Javier Pasqual: Dubai Beats Real Madrid in EuroLeague Opener

Dubai opened its EuroLeague campaign with a narrow win over Real Madrid, surviving a 10:0 run from the visitors in the closing minutes and a four-minute spell without a basket before finding a way through. New head coach Javier Pasqual pointed to that resilience afterwards.

"We want this to become part of our genes. Always fight to the very end. Fight for every rebound, every action, every possession, in attack and in defence. We have to enjoy this success. In the last five minutes of the fourth quarter we scored just two points, but then we found a way and won. On Real's final possession, with 10 seconds left, we decided to keep switching constantly and then lock down the paint at the end. Very good defence. There are a lot of good teams in this competition this season. We started with a very important win. But we have to keep learning, keep getting better every day. There's a long road ahead," Pasqual said.

Real Madrid coach Pedro Martinez gave a different reading of the same closing stretch.

"It was a close game. Good and bad moments on both sides. We played badly at the end. We conceded an easy three-pointer. We missed two lay-ups. And the last attack was simply terrible," Martinez said.