Real Madrid opened their Liga ACB campaign with a hard-fought 89-87 victory over Unicaja Málaga at a packed Movistar Arena, surviving a nervy final possession to take a two-point win that was far tighter than the home crowd expected. In a game that swung repeatedly through the second half, the defending champions leaned on their frontcourt size and a pair of late defensive stands to hold off an Unicaja side that refused to go away.

Match Overview

The visitors arrived with a clear plan: push the tempo, hunt mismatches on the perimeter and force Real Madrid's big men to defend in space. It worked for long stretches. Unicaja led by as many as seven in the second quarter and were still within a single basket entering the closing minutes, only for Madrid's rebounding advantage and free-throw discipline to decide the outcome.

The scoring was spread across the roster rather than concentrated in one star, which is exactly the profile that has made Madrid so difficult to beat in the Liga Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto in recent seasons. Unicaja, for their part, will take plenty from a road performance that produced 87 points against one of the best defensive units in Europe.

Quarter-by-Quarter Breakdown

• First quarter: Real Madrid 24–21 Unicaja — Madrid's early interior scoring set the tone.
• Second quarter: Real Madrid 20–24 Unicaja — Unicaja's three-point shooting flipped the momentum.
• Third quarter: Real Madrid 22–19 Unicaja — a defensive adjustment restored the home lead.
• Fourth quarter: Real Madrid 23–23 Unicaja — traded baskets down the stretch, Madrid held their nerve.

Final score: Real Madrid 89, Unicaja Málaga 87.

Key Moments

The decisive stretch came midway through the fourth quarter, when Madrid strung together three consecutive defensive stops and converted them into transition points to open a six-point cushion. Unicaja answered with a quick 6–0 run of their own, capped by a corner three that silenced the arena and brought the bench to its feet.

With under 30 seconds remaining and the margin at two, Unicaja had a chance to tie or win. Madrid switched every screen, forced the ball toward the sideline and contested a fadeaway jumper that rimmed out. The rebound was secured, the clock was drained, and the win was sealed at the free-throw line.

Tactical Story

Madrid's half-court offense ran through high pick-and-roll actions designed to pull Unicaja's centers away from the rim, opening driving lanes for their guards and second-chance opportunities for the offensive glass. When Unicaja went small in the third quarter to chase the game, Madrid immediately punished them inside with post touches and put-back baskets.

Unicaja's counter was intelligent: they switched aggressively, denied the first pass and turned the game into a series of isolations. Their ball movement generated open corner threes, and their bench scoring kept them in touch whenever Madrid threatened to break clear. The difference ultimately came at the margins — rebounding, turnovers and free throws — where the home side was marginally cleaner.

Standout Players

• Real Madrid frontcourt: Dominant on the boards all night, controlling the defensive glass and providing the interior scoring that anchored the half-court attack.
• Real Madrid backcourt: Managed tempo effectively in the fourth quarter and hit the free throws that closed out the game.
• Unicaja perimeter: Shot the ball well from deep and kept the visitors within striking distance for the full 40 minutes.
• Unicaja bench: Provided a genuine spark in the second quarter when the starters struggled against Madrid's length.

What It Means

The result gives Real Madrid an important early-season win in the ACB standings and reinforces their status among the title contenders for the campaign. For Unicaja Málaga, a two-point road defeat to the champions is a performance to build on rather than a setback — it confirms their ability to compete with the league's elite and suggests they will be a factor in the playoff race and in the race for a top-four seeding.

The head-to-head between these two clubs remains one of the most compelling fixtures in Spanish basketball, and if this meeting is any indication, the return leg promises to be every bit as tight.