Memorable night with a cruel ending
Asisa Joventut loses a great game against Valencia Basket in overtime
BadalonaMemorable night with a cruel ending. An Asisa Joventut, as brave as they were consistent, opened the semifinals with an overtime loss against Valencia Basket (118-117). Cameron Hunt missed the decisive shot and La Penya did not complete a feat they deserved more than ever. The green-and-black team scored 18 three-pointers at the Roig Arena, where the good game from Ricky Rubio and Jabari Parker went unrewarded. "We played a great game, but we didn't get the prize," said Dani Miret. "La Penya played an impressive game, but we managed to force overtime and get the win," acknowledged Pedro Martínez.
Neither of the two teams speculated and the game was played at a dizzying pace. Asisa Joventut had a great start. When only 15 seconds had been played, the locals lost Nate Reuvers due to injury. La Penya took advantage of their outside shooting to build a five-point lead (17-22), but their good first quarter was not rewarded and the local team reacted with a 9-0 run (26-22).
The green and black team conceded 43 points in just 15 minutes (43-33), but Dani Miret was able to tactically rectify the situation. The coach introduced a zone defense that worsened the opponent's shooting positions. In addition, the three-pointers from Ludde Hakanson, Ricky Rubio, and Cameron Hunt boosted the visiting team's scoring (51-54).
Far from lowering their performance, Asisa Joventut increased it. Jabari Parker appeared to accentuate the weak points of Valencia Basket's defense. The nine points from the forward-center allowed Penya to reach the final ten minutes with an open scenario (79-78).
The green and black team even had an eight-point lead with six and a half minutes left (83-91). Rubio and Parker fueled the hopes of the Badalona followers in an epic final stretch in which both teams exchanged successful shots. A three-pointer from Pradilla tied the game with 17.4 seconds left (105-105) and Hakanson missed his shot to avoid overtime.
The overtime had great excitement. Two free throws from Jean Montero put Valencia Basket ahead with 7.4 seconds left (118-117). Cameron Hunt missed the final shot and Penya's dream vanished.
Barça, motivated
Barça and La Laguna Tenerife will play this Thursday (8 p.m., DAZN) the second game of the other semifinal. The Barça team is looking for a second victory that would leave the tie settled.