The Reds edged past Real Madrid to seal its fourth straight Final Four participation
Olympiacos lays ghosts to rest and now wants to finish the job
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First came that Sergio Llull mid-range jumper over Moustapha Fall to clinch the 2023 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague championship for Real Madrid in Kaunas. Then an elimination at the hands of Los Blancos followed in last season’s semifinal in Berlin. This time, Olympiacos Piraeus had to deal with the ghosts of the past in an epic playoff matchup against the 11-time European champion, despite dominating the regular season and finishing top of the standings.
The series between the two EuroLeague powerhouses promised to be one for the ages, and both sides delivered on the floor in each of the four games.
“I think the series really embodies what EuroLeague basketball is all about,” forward Alec Peters said in the press conference after Olympiacos’s win in Game 4. “Great atmosphere, great basketball, unpredictable things happening. I think that this series had everything, apart from one more game.”
The series kicked off with a dominant Olympiacos taking a 47-29 lead into the second half of Game 1. Yet, Real Madrid showed what it’s made of and won both of the last two quarters. Los Blancos lost the game, 84-72, but the message was sent loud and clear: this battle would not be over soon.
Real Madrid hit the ground running in Game 2 and led 15-25 after 10 minutes. An Olympiacos comeback saw the hosts grab a 77-71 victory, but the Reds were up by just 3 points (67-64) heading into crunch time.
Having edged past Real Madrid in Game 2, the Greek side arrived in the Spanish capital looking to finish the series off. But it wouldn't be that simple.
Real Madrid’s defense suffocated Olympiacos in Game 3, with the hosts leading 72-62 midway through the fourth quarter. The visitors bounced back with a 0-8 run, but Chus Mateo’s team showed resilience in the closing stages, grabbing an 80-72 victory.
“Honestly, they made it super tough,” Peters said. “Every time you look at your playoff matchup and you see that you’re playing Real Madrid for a five-game series, I don’t care who you are, you know it’s not going to be easy. And it wasn’t.”
And then came Game 4. With Real Madrid determined to take the series back to Piraeus and Olympiacos feeling confident that they can close it out, the first half of Thursday’s contest was a back-and-forth affair between two of the most historic teams in the competition.
Olympiacos dominated after the break and even secured a 67-82 cushion with six and a half minutes left on the clock. While many teams would have waved the white flag, Real Madrid resisted, bringing back those ghosts of the past.
With the last shot of the game, Alberto Abalde was just a few inches away from netting a three-pointer that would have given EuroLeague fans a memorable Game 5, but it wasn’t to be. Olympiacos finally got the monkey off its back and has now clinched its fourth straight passage to the Final Four.
“Everybody who’s been with this group for the last few years understands that Real Madrid has ended our season and that sticks with you,” Peters continued. “You can try to let it go, you can move past it and get ready for the game. Every season is a new season, but I think we understand that this team has had our number the last couple of years and it feels really good to be on the other end of it and to have the circumstances of winning this game and going to the Final Four.
“I think with the history of the last couple of years, it feels good knowing that you had two of the biggest clubs in the EuroLeague going against each other in the playoffs. Whoever comes out of that is going to feel really rewarded and feel really good about themselves because I think that this is a matchup that everybody wants to see. And, of course, it had some really high-level basketball.”
With this epic series having come to an end, Olympiacos can begin its preparations for the Final Four, which takes place in Abu Dhabi from 23–25 May. And as Peters stressed after Thursday’s clash, the Reds are ready to finally bring it home.
“There is a lot of time between now and the Final Four,” he said. “That’s the difficult part of the schedule. We’re so energetic right now that we wish it was next week. But that’s not reality. We have to regroup and get ready in a few weeks to go to Abu Dhabi and do what we haven’t done these last years and that’s finish up the job.”