Joan Peñarroya vindicates himself against his former boss: the ARA Instant Replay

BarcelonaFour days before playing the Copa del Rey in Las Palmas, Barça scored an important victory on the court of Valencia Basket (86-100). The blue-and-red team closed an extremely difficult week with two wins and a defeat against the Euroleague leader. Joan Peñarroya redeemed himself at the Fonteta. When he was still a player, the player from Las Palmas had Pedro Martínez as his coach for three seasons. "I played my best basketball with him," he admits.

The Mike Tyson argument that explains a defeat

Baloncesto Girona was unable to secure a home win against a direct rival and lost to Casademont Zaragoza (89-101). A very poor first quarter ended the Catalan team's chances. "When you lose by 18 points in the first quarter, it's very difficult to react. We didn't do anything we had planned. What happened to us was what Mike Tyson said: everyone has a plan until they get punched," analysed Moncho Fernández.

A DNA that never rests in Lleida

Real Madrid came through their visit to Barris Nord with flying colours (84-95). Hiopos Lleida competed well, but were unable to surprise the league leaders. "We have shown that we are a team that never gives up. We have competitive DNA, but at key moments in the game they have players who are capable of making the decisions, and when they are at this level we can't do it," analysed Gerard Troba. Sergi Llull reached the figure of 1,000 three-pointers in the Endesa League.

Diego Ocampo has not yet gone on vacation

Baxi Manresa are still on a roll. The Bagenc team beat Surne Bilbao Basket (89-74) and have now won 12 games. Although this figure is synonymous with staying up, Diego Ocampo has raised the bar to 14 wins. "When we beat them, I'll go on holiday," said the coach ironically. The public at the Nou Congost applauded Jaume Ponsarnau when he was disqualified. "I complained and they sent me off. I made a mistake and went too far," admitted the Catalan coach.

Personality to overcome frustration

Joventut beat Leyma Coruña (107-104) and have now won eight of their last ten games. Thomas Heurtel missed the decisive shot and the green-black team was superior during overtime. La Penya missed 16 of the 47 free throws they attempted. "That frustrated us," Dani Miret acknowledged. The coach praised the character of the dressing room. "We didn't play our best game, but we had the personality to overcome a rival who played very well," he said.