Barça explains to Fenerbahçe that Barça Gaul cannot be conquered | Basketball | Sports

After the fiasco against Virtus Bologna, in which he had a sensational half and seriously deteriorated in the next, Barça took refuge in his particular Gaul, his Palau. And even if the duel was a roller coaster, where the Barça team sometimes slipped and Fenerbahçe produced high quality basketball, especially with peripheral shots, Laprovittola and Willy Hernangómez appeared when necessary to sign the victory, the number 16 on the run. at home, the second best streak in team history. The feat is, however, far from the mark obtained between November 2001 and February 2004, when he had 27 victories, including the Final square and the twisted 2003 competition held at the Palau Sant Jordi.

Barça tried to immediately forget the Italian disaster, with choral basketball with freedom of movement as Grimau claims, where everyone feels like a protagonist. Kalinic’s basket after a rebound, another from Vesely from mid-range, free throws from Laprovittola after a lay-up attempt and two saves accompanied by Satoransky’s subsequent wrist turns to boost Barça, to make it clear that they have enough basketball to dream of such an elusive European laurel.

But it soon became clear that the team was still a project, lacking the maturity to run games and that Fenerbahçe was a major rival. More than anything because Dorsey entered the paint – replacing former Azulgrana Calathes, who was valued for his vision of the game but not for his poor shooting ability – to punch inside and distribute candy to the outside, where he waited and licked a very energetic and precise Wilbekin shot, capable of disrupting the Barça team. Two other ex-Azulgranas joined the party from the perimeter, like Hayes-Davies, who also did not make a fortune at the Palau, in addition to Biberovic, Pierre and Dorsey himself, a fabulous eight out of 11 in triples ( 72.7%) start. Only Sanli, the third musketeer of the Turkish team who also wore the Barça shield, missed a few shots.

Once again Barça seemed to remain insinuated, in a I want and I can’t, although Willy Hernangómez once again imposed his muscles under the hoop, the only thing for the team not to relax and do not give up. But Fenerbahçe looked too similar for Grimau’s team (32-42), penalized by its lack of intensity in defense, unable to follow Dorsey’s ball dance and Wilbekin’s jumps. Joel Parra did show up – he continues to ask for minutes on the floor or for Grimau to at least change his inflexible hierarchy of chances a little – with two triples and a two-pointer to boost Palau’s morale, a muffled cry in all case because on the other side, Madar appeared on the network to respond and quell any trace of reaction. An expressive 38-50 which made the Palau disc, the magic potion of Panoramix, pale in comparison. But Palau is not failing.

After the intermission, Willy continued at thirteen, determined that Barça would not disconnect from the challenge, kill here and party everywhere. Pontoon there, a real headache for Montley, his dance partner. He was joined by the acrobat Parker and a Satoransky who made his centimeters count as leader. But Barca couldn’t even breathe with those as Fenerbahçe needed very little to do a lot of damage, nothing like the triples of Hayes-Davies and Dorsey. But Laprovittola, the magician with the orange ball, penetrations and assists – notably to Vesely – had not yet entered the scene, catapulting to reduce the gaps in the absence of an epilogue (63-64).

The moment of truth has arrived and, once again as often happens this season, the brilliance of Laprovittola, a player who throws himself behind the team when things go wrong, because his pulse does not tremble when others are burning ball. A two plus one and a triple, Barça finally leads after 23 minutes (69-64). Not enough to extinguish the flame of Fenerbahçe, of a Hayes-Davies determined to show off the basketball that he did not breathe as a Barça player. But Abrines, Kalinic and Willy, who else – he signed his best record in the Euroleague with 21 points – seemed to sign, as well as Laprovittola with his last hat-trick, to explain that Gaul is not conquered, only against Asterix Laprovittola and Obelix Hernangómez needs more than just good basketball.

Baskonia, for its part, remains firm in Europe and beats Red Star (87-85) with Markus Howard and Sedekerskis in charge, respectively 17 and 18 points. A success that Valencia also copied by beating Lyon at home (55-78) thanks to the good work of Ojeleye (16 points).

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