The Club cries its most painful defeat

BadalonaHard blow. Asisa Joventut lost on AEK Athens' court (72-67). The green-and-black team couldn't manage an eight-point lead and was eliminated from the Basketball Champions League. Two final referee decisions, a mistaken throw-in and an uncalled foul, harmed the Catalan team, which was left unable to compete in the final four in Badalona.

"The defeat is very tough. We made a great effort, but they had a better finish. We had little success and that decided an even match. We had the situation under control, but in the last quarter we didn't know how to complete the job. We had a lot of hope and we are very annoyed. 'Not playing the final four in Badalona is cruel and hard. They had better refereeing than us', lamented Dani Miret, Joventut's coach.

The match reached the last 90 seconds tied, when Penya conceded a devastating 7-2 run. Jabari Parker (22 points) and Ricky Rubio (17 points) did not have the necessary help to overcome the Greek opponent. The presence of Guillem Vives and Simon Birgander, two players who had missed the first two games of the series, was not enough.

Spar Girona's Feat

Spar Girona staged a historic feat. Despite the absences, the Catalan team beat Umana Reyer Venice (70-64) and, for the first time in history, will play in the Women's Euroleague semifinals. Their opponent will be Fenerbahçe. The good performance of Mariam Coulibaly (19 points and 15 rebounds) and Juste Jocyte (18 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds) allowed the Girona team to reach the top in Zaragoza. Dominance in rebounds was key.

“I am excited. If qualifying for the Final Six was already historic, playing in the semifinal is a giant step. The victory is a reward for the team's effort, which has overcome the absences”, summarized Ainhoa López. Roberto Íñiguez could only use eight players, four of whom played more than 30 minutes. Klara Holm could only rest for two and a half minutes.