Hezonja's 40 sinks UCAM Murcia

Liga Endesa got one of those absurd regular-season games that stops feeling real halfway through. Real Madrid beat UCAM Murcia 131-123 in overtime on Sunday, May 3, but the score only tells part of it. Murcia had Madrid on the ropes for most of the afternoon. Then Mario Hezonja detonated the ending — and turned a near-upset into a record night. ### Why was this game such a big deal? Because it wasn’t just a comeback win. It was the highest-scoring game in ACB history at 254 combined points, with regulation somehow ending 114-114 before Madrid finally took overtime 17-9. That kind of total is rare in any league, but in Spain’s top division it was outright record territory. (acb.com) ### How bad did it look for Madrid? Pretty bad. UCAM Murcia shredded Madrid’s defense early and led 64-50 at halftime, then kept scoring after the break. By the end of the third quarter, Murcia had piled up 92 points in just 30 minutes — an outrageous number for a road te(acb.com)ase. (realmadrid.com) ### So what did Hezonja actually do? Basically everything. Hezonja finished with 40 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists and a 53 performance index rating. He hit 8 threes, got to the line, cleaned the glass, and carried the late-game offense when Ma(realmadrid.com)se it looks made up. (acb.com) ### Did anyone else keep Madrid alive? Yes — Trey Lyles mattered a lot. While Hezonja owned the finish, Lyles kept the whole thing from collapsing earlier and ended with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Madrid needed both versions of survival: the first one where somebody stops(acb.com) handled the second. (acb.com) ### What about Murcia? Murcia played well enough to win against almost anyone. Dylan Ennis wasn’t the headline here, but Rodions Kurucs’ group got huge production from Troy Caupain replacements? No — the real engines in this one were Troy DeJulius, Travis Trice-style shot(acb.com)that when a game gets this chaotic, one cold stretch can erase 35 great minutes. That’s what happened in overtime. (acb.com) ### Why did overtime swing so hard? Because the emotional energy flipped all at once. Madrid had spent the whole game trying to catch up, then finally dragged Murcia into extra time at 114-114. Once that happened, the pressure changed sides. Madrid looked relieved and agg(acb.com)ows that cleanly. (sofascore.com) ### What does this change in the standings? For Madrid, it tightened their grip on first place in Liga Endesa. For Murcia, it was the opposite — a brilliant offensive performance that still ended as a missed chance against the league leaders. That’s the cruel part of games like (sofascore.com)body will remember: you let Hezonja get loose. (cope.es) ### Bottom line This was a regular-season game that felt bigger because it exposed both teams so clearly. Murcia showed it can scare anyone. Madrid showed why top teams survive nights when nothing is working. And Hezonja turned the whole mess into one of the loudest individual performances the ACB has seen in years.