British invasion for the Final Four
The Final Four was staged at the O2 Arena in London and Friday’s semifinals served up a treat of high-profile battles starting with a rematch of the previous year’s championship game, which saw Olympiacos Piraeus deliver a defensive masterclass to subdue CSKA Moscow 69-52, led by a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds from Kyle Hines.
The second semifinal was a Spanish Clasico which saw Real Madrid trail 52-61 with 7 minutes remaining before producing a big comeback to overcome FC Barcelona 74-67. Felipe Reyes scored 11 of his team-leading 17 points in a 5-minute burst to inspire the victory and send Real to its first championship game of the century. Ante Tomic posted 18 points and 12 rebounds for Barcelona in defeat.