The Casademont Zaragoza is still very far from its true dimension. Before Avtodor Saratov, in his most recent performance, he was again a timid, indecisive, timid block; without solutions in attack, subjected by his slow and predictable game – he relied all his luck on triple shots – and also without the solidity that the game demanded in the containment work. Although he kept ambitions of triumph until the last breath (86-92), the Aragonese team again emitted negative signals on both sides of the court, and was especially unfortunate in the moments of noise: His last minutes were especially pernicious due to their disorder, their rainfall and their anarchic and uncontrolled basketball. And # his poor performance drastically compromises his continuity in the continental tournament, where he no longer depends on himself to get through the first phase.
In this scenario, Real Betis – current bottom of the Endesa League – represents a huge threat to Zaragoza. A new defeat, and also in the Príncipe Felipe pavilion, would accentuate the doubts of a team already lacking in confidence and determination, without the strength, experience or mentality necessary to live in the lower zone of the table. The Andalusians come to the meeting emotionally rearmed, after having surpassed Valencia Basket (81-84) last weekend in La Fonteta, and they are convinced that they can delve into the wound.
“We have a crisis of confidence”, confesses the Casademont Zaragoza coach, Jaume Ponsarnau, who sighs to “find the key to be solid” and, in this way, finally pave the way to victory. And that the Aragonese started the course with a firm hand, with the triumphs against Manresa (98-91) and Bilbao (76-100), which also came after two convincing choral performances. However, his game has since undergone a surprising regression., which resulted in a particularly unproductive period: four consecutive defeats – against San Pablo Burgos (54-75), Valencia Basket (70-76), Lenovo Tenerife (90-65) and Barcelona (76-63) -, which fueled the debate on the true solvency of the squad, which by then already had significant blemishes in the continental tournament.
The Casademont later beat the recently promoted Breogán, in the Príncipe Felipe pavilion (79-75), with an unexpected suffering –he managed to squander an income of 16 points–; and gave up last weekend, in Gran Canaria (79-76), to continue scoring due to the rigors of qualifying. Currently, a single victory separates the Aragonese from the bottom, their adversary today.
Real Betis is still immersed in the middle of the construction period, after having undertaken a drastic revolution in its squad: only Pablo Almazán and Nick Spiers are still in the team from the previous year, in addition to his coach, Joan Plaza.
Their best arguments attend the paint, with Marko Todorovic and Beqa Burjanadze as the most productive players. The Montenegrin, on loan from Joventut de Badalona, has 16.3 valuation credits per game, based on 13 points and 6 rebounds per game. The Georgian, for his part, contributes 11.1 units of general note, with 9.8 goals and 3.8 sacks per game. Also Vitto Brown (11 points and 4.3 rebounds per game) is a reliable reference in the inner game. On the perimeter, Shannon Evans represents the Andalusians’ main threat, with 11.4 goals and 2.8 assists per game.
Casademont, in any case, has more resources in its squad, in addition to having greater depth on the bench than its adversary. Even with their disconnections, with their intermittences, with their ups and downs, the Zaragozans should add their fourth victory today it’s from the season; but it is a fickle, unpredictable, irregular team. Hence the doubts.
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