Casademont continues its climb. The Aragonese team, very disciplined, greatly improved on both sides of the court, beat Real Betis away (67-83), a direct rival in the fight for salvation, and mentally rearms for his future commitments. The people of Zaragoza have recovered their pulse, after two consecutive victories, and have changed the landscape: they have finally got rid of anxiety; They have finally freed themselves from the doubts, mistrust and insecurities that have diminished their performance since the start of the season.
His rival trusted his luck to triple shots, an always disturbing solution. When he shot from the perimeter, he decidedly went for the win. However, it collapsed in the last quarter, when the Aragonese increased their defensive skills and they no longer had comfortable shots to score -Betis missed their last nine attempts from beyond the arc-. Without any offensive skills, and with significant imbalances in the containment work, the Andalusian team ended up giving in without remission, in the decisive moments of the duel, after having conceded an adverse partial of 5-23 in the last 10 minutes of the contest.
Jessup, with 20 points in 33 minutes of play (5 of 9 in triples), he was the most incisive player of Casademont. Santi Yusta, with 18 goals, and Ponitka, with 14, were also capital in the win.
At the beginning, the Casademont lacked a reliable and solvent collective proposal. It was Marcel Ponitka, always in individual plays, who took the first pitches from the Aragonese team. And he did it correctly: he scored the first eight points for the visitors -six of them from beyond the arc-, in a section marked by the defensive gaps of both teams. Radoncic, on the inside, and Santi Yusta and Jessup, from the perimeter, also punished the inattentions of a Real Betis that, however, remained in the game with points from Báez and Tsalmpouris. The Greek, very accurate from the outside line, reached the first 10 minutes with 9 goals to his credit and a maximum effectiveness in the triple (3 of 3). At the close of the inaugural act, Casademont ruled the duel (22-25), after a distant shot by Javi García, although after having emitted worrying sensations.
Five consecutive points from Evans returned the advantage to the locals, in the early stages of the second quarter (27-25). And although Casademont reacted promptly, led by Yusta and Ponitka, they immediately lost their rhythm, speed and clear-sightedness in their attacking actions. And he stopped scoring: eight minutes into the act, all the billing of the Zaragozans was reduced to six points, which greatly facilitated the takeoff of the Andalusians (37-31) on the scoreboard. The coach of the Aragonese team, Porfirio Fisac, had to stop the match to try to change the scenario, especially disturbing in the offensive aspect.
After the dead time, Langarita closed the gap with a triple; but Real Betis responded with another shot from beyond the arc, executed by Bertans without any opposition, which once again portrayed the defensive weaknesses of the people of Zaragoza on their outside line. The local team reached the intermission with up to 22 triples launched, of which they had converted 9; that is: 27 goals billed from the perimeter (42-36). That is where the options of the Aragonese team escaped. At least there was time to change the sign of the meeting.
At the restart, Jessup assumed the offensive responsibility of Zaragoza. First, with two accurate triples to reduce the disadvantage; later, with an assist to Mekowulu, whose basket under the rings equalized the contest; and in the next attack, with a pass to Radoncic so that the Montenegrin put the Aragonese ahead (44-46). And after another good defense from the visitors, Sant-Roos increased the lead with a shot released from the corner (44-49). Luis Casimiro, the Sevillians’ coach, stopped the match after his team conceded a 2-13 run in just three and a half minutes of play.
Real Betis increased their performance, especially in attack, and recovered their aim in the outside shot. Thus, the triples by Hill and Evans tied the game again, and Evans himself returned the lead to the Andalusians with a sharp penetration (55-53). The local squad slightly benefited from the subsequent exchange of baskets, who continued to hit from the perimeter with surprising ease, now through Johnson and Tsalmpouris. After half an hour, the clash remained open (62-60).
In the final section, the Casademont increased its defensive intensity, at the same time that it handled itself in attack with temperance and security, with much more judgment than his opponent. Real Betis added a single point in the first four minutes of the quarter. Meanwhile, on the Aragonese side, Yusta and Jessup emerged strongly, building a 9-point lead with their shots from the perimeter (65-74). From there, the Andalusian team raised the white flag, subdued by the outstanding display of Casademont. For the people of Zaragoza, the outcome led to a double reward: for the triumph achieved, a new advance on the journey towards salvation, and for the misstep of his rival, who remains embedded in the penultimate position of the table.
