The spirit of Kobe Bryant inspires an impossible comeback

BarcelonaA Barça that is still learning how to compete, possessed by the purple-colored kit inspired by Kobe Bryant, achieved a golden victory on the court of Panathinaikos (74-76). The blue and garnet team recovered from a 14-point deficit in Athens, where Tyrese Martin and Justin Robinson led an implausible reaction. Their performance in a final quarter in which the Catalan side scored 33 points was spectacular. Robinson, who scored the last 13 points, clinched it with a decisive three-pointer with 4.4 seconds remaining. “It’s for things like these that I am here,” said the point guard. “Our responsibility was to take a step forward,” opined Tyrese Martin, who scored 13 points.

“I am proud of the team. We were losing, but we found a way to react. I had the feeling that we could do it and we played good defense throughout the game. We kept believing despite the absences to overcome all the adversities,” analyzed Aleksander Sekulic, who imposed his game plan. The Barça coach, who had the absences of Punter, Evbuomwan, Makoundou, and Núñez, recovered Umoja Gibson. Junior player Abdu Kone completed theroster and made his debut in a EuroLeague call-up.

The EuroLeague leader's staging was remarkable (14-8). The home team, encouraged by the activity of Jerian Grant, dominated an early stretch of the game in which Barça struggled to score points. Lacking success from the three-point line, the blue and garnet team grew thanks to rebounding and transition play. The visitors knew how to erase the Greeks' advantage (17-17).

The appearance of Kendrick Nunn allowed Panathinaikos to regain the initiative on the scoreboard. The defense proposed by Zeljko Obradovic, very proactive, made Barça's attacks difficult, as they suffered especially in static attacks. The home difference grew in a worrying way (31-24), but the Catalan team did not lose concentration. Intense in defense and always focused, the visitors reached halftime with a very tight score (33-32).

Panathinaikos began the third quarter with a 7-0 run (40-32). Barça, however, managed to grit their teeth again to stay in the game on the scoreboard. Joel Parra's fourth personal foul affected Sekulic's rotations. The blue and garnet team, dry in attack, struggled to keep up with the pace of a Greek side that knew how to attack Darío Brizuela. As the minutes passed, the visitors' energy was penalized, and they reached the final ten minutes with a 14-point disadvantage (57-43).

Amazing reaction

Although the adverse indicators were growing, Barça did not give up and looked for formulas to keep the match alive. When the Greek fans were already celebrating the victory, the blue and garnet team increased their offensive production. Tyrese Martin and Justin Robinson led the reaction of the Culer side, which tied the score with two and a half minutes left to the end (66-66).

Two free throws from Martin put Barça ahead, but Francisco regained the lead with a three-pointer. The final exchange of blows was beautiful. Nigel Hayes-Davis forced the blue-and-red team to score on a final possession of 20.6 seconds. Robinson scored a decisive long-range three-pointer just seconds before the end. Panathinaikos did not even have time to shoot.

After the demanding match against Panathinaikos, Barça will have to play four duels in eight days, as they will play against Monbus Obradoiro, Paris Basketball, Red Star Belgrade, and La Laguna Tenerife in an extremely tight part of the calendar. The good news is that the first three matches are at the Palau Blaugrana.