A great Ferran Bassas and the defensive intensity of La Penya lead the tie to the decisive duel on Saturday (72-63)
A real match of Ferran Bassas (20 points, 19 rating) and the extreme intensity of Joventut in defensive tasks were the great arguments of Penya to force the third game against Bara. The green and black drowned during much of the duel the best attack of the ACB regular phase and, finally pushed by the support of the 1,000 spectators who were able to access the Badalona Olmpic, they managed to take the playoff quarterfinals to a decisive date to be played this Saturday at the Palau Blaugrana.
The green and black set signed a start of very high revolutions. Both in attack and defense. He jumped on the court more than willing to take the series to the third game and, mainly hand in hand with a great Bassas and two consecutive triples of Brodzianski Y Dimitrijevic, signed a partial 20-5 that put everything tremendously uphill for Bara. On the Barça side, only Bolmaro seemed capable of replying. The Barcelona fans, however, managed to reach the end of the period with a somewhat less bloody 23-13 in the light.
In the second quarter, those of Jasikevicius They stepped forward in defensive intensity demanded by their coach and managed to endorse a 2-11 run on their rival to get just one point away on the scoreboard (25-24). La Penya, however, managed to shake off the rival’s suffocating defense with a 6-0 run and a huge Dimitrijevic to put land in the middle again. The Macedonian’s sprained ankle would be the great jug of cold water for the locals, more even than the final three points of a Higgins to tighten things up until 31-27 with which the break was reached.
One second of equality
The visitors promised them very happily after the break. And they even finally matched the score by Davies, along with Higgins one of his best arguments on the court. His lack of toe in general, with special mention for free kicks, would end up fostering the reaction of a Joventut who, with the return of a Dimitrijevic who left tremendously sore in the final moments, managed to open a good gap of 10 points (49-39) in the final stretch of the period. Bolmaro and a Mirotic finally landed in the game, however, they managed to put an apparently hopeful, for the visitors, 49-44 to face the last quarter.
His illusions would remain in the end only a mirage. Al Joventut, in the moment of truth, his pulse did not tremble. Little by little, he managed to withstand the onslaught of a Bara who could not quite hit the key in attack against a rival that he would find at the end in the veteran of a former Barcelona player, Pau Ribas, the key to finally take the victory by an undeniable 72-63. The Catalans have no other choice but to play their way to the semifinals at home. And they will do it against a rival who will be planted in the Palau with morale through the roof.
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