Road to London: Real Madrid

Some teams have bulldozed their way to the Final Four. Others have come out of nowhere. Real Madrid took the inclined route, getting better phase to phase. A lot better. After a second-place group finish in the regular season and the worst first-place record in the Top 16, Madrid was not merely the first team to reach the Final Four. It was also one of the most dominant teams in playoffs history. With three double-digit wins, including by 26 points in Game 1 - after having trailed by 12! - Madrid had the second-largest overall winning margin in a playoff series since 2005. It was Maccabi's worst game of this century and its biggest margin of defeat against Madrid in 40 years. From the 15th minute of Game 1 until the sweep was finished, Madrid suffered a brief, high deficit of 4 points and a couple of equally brief ties, but otherwise enjoyed lots of big leads. Maccabi had never been swept and had never failed to win any home game in a playoff series. Madrid not only rose to the moment, but owned it, and Rudy Fernandez said upon qualifying: "It doesn't matter who our opponent is at the Final Four. We just want to win."

Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez, Sergio Llull and Felipe Reyes (Olympic silver medalist in London in 2012 with the Spanish national team)

Regular Season, Game 1

To open the season, Real Madrid downs Panathinaikos 85-78, starting a nine-game home winning streak. Rudy Fernandez, with 23 points, and Nikola Mirotic, with 18 plus 8 rebounds, set the tone for Madrid's season.

Top 16, Game 6

In a clash for first place, Madrid needs overtime to beat mighty CSKA Moscow 86-78 and stay undefeated at 6-0 in the Top 16. Jaycee Carroll wows a sold-out crowd with his Euroleague career-high 31 points.

Top 16, Game 10

In the third-highest scoring best game of the Euroleague season, Madrid edges Zalgiris Kaunas on the road, 104-105, in overtime. Mirotic scores 31 points and makes 18 of 18 free throws, a new competition record.

Top 16, Game 14

Still needing home-court advantage in the playoffs, Madrid downs Anadolu Efes Istanbul 86-66 at home to finish second in Top 16 Group E. Sergio Llull leads five Madrid scorers in double digits with 16 points.

Playoffs, Game 1

Despite trailing by 12 points in the second quarter, Madrid rallies to win 79-53 and to hand visiting Maccabi Electra its worst Euroleague defeat this century. Fernandez has 15 points and Sergio Rodriguez 10 assists.

Euroleague.net