Things in the ACB League are still not entirely clear ahead of the Copa del Rey, although much more so ahead of the last day before the cut. Above, La Laguna Tenerife, with its triple in the last seconds, despite the defeat against Real Madrid (96-86), allows itself to dream of being seeded, since it is now fourth, with one point ahead in the average over Gran Canaria. Valencia, which beat Granada 120-94, its second best score in history, continues to lead. 34 assists, 20 three-pointers (51%), and the 67 points at halftime speak of incontestable strength.
In the area below the fight to enter the Spanish championship, Baskonia practically says goodbye to the Copa del Rey. The Vitorian team will arrive breathless at the seventeenth day, the one that makes the cut of the eight chosen, after collapsing with a crash in Girona (96-67), in the last opportunity they had, although almost without hope, to rejoin the cup competition. After a regrettable start that forced Pablo Laso to give his players a loud rant, and after clearing things up somewhat in the first quarter, the second was an unmitigated disaster in which Baskonia took seven minutes to score their first basket in play, after having missed eleven of his twelve triples until then.
The lack of energy of the Vitorians was evident. The fact that they were playing their fourth game in seven days took its toll on them and they had no options to respond to the vitality of Girona, which has three consecutive victories to try to get away from the danger zone. They are out of relegation with the touch of personality that Moncho Fernández has given them from the bench.
The two places that are still up for grabs are disputed by Manresa, Barcelona and Zaragoza. The team from Manresa beat Casademont at home (92-93) and placed themselves one victory ahead of their rivals to be in the Cup. They could even be losing, because the point difference favors them with Barcelona (+5) and with Zaragoza (+26) although they play at home against Joventut, who seeks to be among the top four. The Zaragozaans face Covirán at home, and they only have to win and beat the average of the other two.
It is the team that has it the worst, because Barcelona’s victory in Gran Canaria (74-77) gives them a break from the bad news of being left out. In a very close match, everything was decided at the end, when with Barça’s three-point advantage, Albicy, in a forced position to attempt a three-pointer, committed a foul in attack with seven seconds left. There went the options of the Canarian team and, possibly also, those of Casademont Zaragoza.
