Memorable night with a cruel ending

BadalonaMemorable night with a cruel ending. An Asisa Joventut, as brave as it was 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 an achievement they deserved more than ever. The green-and-black team scored 18 three-pointers at the Roig Arena, where Ricky Rubio and Jabari Parker's good game 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 team speculated, and the game was played at a dizzying pace. Asisa Joventut had a great start. When only 15 seconds had been played, the home team lost Nate Reuvers to injury. La Penya took advantage of their outside shooting to build a five-point lead (17-22), but their good first quarter went unrewarded, and the home 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. Furthermore, 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 power forward's nine points 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 where 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.

Overtime was highly emotional. Two free throws from Jean Montero put Valencia Basket ahead with 7.4 seconds left (118-117). Cameron Hunt missed the final action.

Barça, motivated

Barça and La Laguna Tenerife will play this Thursday (8 p.m., DAZN) the second match of the other semifinal. The Barça team is looking for a second victory that would leave the tie settled.