An unexpected defeat resurrects Barça's ghosts

BarcelonaBarça, disconcerted by the refereeing performance and the zonal defense set up by Sito Alonso, lost to UCAM Murcia (87-90). The blaugrana team played with fire and ended up getting burned against an opponent who knew how to play their cards. The quarter-final tie will be decided on Saturday in Murcia. Joel Parra and Kevin Punter missed two three-pointers to force overtime, but the final stretch was conditioned by some refereeing decisions heavily criticized by the home team. "We fought and competed, but the last two personal fouls decided the game. They had great accuracy," lamented Xavi Pascual.

Aware that it had no other option, UCAM Murcia entered the game with more energy than on Tuesday, and this allowed them to build a six-point lead in the opening minutes (5-11). Sito Alonso used defensive variations to modify the offensive spaces of a Barça that only made two shots in the first five and a half minutes. The rival from Barcelona set the pace during a first quarter with a visiting accent (18-22).

Barça used Joel Parra's grit to react, but the blaugrana team was not able to tie the game until the 15th minute (29-29). Far from giving up, UCAM Murcia took advantage of David DeJulius' inspiration and the catalan team's lack of mobility to regain the lead (34-41). Without success in three-point shooting, the locals struggled to turn the situation around before halftime (40-43).

A Palau Blaugrana in need of good news spurred Barça on at the start of the third quarter, when UCAM Murcia struggled to match the physical level of the home team (51-46). The talent of Punter, Clyburn or Shengelia complicated Sito Alonso's strategy, but the reaction of his players was major. Led by a DeJulius in a state of grace, the visitors turned the situation around, but the point guard's injury was a headache for the visiting coach (66-67).

The alarms went off with six and a half minutes left, when UCAM Murcia once again altered Barça's shooting positions (70-76). Darío Brizuela's surge helped the Barça team not lose momentum. Annoyed with the refereeing, the Catalan team went through a critical moment, but regained the lead with two minutes left (85-84).

The game reached the last minute tied. An offensive foul by Jan Vesely frustrated Xavi Pascual, his players, and the fans, who did not understand the criteria in the final seconds. UCAM Murcia took advantage of free throws to reach the final 13.3 seconds with a three-point lead (87-90). Joel Parra and Kevin Punter missed two three-pointers and the victory went to the visiting team.

La Penya, at the Olímpic

Asisa Joventut wants to avoid this Friday (9 p.m., DAZN) the first match ball against them. La Penya needs to overcome Kosner Baskonia at the Palau Olímpic to force a third game in the quarter-final tie. “We have to play like we did for the first 30 minutes on Wednesday and do our job well. Close out the rebound like we did in the first three quarters and play better against their zone defense, which hurt us in the last period. And above all, be more solid. We can compete against this Baskonia. They are a very good team, but as we showed, we entered the last period winning. We need all the fans, for them to help us. An atmosphere similar to the one against AEK, which was incredible,” says Dani Miret.

In addition, La Laguna Tenerife and Valencia Basket are playing the second game of their tie (7 p.m., DAZN).