In a match of pick and shovel, the team wasted a couple of good leads in the first and third quarters, to fall behind in the final 10 minutes in which The team wanted to, but couldn’t against a stronger rival.
And Valencia Basket, which had just beaten Lenovo Tenerife in La Laguna, played a very serious game at the Palace. He put all the hands in the world behind him, displayed enviable muscle and knew how to play against a Unicaja team, surpassed by the intensity and defensive capacity of his rival.
Kravish, back
David Kravish is back. But his return was testimonial. He is very far from his best shape and only the passing of the days will help him find his optimal state. At least he was seen dressed in shorts again.
The defeat also due to the “green tide” is a shame. The atmosphere in the Carpena during the almost two hours that the basketball games now last, since this “painful” instant replay has been established, is, literally, magical. The team plays very supported and with an extra spirit that this time was not worth addingbut most days it surely causes the coin to land on heads.
Good start from the composers
Despite the final outcome, Unicaja was a cyclone at the start. They pressed in defense and were successful in attack to take the lead from minute 1. Osetkowski went to 9 points in the blink of an eye and not even a timeout from Álex Mumbrú stopped the first surge, 18-8. The rotations of both benches suited the rival much better. With Jovic in charge and Touré inside, Valencia improved until they were only 5 down at the end of the first quarter, 26-21. And that thanks to a couple of triples from Perry, which gave a lot of oxygen to the green and purple attack.
A free throw from Toure at the start of the second quarter balanced the score, 26-26. From there there were minutes of maximum equality. Ibon opted for Carter as a point guard. An unsportsmanlike move on Djedovic allowed another small spurt, 36-31. At halftime, however, everything remained to be decided: 38-37.
Second time
It looked like the third quarter was going to make a big difference in the game. Two triples with a bit of luck from Perry and Barreiro shot Unicaja on the scoreboard, 49-39. Valencia responded with a 0-10… and started again: 49-49. Puerto gave Valencia the first lead in the match, which they maintained at minute 30, 55-58.
Several turnovers in the first minute and a half of the last quarter, punished by three-pointers, were the beginning of the end: 55-64. Ibon stopped the game and readjusted his five on the court. The team pushed back and got into the game, 64-66. But the team swam and swam, only to end up drowning on the shore. Valencia, more physical, more intense and more successful, took the prize: 76-82.
Las Palmas, next station
Completed this first 3-day league sprint in just 8 days, Unicaja will have a long week to prepare for next Sunday’s visit to Las Palmas. A very tough court where the current Eurocu champion awaitsp, in what will be a serious test to see at this point where a green and purple 23/24 project is and where it is going that continues to be exciting, despite these last two defeats. Getting to 2-2 in the standings in Las Palmas will be the goal. And a 1-3 would be…
2023-09-30 21:07:53
#Unicaja #superior #Valencia #Basket
