By Khilen Mehta

On Sunday night CSKA Moscow wrote yet another chapter in their illustrious history by defeating Maccabi Tel Aviv 77-91 to claim their sixth continental championship crown and second in the past three years. CSKA’s victory over Maccabi at the Community of Madrid Sports Palace moves the Russian powerhouse into second place on the all-time list and they are now only two victories behind Real Madrid’s haul of 8 crowns.

Trajan Langdon was named Final Four MVP after scoring 21 points on 4-of-5 three-point shooting and 7 rebounds to outscore six fellow CSKA teammates who also managed double figures in the victory. J.R. Holden added 14 points, Matjaz Smodis, David Andersen and freshly crowned Euroleague MVP Ramunas Siskauskas scored 13 points apiece.

Moscow coach Ettore Messina paid credit to both teams for providing such a great spectacle for the fans but believed his teams character was the main reason for their triumph. He described it as ” a continual challenge to match up with them while maintaining our team character.”

The victory gave  the Russian champs another title to add to their trophies from 1961, 1963, 1969, 1971 and 2006, with the 2006 victory also coming against Maccabi. Alas, this time for the Israelis, they fought hard but there was to be no sweet revenge…