The Endesa League Playoff kicks off for Unicaja with attention focused on an old acquaintance: Lenovo Tenerife. The people from Malaga will face off against the islanders again this Sunday the 28th from 9:00 p.m. in the Santiago Martín pavilion, in which it will be the 5th match that both teams will play this season, the third in the last 2 weeks.
The match, which will be broadcast by Movistar Deportes (dial 59) and ⇒Unicaja Basketball Radio (live from Le Grand Café Centro), will mark the start of a series of quarterfinals that is not new between the two teams.
The precedent for this duel in a Playoff dates back to the 2016-17 season, in which Unicaja and the then Iberostar Tenerife faced each other in the quarterfinals, with a home field advantage favorable to the people of Malaga, finishing in 4th place in the classification. On that occasion, Unicaja prevailed 79-65 in the first clash, equalizing the aurinegro team on their pitch (73-67) and, in the third and decisive duel, Unicaja got a pass to the semifinals after winning 71-65. 61. From that crossing only two players repeat between the two teams: Alberto Díaz and Aaron Doornekamp.
Regarding this season, the balance is balanced, with 2 victories for each team under great equality. Lenovo Tenerife struck first in the regular season in January, achieving a 91-84 victory. Barely a month and a half later, the two teams met again, this time in the Copa del Rey final in Badalona, in which Unicaja achieved an unforgettable victory (80-83). In the final stretch of the season, the two met in the match for third and fourth place in the BCL Final Four, with an aurinegro victory (79-84) and, a week later, the Malaga team took revenge at Carpena in the regular phase of the Endesa League (75-71).
⇒ALL PRECEDENTS
Numerically, Lenovo Tenerife has finished in 4th position with 24 wins and 10 losses, the same record as Unicaja, although the insulars obtained the court advantage due to their particular average, specifically by 3 points (remember, defeat 91 to 84 in Tenerife and victory 75 to 71 in Malaga). At a statistical level, the Canaries finished the regular league as leaders in success in 2-pointers (58.30%) and from free throws (78.58%); 2nd in free throws attempted per game (15.65); 4th in assists (18.32); and 5th in valuation (97.56). In addition, they have the 2nd best defense in the competition, having conceded an average of 74 points per game.
The people of Tenerife base part of their success on the connection between Gio Shermadini and Marcelinho Huertas. The Georgian center, formerly of Unicaja, has recently been named MVP of the Endesa League and member of the Ideal Quintet (14.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 18.7 PIR), while the veteran point guard is part of the 2nd Best Quintet (11.8 points, 5.8 assists, 12.9 PIR). Former players from the Malaga team Jaime Fernández (9.8 points, 2.7 assists), Tim Abromaitis (7 points, 3.9 rebounds) and Sasu Salin (9.2 points, 2.4 three-pointers) are the backbone of the team led by Txus Vidorreta, who has even more depth in his squad with Aaron Doornekamp (7.5 points, 3.9 rebounds), Fran Guerra (5.9 points, 3.7 rebounds), Elgin Cook (6.9 points), Bruno Fitipaldo (6 .5 points, 2.9 assists), Joan Sastre (4 points) and Leandro Bolmaro (5.3 points).
Unicaja will face Lenovo Tenerife this Sunday, May 28, starting at 9:00 p.m., for the first game of the Endesa League Playoff qualifier. The match will be broadcast by Movistar Deportes -dial 59- and ⇒Unicaja Basketball Radiolive from Le Grand Café Centro.
2023-05-26 12:13:40
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