARCELONA  (9-5)
ZALGIRIS KAUNAS (8-6)
AEK ATENAS   (7-7)
MONTEPASCHI SIENA   (7-7)
SCAVOLINI   (7-7)
UNION OLIMPIJA   (6-8)
ASVEL BASKET   (2-12)
GROUP C
CSKA MOSCOW   (14-0)
PANATHINAIKOS   (8-6)
BENETTON   (8-6)
ULKER   (7-7)
TAU CERAMICA  (6-8)
UNICAJA MALAGA   (6-8)
OPEL SKYLINERS   (4-10)
PAU ORTHEZ   (3-11)
After the regular league comes the TOP 16 that unlike the past years there is some change. There are still four groups of four teams with six rounds to play but now the top two of each group are classified to a playoff quarterfinals to three games prior to the final four.
TOP 16
GROUP D
MACCABI   (6-0)
ULKER   (3-3)
MONTEPASCHI SIENA   (2-4)
CIBONA   (1-5)
GROUP E
CSKA MOSCOW   (5-1)
SCAVOLINI   (3-3)
BARCELONA   (2-4)
REAL MADRID   (2-4)
GROUP F
PANATHINAIKOS   (4-2)
TAU CERAMICA   (4-2)
FORTITUDO BOLONIA   (4-2)
ZALGIRIS KAUNAS   (0-6)
GROUP G
BENETTON   (4-2)
EFES PILSEN   (4-2)
AEK ATENAS   (4-2)
PROKOM TREFL   (0-6)
After the TOP 16 the quarterfinals playoff offered us the following duels: MACCABI against SCAVOLINI, CSKA MOSCOW against ULKER ESTAMBUL, PANATHINAIKOS against EFES PILSEN and BENETTON TREVISO against TAU CERAMICA BASKONIA.
QUARTERFINALS
The Maccabi Tel Aviv favorite to be in the final, did not miss the opportunity to sentence the courageous Scavolini by the fast track. The Italians in their court sold expensive defeat.
Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv     (88-60); (100-103)      Scavolini Pesaro
CSKA Moscow could not miss their meeting with the four final that this year would be held in their city. The CSKA this year was a real cyclone losing only one game in the entire season. In the playoff Ulker was no match.
cska moscow     (88-74); (64-82)    Ulker
Panathinaikos and Efes Pilsen played the most disputed playoff of all and in which the court factor was decisive. Each team won their home games so the Greeks took advantage of this factor to get into the final four.
panathinaikos    (102-96); (75-63); (84-76)     efes pilsen
The TAU Ceramic that was put in the last moment in the playoff gave the campanada when eliminating to the powerful Benetton that in addition had the factor court to its favor. The Basques surprised with a powerful beating in the first game and managed to close in their court the series.
Benetton Treviso     (59-98); (66-64)     Tau Ceramica
After the playoffs we reached the final four that this year would be held in Moscow. Facing the super favorite and local team CSKA MOSCOW against the BASKONIA CERAMIC TAU and the reigning champion MACCABI against PANATHINAIKOS.
One of the biggest surprises in the history of the Euroleague came in the first semi-final. CSKA, the home team, the team that had only lost one match in the whole year, suffered one of the most painful defeats in their history at the hands of TAU Ceramica. The Basques from the first moment showed that they had not come to be a comparsa and as the minutes went by the pressure gripped CSKA and TAU culminated the surprise.
cska moscow
CSKA MOSCOW   78
*Holden – 20p, 3r.
*Brown – 12p, 5a.
*Granger – 5p, 3r.
*Dikoudis – 13p, 5r.
*Andersen – 10p, 7r.
Papaloukas – 9p, 2a.
Panov – 0p, 3r.
Monya – 6p, 5r.
Muursepp – 3p, 4r.
Savrasenko – 0p, 3r.
Tau Ceramica
TAU CERAMICA   85
*Calderon – 13p, 3r.
*Macijauskas – 23p, 3a.
*Hansen – 3p, 2r.
*Scola – 10p, 4r.
*David – 11p, 12r.
Prigioni – 9p, 5a.
Vidal – 4p, 2a.
Splitter – 0p, 4r.
Gabini – 7p, 2r.
Betts – 5p, 2r.

In the other semifinal Panathinaikos with a great game stood up to champion Maccabi but the Israelites were clearly at another level. From the minute one the yellows imposed a rhythm that the Greeks could barely endure thanks to the success of their outside game. It was insufficient and Maccabi got into the final for the second consecutive time.
Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv
MACCABI   91
*Jasikevicius – 13p, 8a.
*Burstein – 14p, 3a.
*Parker – 13p, 5r.
*Baston – 14p, 5r.
*Vujcic – 11p, 5r.
Sharp – 20p, 3r.
Kommatos – 2p, 4r.
Green – 2p, 1r.
Shelef – 2p.
Halperin – 0p.
panathinaikos
PANATHINAIKOS   82
*Diamantidis -16p, 5r, 5a.
*Kutluay – 17p, 3r.
*Scepanovic – 16p, 1br.
*Alvertis – 10p, 1r.
*Batiste – 2p, 6r.
Lakovic – 4p, 2br.
Tsartsaris – 4p, 3r.
Hatzivrettas – 9p, 2a.
Femerling – 4p, 2r.
Kalaitzis – 0p, 1a.

