European Champions' Cup Play-Offs 1961-1962

Despite the fact that the Soviet basketball federation had lodged a protest with FIBA about having to play the final in a single match on neutral territory (instead of a round trip, as stipulated in the rules of the competition), because Franco's regime did not maintain political relations with the USSR and did not allow Soviet teams to enter Spain or the Spaniards to travel to Russian territory, finally that skillful negotiator Raimundo Saporta managed to convince the authorities of the communist country with his arguments (and also with an economic compensation of 2. 000 dollars).

The technical conditions in the skating rink in Geneva were not ideal for the dispute of a European Cup final, with an irregular parquet floor and anachronistic wooden boards. Although many Swiss and Spanish fans flocked to the pavilion, there were only three quarters of the entry. From the opening whistle, it was clear that Dinamo Tbilisi were a better team than Real Madrid, both physically (an average height of 1.97m compared to 1.87m for Whites) and in terms of individual technique. The 2-3 zone designed by Pedro Ferrandiz -and sometimes an individual defense with flotation- managed to keep an even score during the first half, although the Georgian team always gave the impression of dominating the game, with a uniform rhythm throughout the match, individual defense and a 1-3-1 attack in which the ball moved more than the men. Dinamo had a maximum lead of seven points in the first half (34-27, min. 15), but a final reaction from Real Madrid, led by an inspired Hightower, reduced the deficit to two points at half-time (38-36).

At the restart, the Whites managed to maintain the equality to 50-50 (min. 24), but Hightower's fourth personal foul and the subsequent elimination by five personnel of Lluis weighed heavily on Ferrandiz's men. Without their captain and galvanizer of game, the players of Real Madrid began to act in individualistic plan, whereas the Georgians continued with their incredible percentages of outer shot (near 80%) - face in which they excelled especially Ugrekhelidze and Kiladze - since the zonal defense of Madrid allowed the distant shots. However, it was during this period that the Madrid players made their most brilliant moves, especially on the counter-attack. Faced with huge opposition from the Georgian towers Lezhava and Petrov, Hightower and Morrison tried to get out of the bulb to take shots in suspension. Although Dinamo managed to overcome the psychological barrier of a ten-point lead (77-66, 85-74), three consecutive baskets by Morrison, Hightower and Sainz served to narrow the score again (85-80, min. 39). However, Hightower's fifth personal foul thereafter was already too heavy for the Madridistas, and the Georgian side had no trouble maintaining their lead and claiming victory.

Courtesy of BasketFinals

Dinamo Tbilisi - Real Madrid 90-83
BK Dinamo (coach: Otar Korkia): Guram Minashvili 9 (c), Valeri Altabaev 17, Vladimer Ugrekhelidze 14, Levan Intskirveli 3, Aleksandre Kiladze 14, Anzor Lezhava 16, Levan Moseshvili 3, Revaz Gogelia, Aleksandar Petrov 12, Amiran Skhiereli, Ilarion Khazaradze 2, Anton Kisandsan dnp.
Real Madrid CF (coach: Pedro Ferrandiz): Jose Lluis 5 (c), Carlos Sevillano 11, Emiliano Rodriguez 21, Wayne Hightower 30, Stan Morrison 12; Lolo Sainz 4, Lorenzo Alocen, Julio Descartin, Pedro Llop dnp, Jose Ramon Durand dnp, Antonio Palmero