U18 Zalgiris Kaunas doubled their wins in the 2024-25 Adidas NextGen EuroLeague Finals by edging U18 Real Madrid 70-69 on Friday.

A back-and-forth affair saw Los Blancos lead until late in the third quarter, when the Lithuanian side established a cushion that they maintained throughout the fourth.

Zalgiris has now reached the NextGen Championship Game, while Javier Juarez’s side dropped to 1-1, with everything in Group B set to be decided on Saturday.

Dovydas Buika paced Zalgiris with 14 points, Kajus Mikalauskas had 13, Ignas Stombergas scored 12, and Dominykas Grunkis added 11.

Real Madrid center Sidi Gueye led all scorers with 19 points, which he combined with 13 rebounds for a double-double. Gildas Gimenez netted 11 in a losing effort.

Real Madrid got off to a solid start, dominating inside and taking an early 3-11 lead. Stombergas responded with 9 straight points, but Los Blancos remained in control, taking a 17-21 advantage into the second quarter. Six points in a row from Maksim Brnovic were followed by 5 straight points from Gildas Gimenez that allowed Real Madrid to maintain a 36-40 cushion at halftime.

A 2-8 run in the opening stages of the second half made it 40-48 for Real Madrid. Yet, Zalgiris replied with an 11-2 surge, taking a 54-52 edge after 30 minutes. Having imposed their game on Los Blancos, the Lithuanians dictated the tempo on both ends, maintaining a narrow lead until the final whistle despite Real Madrid’s late comeback attempt. This was Zalgiris’ first win over Los Blancos since 2007-08, having lost all their last six games against the Spanish side.