Copa del Rey – Quarter – Day 1
barca
Unicaja
After the Madrid game and before the start of the Barça game, several Baskonia fans blared their trumpets in the Olympic vomit to uncork an impromptu celebration that was soon joined by fans from all teams, to the point that there were scarves from Joventut, Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Unicaja waved fraternally, all hugging at the end of the happy tones. This is the trophy, this is the orange ball’s party – black and white for the occasion -; and this has also been the competition for Barça, winners on four of the last five occasions (the last two in the harvest). No longer. Brizuela (27 points) was responsible for declaring the opposite, strengthening Unicaja in the quarterfinals after extra time. Just around the corner, Madrid.
BARCELONA, 87 – UNICAJA, 89
Barcelona: Satoransky (11), Laprovittola (12), Kalinic (3), Mirotic (15) and Vesely (7) —starting at five—; Jokubaitis (7), Sanli (4), Abrines (8), Tobey (6), Sergi Martinez (0), Higgins (10), Nnaji (4).
Unique: Perry (22), Carter (3), Ejim (0), Barreiro (0) and Kravish (10) – starting at five -; Thomas (5), Brizuela (27), Alberto Diaz (2), Osetkowski (8), Kalinoski (12), Djedovic (0).
Referee: Carlos Peruga, Fernando Calatrava and Jorge Martinez. Alberto Diaz, eliminated.
Badalona Olympic: 10,147 spectators.
It wasn’t easy for Barcelona to tickle a fierce Unicaja in defence, an exercise as intense as it is physical. It was difficult for Laprovittola to find the ramp to the basket, he could do little with the Vesely livery and Satoransky was not there. Even Mirotic was shaking at the first start of Triple, Water, Nor Hoop. That was a mirage for someone with that golden wrist, because on the second he hit it clean and demanded that the ball be first fiddle in an orchestra that wasn’t quite in tune. He neither protects his hiding place nor can he stop the incursions of the electric Perry. Not even Brizuela, who took over and never let go, spectacular with his feints and shots. Moments of uncertainty for Barça and Jasikevicius’ morrocutodo anger, mill in motion, the technical fact excitement.
Although Jokubaitis always appears in disarray, kind to touch and trip, naturally gallant. So much so that his five points before the fourth degree put a Barça ahead, who resumed the duel with much more vigour, successful from the triple (Abrines) and the team that was omnipresent in the color, after all the Catalans were volcanic, to remind the rival They lacked the central Sima (injured) and they had a lot of cards, a wardrobe with Nnaji, Higgins, Tobey, Jokubaitis… But none was Brizuela and the defense continued to order the attack, a meager result at the break (41 -3 4).
Brizuela turned out to be reluctant to twist his arm, on fire, and was once again as excellent with his punches as he was a bully with his celebrations, Unicaja’s Rocky Balboa, as the Malaga fans were with his Eye of the Tiger Music claimed. Even if Kravish and especially Perry didn’t detract from him, the best squires again. Nothing to do with Barça who distributed the minutes, the efforts and the points. Few, anyway, as the light declared before the final round (55-50) that the zip took precedence over the submachine gun.
It happens that Higgins doesn’t understand rules or contexts because he seems to live in his world, a player of passing inspirations. Like the one he had against Unicaja to open the gap, again helped by a three by Abrines. Nothing to unravel Perry or Brizuela, again fighters, able to bring the game to two points (67-65) with three minutes to go. And to make it straight with a threesome from Osetkowski. Enough to put the game into overtime for Brizuela to once again declare that if there was a figure in the Olímpic it was him.
New treble, new tray, new talks with the referees, past revolutions and new celebrations that pointed him as a Barça scourge and as a hero of Unicaja, a batman of the ball. With his Robin Perry in hand, he hit the last basket with 10 seconds to go. Laprovittola tried to respond with two free throws with less than a second left. The first failed and that was it. Barça will no longer rule this trophy because they couldn’t do it with a caped Brizuela.
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