The Penya writes one of the most emotional pages of its history

BadalonaThe cradle of basketball wrote one of the most emotional pages of its history with Asisa Joventut's victory against Barça in the Endesa Supercup final (101-87). Nico Laprovittola was the hero of a night that will be told from generation to generation. The Argentine, whom the blue and garnet club did not want to renew the previous summer, scored 31 points with 9/13 in three-pointers and 7 assists. "I am as tired as I am excited. I feel a great emotion. What we have experienced is stronger than what I imagined two months ago. I really wanted to win and we had a great opportunity. If you don't imagine things like this, they never happen," the MVP explained."I don't know how I will process all the memories. The person who put the most pressure on me was my daughter, who is five years old. Today was a different and special day because I had a lot of confidence. Whenever I shoot, I think the shot will go in. My game is like that, sometimes a little crazy. The idea is to continue writing more interesting chapters because the city of Badalona is really looking forward to it," said Lapro, who left Xavi Ballesteros, the journalist from Ràdio Ciutat de Badalona, speechless.

The night was long in Badalona, which hadn't lifted a title since 2008. "We have made history by bringing a title to Badalona. We have suffered for years and now I feel an incredible joy. We didn't fail at the key moment against a rival with great talent. Our leaders have magic," explained Dani Miret. The Penya coach moved his pieces with extreme skill. "I was more nervous than during the World Cup final. The path has been very long, but the work we have done is spectacular. It is a night to remember," said Ricky Rubio, who contributed 10 points and 8 assists. Emir Sulejmanovic and Álex Reyes also completed an outstanding performance.Barça did not have a consistent performance during the final. "Everything Laprovittola shot, he scored, and that makes it very difficult. We have to improve some things, but we have stayed united," analyzed Aleksander Sekulic, coach of the blue-and-red team. Joel Parra (24 points) and Kevin Punter (20) were the most outstanding players for the culé side.Forty years after fighting for the title in Vigo in a final that brought together Epi, Sibilio, Solozábal, Jiménez, Jofresa, Villacampa and Margall, the two Catalan teams played the final of the Endesa Super Cup. The match brought together 12,046 spectators at the Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona.The first stretch of Ricky Rubio's game was a scandal. The point guard only needed four minutes to score 7 points and dish out 4 assists. Asisa Joventut took advantage of his momentum to build a five-point lead (19-15). Nico Laprovittola, who added four three-pointers in no time, also joined the party for a Penya side that scored 32 points in the first quarter (32-23).The green-and-black lead reached 10 points (37-27). Aleksander Sekulic adjusted the defense of a Barça side that will need to perform well at the back this season to impose its rhythm. The points from Joel Parra and Kevin Punter, two of the few players who remain with the 'culer' team, helped the blue-and-red squad stay in the game, but their poor outside shooting was a burden. La Penya, which took advantage of its good percentages, especially the six three-pointers from Laprovittola, recorded the highest-scoring first half of a Supercopa Endesa final (52-46).

The start of the third quarter once again tested the resilience of a Barça side that fell behind by as many as 13 points (61-48). Umoja Gibson and Ricky Rubio clashed during a stretch of the game in which the tension rose excessively. The American point guard was fouled out. The blaugrana team showed their character and narrowed the score (71-68).Tyrese Martin showed talent to narrow the gap, but the Laprovittola factor fueled the hopes of La Penya once again, which reached the last six minutes with a 10-point lead (84-74). Barça did not give up and took risks on defense to hinder Asisa Joventut's attacks, but Laprovittola sealed the game with another implausible three-pointer. Seconds before the final ended, euphoria took hold of the Badalona Olympic Pavilion, the setting for a match that the locals will not soon forget.“The feeling I had is that the game would never end. We have gone through hard years and being able to celebrate a title at home with our fans is not the end of the road, but it is the reward for the work of many people,” recalled Juanan Morales, president of Joventut Badalona.