BadalonaCruel night in Badalona. El Joventut lost against Lenovo Tenerife (72-73) and was one step away from playing in the third Copa del Rey final of this century. The game was decided in the last action, when Tim Abromaitis blocked a shot from Joel Parra. The young Catalan winger could not complete a game (26 points) with the decisive basket. Three seconds earlier Elgin Cook had scored the shot that decided the tie.
The defeat leaves the feeling of a lost golden opportunity, but it does not spoil the daring proposal of a Youth who returned to play cinema. Carles Duran’s game idea was again very successful and the green-and-black team took the tactical initiative against an opponent who plays by heart and who interpreted the decisive plays better.
As on the day of the quarter-finals, Penya again repeated an anxious start against a Lenovo Tenerife that had a better staging (2-8). The triples of Kyle Guy and the courage of Joel Parra boosted the options of a green-and-black team that used a partial 15-3 to redraw the stage (17-11).
The first half of Parra, who scored 15 points in two quarters, was a scandal. The Youth used their versatility to build a difference of 13 points (36-23). The problem is that Lenovo Tenerife is an experienced team that has been playing games the same way for years. Despite having worse shooting percentages, the insular team did not get nervous, they accentuated their strengths and scored a partial 1-16 (37-39). The final stretch of the first half of the green-and-black team was solid again (44-40).
La Penya lost its rhythm at the beginning of the third quarter, when it only scored three points in five minutes (47-47). The defense of Lenovo Tenerife managed to stop the fluidity of a Youth that was once again entrusted to Parra to reach the key section with options.
The game was of epic intensity and was tied in the last 20 seconds (71-71), when Aaron Doornekamp committed an unsportsmanlike foul. Everything was looking up, but Andrés Feliz missed a free throw and a three-pointer. Instead, Cook did not forgive and scored the decisive basket.
Madrid, with its tail between its legs
Unicaja produced the second big surprise of the Copa del Rey and eliminated Real Madrid (82-93). The white team, which had won nine consecutive finals, will not play in the title match in Badalona. For the first time since 2009, the champion of the tournament will not be either Barça or Madrid, who have accumulated the last 12 trophies. In fact, the team from Málaga became the first in the ACB era to eliminate the Blaugrana and the Whites in the same tournament.
