Olympiacos' defense makes Barça's comeback a mere anecdote
The Barcelona team recovers from a 17-point deficit, but ends up losing
BarcelonaAn incomplete feat. A Barça side with more character than energy overcame a 17-point deficit, but couldn't secure the victory on the court of a far more resourceful Olympiacos team (87-75). Benefiting from very lenient officiating, the Greek team capitalized on an extraordinary level of defense that exhausted the Barça squad.
"We competed until the end. We missed some opportunities, but we were very close to winning," analyzed Xavi Pascual. The coach welcomed back Will Clyburn, who played with a limited minutes. The American forward scored 13 points and drew 7 personal fouls. The player left out of the game was Myles Cale. For the home team, Tyrique Jones shone, adding 16 points and 8 rebounds.
The night started in the worst possible way for Barça. Overwhelmed by the energy and physical intensity of their opponents, the Blaugrana team quickly accumulated a 17-point deficit (27-10). Olympiacos troubled a Catalan side that committed numerous errors in the early stages of the game. This translated into constant counter-attacks. When they were struggling the most, the visitors clung to Pascual's tactical discipline to weather the storm. Darío Brizuela scored 12 points in a few minutes, but the situation remained pessimistic (46-37).
Barça used an 11-0 run to tie the game (46-46). Fueled by the production of Punter and Clyburn, the Blaugrana team completed a brilliant third quarter. On offense, few errors and greater discipline. On defense, greater solidity. The Barça team entered the final ten minutes with a 5-point lead (59-64).
Home team reaction
Pascual used all the resources he had, which are far fewer than those of an Olympiacos side that has been signing players for weeks, but fatigue began to take its toll. Barça went more than five minutes without scoring, which left them without any chance of victory against an opponent that regained its confidence. A buzzer-beating basket by Jan Vesely allowed the Catalan team to maintain a basket-average favorable.
