Real Betis adds its second league defeat in a game in which it was always trailing on the scoreboard and, although it pressed in the last quarter to get within five points, it ended up giving in to Surne Bilbao Basket, led by Adam Smith, who was higher.
Accompanied by the scoring success of the exbetic Hakanson and Michale Kyser, the American shooting guard led Bilbao’s second victory of the season against Betis in which the points of Evans (19), BJ Johnson (16) or Kurucs (12) they were not accompanied by a second unit that contributed very little.
“We have been good in the second and third quarters, but Bilbao has been much better than us, with more regularity, the victory was deserved”, recognized the Betis coach, Luis Casimiro, at the end of the game.
bad first quarter
In those two quarters, Betis stayed in the match, but could never recover the accumulated disadvantage in a first quarter that they lost by eleven. And that the game started evenly, with a tight and alternating score until (5-6). There, a first run by Adam Smith, with eight points in a row, put the Bilbao team up seven (13-6). The best minutes of the Ukrainian Gerun cut the advantage to 15-12, but that was when the Betis attack faded, conceding eight more points to go down 11 (23-12) at the end of this period.
The advantage was enlarged in a brilliant second quarter, in which there was a spectacle and many points (51 between the two) and in which the wide advantages (26-12, 30-16 or 32-18) were reduced by a gale led by Betis Evans, who led Casimiro’s team to just three down (34-31). Smith and Hakanson stopped the bleeding and gave their team a comfortable eight-point lead at halftime (47-39).
Reach the end alive to die on the shore
The third quarter started like the second, with Bilbao Basket plugged in and Betis in tow. Contrary to the previous one, it was a very poor period, in which none exceeded 13 points and in which Betis managed to reduce the difference a little more to the six points with which the last act began (58-52).
Two opposing streaks took the game to the aforementioned (64-59), but then came the star appearance of Adam Smith to close the game. Surne increased the difference and Betis definitively lowered their arms until they conceded a perhaps excessive 15-point difference (85-70).
“When we reacted -in the third quarter- we gave too many gifts of free throws with unnecessary fouls and there they have regained confidence and have closed the game very well, without appeal”, analyzed Luis Casimiro.
– Datasheet:
Bilbao Basket (23+24+11+27): Hakanson (16), Smith (23), Rabaseda (3), Andersson (7) and Whitey (9) -starting five-, Radicevic (5), Alonso (4) , Reyes (2), Sulejmanovic (2), Kyser (6) and Rosa (8).
Real Betis Basketball (12+27+13+18): Evans (19), Hill (9), BJ Jonhson (16), Kurucs (12) and Tsalmpouris (1) – starting five -, Pozas (2), Cvetkovic, Bertans, Warehouse, Baez (3), Sylla (2) and Gerun (6).
Referees: Miguel Ángel Pérez Pérez, Vicente Bultó and Fabio Fernández. Without eliminated.
Incidents: Disputed in Miribilla before 7,223 spectators.
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