Barça: Satoransky (8), Laprovittola (13), Kalinic (2), Parker (7), Vesely (19) -starting five-; Jokubaitis (2), Hernangómez (3), Abrines (4), Brizuela (2), Da Silva (2) and Rubio (5). Coach: Roger Grimau. Ace Monaco: James (17), Strazel (13), Blossomgame (10), Brown (3), Motiejunas (12) -starting five-, Diallo (4), Okobo (7), Jaiteh (1), Hall (10) ), Walker and Cornelius. Coach: Sasha Obradovic. Partial results: 21-12 / 14-21 / 16-27 / 16-17 Referees: Sreten Radovic, Seffi Shemmesh and Saso Petek. Deleted: None. Pavilion: Palau Blaugrana. 7,045 spectators.
After overcoming his serious mental health issues, Ricky Rubio re-emerged as a basketball player. The Barça baseman joined his name to that of great international figures such as Simone Biles, Michael Phelps, Naomi Osaka or Andrés Iniesta, who were among the first athletes to break taboos and speak openly about their situation. His debut was accompanied by a crushing defeat against Monaco (67-77), but the night will go down in the history books for its emotional significance.
Thirteen years after his last game with Barça, Rubio added 5 points and 2 rebounds in 11:14 minutes of play. The Masnou baseman, who showed off the thighs of his friend Donovan Mitchell, made his debut with 8:43 minutes left before the break. The ovation at the Palau Blaugrana will be one that will be remembered for years and years.
“Ricky’s given us two good rotations, but we’ve got to take it a little at a time,” he said. Roger Grimau. The coach ruled out Joel Parra, who suffered a sprain with the Spanish national team, and Oriol Paulí. “Seeing him smile with a basketball makes us all happy and basketball. I’m very happy to see him play,” explained Marc Gasol, president of Basketball Girona.
After a promising first quarter in which Barça offered a good defense (21-12), the Blaugrana team lost rhythm during a second period in which Monaco showed their quality. Despite missing many triples, the visiting team dominated the rebound. The two rivals lacked competitive rhythm and the score was even (35-33).
Donatas Motiejunas became a headache for Barça’s interior game, which reached the last ten minutes with a nine-point deficit (51-60). The game was conditioned by the lack of success from the three-point line. The Blaugrana team ended up losing by 13 points against a rival against whom they had already fallen in the first round. “We had good open shots that we missed. The inaccuracy affected us and we were not solid,” acknowledged Grimau. “Winning a direct rival is important”, analyzed Sasha Obradovic, coach of an AS Monaco that has accumulated six consecutive triumphs.
Mike James, no record
Mike James, who needed to score 29 points to surpass Vassilis Spanoulis’ record and become the all-time leading scorer in the Euroleague, was only able to add 17 points. The American, who had given away ten seats at the Palau Blaugrana to his relatives, blamed his nerves.
2024-03-01 21:26:43
#superstition #sours #Ricky #Rubios #debut
