With 22 points and 31 valuation credits, the escort Dante Exum led the narrow victory of the Barça at the Palau Blaugrana against Monaco (88-83) on a night when the point guard Nick Calathes broke Vassilis Spanoulis’s record for top assist in Euroleague basketball history (1,612 to 1,607).
After two periods of minimal advantage (42-36 at the break), Barça opened a gap of 16 points in the third quarter (57-41, min.25) but Monaco leveled the game in the last period (66-66, min.32), condemning the game to a final agony.
In the decisive minutes, the azulgrana team redoubled their aggressiveness in defense, driven by a hyperactive Exum who assumed responsibilities together with Calathes and center Brandon Davies, and signed the victory from the free throw line. In this way, the team led by Sarunas Jasikevicius secured the leadership of the Euroleague for another day and extended the winning streak to twelve in all competitions despite the 19 points of point guard Mike James, Monaco’s top scorer.
In an even first quarter of scoring, Barça grabbed the wrist of center Sertac Sanli, with seven points in the period and without rest until the ninth minute, while in Monaco all the attacks were conceived in the hands of the skilled Jameswith five points in the first quarter (11-11, min.5).
The Monegasque team initially sought the height of the pivot Donatas Motiejunas, whom Sanli soon sent to the bench with two personnel, while in the Barça attack Rokas Jokubaitis contributed four points in a row coming off the bench in a duel of least differences (20-20, end of the first quarter).
Small forward Nigel Hayes-Davis emerged as the Barca offensive benchmark unexpected at the beginning of the second period with nine points in a row, but Monaco responded correctly to each shot (29-29, min. 14) with a dominant Motiejunas in the paint, the rojiblancos’ top scorer at halftime with eight points. Shooting guard Dante Exum took over from Hayes-Davis by linking a triple with a foreshortened basket, but immediately afterwards the Barça team missed clear shooting actions that prevented him from opening a gap on the scoreboard (34-32, min. 17) .
Calathes’ sticky defense on James, with seven points but just comfortable shots at halftime, helped to contain Monaco, without fluidity in attack just like a Barça that found enough oxygen in two triples by Rokubaitis and Nico Laprovittola to go ahead to the changing rooms (42-36). Calathes took charge after the break and, with three consecutive assists that helped him break the record as the highest assister in the history of the Euroleague, Barça enjoyed the first advantage in double figures (49-38, min.22 ).
Mirotic, author of two three-pointers, and the energetic Exum, who scored five points and received a standing ovation of the night when he was substituted, they increased the lead (61-47, min. 27), but Monaco replied with a quick 4-13 run to close the third quarter with 66-62 in the light with three triples in a row by Dwayne Bacon.
The Monegasque team, more aggressive on both sides of the court, leveled the match (66-66, min. 32) and woke up the Palau Blaugrana, who responded to every mistake of his by cheering louder and vehemently protested against the arbitration criteria for the difference in the distribution of fouls (5-1, min.35).
Five points in a row from James put Monaco ahead (72-73, min. 36), but the flag remained on fire and Barça took the lead again with two layups by Calathes and a mate by center Brandon Davies (78-75, min. 37). The team from the Principality did not give their arm to twist (78-78, min. 38), but two free throws by Exum and another basket by Davies after a ball recovered by Calathes put Barça ahead one minute from the end (82 -78, min.39).
The Exum’s impeccable defense and the best free throw shooting rate sealed the victory for Barça although James put fear in the body with an unlikely triple with 16 seconds left (88-83).
Datasheet
88- Barça (20+22+24+22): Calathes (10), Laprovittola (7), Exum (22), Mirotic (11), Sanli (9) -initial team-, Davies (11), Sergi Martínez (-), Hayes-Davis (9), Kuric ( 2) and Jokubaitis (7).
83- Monaco (20+16+26+21): James (19), Westermann (8), Diallo (10), Thomas (6), Motiejunas (14) -initial team-, Lee (2), Bacon (16), Motum (2), Boutsielle (-), Ouattara (-) and Hall (6).
referees: Borys Ryzhyk (UCR), Anne Panther (ALE) y Luka Kardum (ISR).
Incidents: Match of the twenty-eighth day of the Euroleague played at the Palau Blaugrana in Barcelona before 5,400 spectators. Before the initial whistle, the three referees, the coaching staff and the players of both teams held a banner with the slogan ‘Stop the war’ (‘Stop the war’, in English).