Tel Aviv’s Maccabi – a basketball machine that threatens to impose a new dominating dynasty in the style of Cibona or Jugoplastika during the 80’s and 90’s – deservedly reissued its Euroleague championship title by beating Tau Cerámica 90-78 by the hand of a great Šarūnas Jasikevičius (22 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists), which personally became the first player to achieve this tournament for the third consecutive year. Luis Scola, author of 21 points, was the best of a Tau Cerámica handcuffed by the excellent defense of Maccabi and missed a greater contribution of Arvydas Macijauskas, who, subjected to an overwhelming marking, could barely achieve 13 points with a single field basket. The yellow domination was also experienced in the stands, with 7,000 fans of Maccabi against just 600 of the Basque team (although «allies» with the fans of Panathinaïkós).

The Israeli champion, who presented his candidacy for the title throughout the competition thanks to a spectacular and tremendously offensive game (top scorer in the Euroleague), began to tip the final on his side after a first quarter played with speed, inspiration, intelligence and effectiveness. The Maccabi, a team with a thousand battles, wasted confidence on all four sides, and in the face of this the Tau Ceramica could barely put up a fight. At times, the Basconist side seemed to pay the price for the semi-final elimination of the all-powerful CSKA, and began to feel the pressure. Everything that in the semi-finals had been successful and a selection of shots by Duško’s men – Ivanović – now turned into lost balls and missed throws, the product of nerves and haste. Not only the American Maceo Baston and the Lithuanian Šarūnas Jasikevičius hammered the Vitorian hoop without compassion, but also the substitute Nestoras Kommatos with his three pointers, and little by little Maccabi was opening differences in the score (6-5; 12-5; 21-11). The dominance of the Israeli team was not only reflected in an attack full of effectiveness, but in a serious and forceful defense. Pini Gershon put up a variety of defences throughout the match, which his players executed to perfection. Macijauskas could not even get up to throw, Scola rarely received, Dávid did not seem to be on the track and the penetrations of the outside men were very limited. At the end of a first quarter clearly dominated by the macabeo team, the 26-15 partial, while not definitive, was symptomatic of the attitude of both teams.

The picture of the match barely changed during the second quarter. Maccabi continued to maintain their excellent shooting percentages (they scored six consecutive three pointers without a single fault), although the fighting spirit and grit of the Tau Ceramica allowed them to overcome key moments in their souls (maximum disadvantage of sixteen points, 36-20) and cling to the encounter in expectation of better times. Duško’s team Ivanović went to half-time with an eleven-point deficit (50-39), but with the conviction that they had still departed, as Maccabi could not maintain the same scoring pace throughout the game.

At the start of the third quarter, the Vitoria team left the nerves and distrust in the dressing room and the final took on another color. Burstein’s fourth staff, a prey dog on Macijauskas, opened a new door to hope, although the Lithuanian Tau Ceramica still had his day and even missed free kicks. The difference was maintained thanks to the triples of Jasikevičius and company, but the situation was very different. After having been at the edge of the precipice during a phase of clear macabeo dominion, the Tau Ceramica rose from its ashes with an admirable breed to put the title in the eaves at the end of the third quarter (65-62).

The match entered from that moment in a more equal phase, although the basconist group began to pay the effort that was overcome so much disadvantage and failed to get ahead on the scoreboard. With five minutes remaining, the title was still undecided (72-66), although Maccabi were still scoring relatively smoothly and at key moments, and in the face of this the Tau Ceramica was always seen to tow. The match could be in the hands of Macijauskas, who finally managed to get up with relative clarity from beyond 6.25. He did it twice… and failed. The nerves and the precipitation began to make a dent in the basconist picture, the rebounds escaped of the hands and the step of the minutes played against him. In the final moments, the macabeo team took all their caste of champion and made it clear that he had come to Moscow to win the title. Faced with the Tau Ceramica’s offensive jam, Jasikevičius and Parker, two unforgiving players, scored to raise the return to twelve points, with only three minutes to play (78-66). The final and title were already decided in favour of Maccabi, whose fans began to celebrate the victory in the stands.

Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv
MACCABI   90
*Jasikevicius – 22p, 6r, 5a.
*Burstein – 8p, 2r.
*Parker – 12p, 6a.
*Baston – 18p, 7r.
*Vujcic – 13p, 7a.
Sharp – 0p, 1br.
Kommatos -13p, 3r.
Halperin – 2p.
Dotan – 2p.
Shelef – 0p.
Green – 0p.
Tau Ceramica
TAU CERAMICA   78
*Calderon – 16p, 4r.
*Macijauskas – 13p, 2r.
*Hansen – 13p, 3r.
*Scola – 21p, 9r.
*David – 4p, 2r.
Splitter – 6p, 4r.
Prigioni – 0p, 1a.
Vidal – 5p, 2r.
Gabini – 0p.
Betts – 0p.

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