Barça removes the most necessary thorn

BarcelonaBarça subdued Armani Olimpia Milan (81-89), an insipid rival that has only won one of the first seven EuroLeague games. Without many fans in the stands and without much competitive tension, the Italian team could not deactivate a Blaugrana side with the need to erase the bad taste of the Badalona game. The Culers added their fourth triumph on a night in which the 17 offensive rebounds were key.

Aleksander Sekulic, who had the absences of Yoan Makoundou and Darío Brizuela, recovered Justin Minaya. The intrigue of the match was seeing the impact of Moses Wright, the player who had signed a contract with Barça and who paid the termination clause before being presented. The center finished with 6 points, 8 rebounds, and little impact on the game of the team coached by Peppe Poeta.

Barça solved some of the problems they have had during this start of the season during the first quarter, such as patience in finding solutions in static attack or rebounding. Joel Parra scored 10 points in a few opening minutes in which the Italian team sinned of low defensive intensity (21-23).

The match was a tough nut to crack. Olimpia Milano complained about the officiating, but couldn't find the formula to close the gap. Barça's 10 offensive rebounds allowed them to have second chances and, furthermore, Tyrese Martin found his offensive rhythm. Despite committing some defensive errors, the Catalan side reached halftime with a four-point lead (40-44).

While the local fans despaired at the apathy of their players, Barça opened up a 14-point gap on the scoreboard (52-66). For many minutes, Jason Burnell's shooting was one of the few pieces of good news for the Italian team, but a 12-2 run tightened the score (64-68).

Barça took a while to close out the game, but the minutes kept ticking by and Olimpia Milano didn't know how to reduce the difference to believe in their chances either. Umoja Gibson made all three three-pointers he attempted, Justin Robinson dished out many assists, and Kevin Punter took responsibility for some difficult shots.

The schedule does not stop

Barça will close the week playing on Saturday at the Palau Blaugrana against Casademont Zaragoza, one of the revelation teams at the start of this season in the Liga Endesa.