Monaco Secures Top 6 Position with Victory Over Real Madrid
AS Monaco secured an impressive victory against Real Madrid (100-95) this Friday, December 26, in a packed Gaston Médecin arena (over 3,500 seats were filled), for the 18th round of EuroLeague. This 11th win allows Vassilis Spanoulis’ men to maintain their place in the competition’s Top 6 – synonymous with direct playoff qualification at the end of the regular season – by defeating a direct competitor (both teams were tied at 10-7 before tip-off).
Edy Tavares Carries Real Early in the Game
The game was tight, but the Roca Team, solid overall, led for most of it. Missing Sergio Llull and Trey Lyles, the Madrid team initially relied on a massive performance from Walter Tavares to start their game. At his first exit, after 8 minutes 32 seconds, the Cape Verdean giant already had 15 points on 7/9 shooting and 7 rebounds (including 5 offensive) for an 18 efficiency rating. Despite his impact, relative struggles from 3-point range (1/5) and especially 6 turnovers, the home team still led after the first quarter (21-20).
A good sign even though Tavares’ return resulted in a Spanish comeback during the second period. However, the former NBA player picked up his second foul and a technical foul at 2 minutes 14 seconds before halftime, causing him to exit shortly after. Conversely, Matthew Strazel made two and-one baskets, both using the backboard, on two shots where he had sealed (blocked behind his back) his defender, namely Théo Maledon and then Facundo Campazzo. Despite this, 11 points from Elie Okobo and a clear advantage in collective efficiency (55-38), the Roca Team only went into halftime with a 4-point lead (47-43).
🗣️ 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐖, 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐖!! @mtwbucket32 is feeling it 👊 #RocaTeam #DagheMunegu #EveryGameMatters pic.twitter.com/E9LEVUcqPr
— AS Monaco Basket 🇲🇨 (@ASMonaco_Basket) December 26, 2025
Taking advantage of Tavares’ absence on the court at the restart, the principality’s players started with an 8-0 run to take an unprecedented lead in this game (55-43). Not enough to kill the game though. Real Madrid even went ahead at the start of the fourth quarter (71-72), for the first time since the 11th minute. Inspired this Friday (12 points and 4 assists for 18 efficiency), Strazel responded with his strong defense and a 3-pointer (74-72) before Nikola Mirotic took over.
Mirotic Awakens at the Right Time, Maledon, Ill, Doesn’t Impact
The former Real Madrid training center player – where he also launched his professional career – held scoreless until then, followed up with two 3-pointers (81-75). An awakening he confirmed right after with a nice pass to Kevarrius Hayes, another key actor in the second half for his rebounding dominance (7 boards in 19 minutes) and his defense on Tavares, before hitting a shot over a particularly timid Théo Maledon this Friday. « He shouldn’t have played this game, he made an effort, » his coach Sergio Scariolo commented after the game, indicating he was sick. While his point guard colleague Facundo Campazzo scored 14 of his 28 points (6/7 from 3-point range, 10 assists and 5 rebounds for 41 efficiency) in the final 100 seconds to bring his team back into contention (from -14 to -4), Monaco still secured this 11th win of the EuroLeague season. « It was a difficult game, we had good and bad moments. We were huge on the boards (17 offensive rebounds), defensively we can be better. But overall it’s a good game, » appreciated Vassilis Spanoulis.
Facundo Campazzo’s amazing performance end of the 4qtr… pic.twitter.com/HE4gtrfZQU
— Çemberin İçi (@cemberici) December 26, 2025
After an All-Star Game break for four players, AS Monaco will try to confirm its recent momentum (four straight wins across all competitions) next Tuesday in Barcelona. A Catalan team in form (12 wins and 6 losses, one more than Monaco) that they had eliminated after five very tight games in the 2025 playoff quarterfinals…
In Monaco,
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