Valencia-Real Madrid, Spanish derby in Athens as Scariolo faces frontcourt emergency

Valencia Basket and Real Madrid meet at 20:00 CET in the second EuroLeague Final Four semifinal in Athens.

The Spanish derby comes with a balanced EuroLeague background: 1-1 in the regular season, with both teams winning at home, while Real Madrid leads 2-0 in Liga Endesa meetings.

Pedro Martinez’s Valencia gets Jean Montero and Sako back after the virus that kept them out in domestic action, but will be without Lopez-Arostegui and Puerto. The taronja reach the first Final Four in club history after eliminating Panathinaikos from 0-2 down.

The situation is more complicated for Sergio Scariolo’s Real Madrid, missing Tavares with a knee issue and Alex Len with plantar fasciitis, while Garuba is not fully fit. The blancos are chasing another European final but must reinvent themselves inside.