Real Madrid is qualified for the Cup, with the possibility of being seeded, and Baskonia remains hanging on the wire, on the verge of falling. For the second consecutive year the Copa del Rey could be missed, and the possibility, after the defeat against Real Madrid, is more real than ever. The Vitorians and Barcelona can become the absent protagonists in the fight for the second title of the season after the Super Cup, which Unicaja won, and the first of the year that is put into play, an unprecedented situation for both clubs. That of the Vitorians is repeated, it is beginning to become a bad habit. In three of the last five years they have been left out of the competition because the wear and tear of the Euroleague takes its toll.
On the field, Baskonia started a little sleepy in the first half, a situation that is being repeated many times, again without success in the three-point shots, with Moneke losing too many balls in attack, with only one player, Luwawu-Cabarrot, something inspired by shooting. The bad thing for Laso’s men was that, on the opposite side, Dzanan Musa (29 points, 37 rating) succeeded in everything he tried. Twelve points in the first quarter, six in the second, and no Baskonista player who could stop him. The difference was ten points for Madrid. It is a problem for the Vitorian team to go out on the field so cold. In fact, that difference in the first ten minutes was lethal, because Baskonia won the next two and in the last one there was a tie at 26 points, when the two teams went wild in attack.
Baskonia adjusted its defense at the beginning of the second quarter and was more successful in its shot, and with a 10-2 start it was one shot away from taking the lead on the scoreboard, but its aim failed and Madrid recomposed itself again. , because, in addition, a blow to Howard’s knee from Hezonja ended up with the Baskonista player on the bench. He didn’t come out again. Without the injured Sedekerskis, Laso’s rotation became more complicated, although Samanic’s adaptation to the team, after a few days in Vitoria, seems to be progressing adequately.
Madrid slowed down when Chus Mateo gave a rest to Tavares and Campazzo, the columns on which the white team relied, one under the rings and the other in creation. Above all, in the defensive balance the absence of the center was noticeable, because Garuba, who grew as the game progressed, did not have the same intimidating power.
In fits and starts, Baskonia remained present in the game. He had a clean third quarter, avoiding turnovers. None in the ten minutes compared to six for Madrid. The difference on the scoreboard stretched and shrank, and the Vitorian fans also moved on that roller coaster, sometimes hopeless, other times believing in the miracle.
Baskonia arrived at the last minute with four points behind and chances of winning the result thanks to the good minutes of Forrest, but a triple by Hezonja with 22 seconds left sealed the game. “We make mistakes that punish us a lot,” Pablo Laso lamented at the end of the Buesa clash. “You have to play a complete game. It’s a shame to have been so close on a day when we haven’t been brilliant.” But they are starting to arrive late, because, although mathematically they still have possibilities, the combinations are almost impossible. It will be the fourth time in six years.
