MADRID, 5 May. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Madrid defended its leadership in the Endesa League with two days remaining in the Regular Phase, with a resounding victory (94-80) over Coviran Granada, while Unicaja returned to the fray in pursuit and the Barça won in extra time against Gran Canaria (95-89).
The white team maintains its triumphant march ahead of the playoffs and with its presence already assured in the ‘Final Four’ of the Euroleague. Chus Mateo’s team sealed the match in the third quarter with seven local players in double figures in scoring and rating at the WiZink Center.
Walter Tavares, Dzanan Musa and Alberto Abalde stood out in a Madrid that led by 20 points before the last quarter. The whites showed a stage of shared grace and defended their recently recovered leadership alone, one more victory than a Unicaja that avenged the last league defeat against Lenovo Tenerife.
Ibon Navarro’s men passed (96-71) over a UCAM Murcia team that could already celebrate its presence in the playoffs, but left a bad image thinking about those level crossings. Martín Carpena enjoyed the recent champion of the FIBA Champions with a beating of a possible rival in the Endesa League quarterfinals.
The Malaga team bordered on perfection with an inspired Tyson Carter (20 points), plus Thomas, Djedovic and Perry. Furthermore, Barça avoided a heavy defeat at the Palau when they trailed by 20 points in the third quarter. Roger Grimau’s men showed pride before the fifth game of the European playoff against Olympiacos on Wednesday, winning in extra time to defend third place.
The culé team will arrive with better feelings at the event with its fourth consecutive Euroleague ‘Final Four’ thanks to a comeback made possible by Jabari Parker forcing extra time and the great game by Nicolás Laprovittola (29 points and 25 rating). ‘Granca’ missed a big step towards the ‘Top 4’.
Furthermore, in search of the ticket that remains open to the ‘playoffs’ for the title, both BAXI Manresa and Baskonia failed, which keeps the Catalans in eighth place. Pedro Martínez’s team lost (90-80) against a Casademont Zaragoza team that ensured their permanence. Santi Yuste led the gangs along with Sulejmanovic.
On the other hand, Baskonia, already knowing of the morning defeat of the Manresa team, forgave (92-96) against Bàsquet Girona in an important misstep for the ‘Top 8’. Susinskas and Birch led the recital of Fotis Katsikaris’s team in a Fernando Buesa Arena that fears adding even greater sorrow to the season.
Furthermore, Río Breogán responded to Obradoiro’s victory by trying to escape relegation with a vital and highly-deserving victory (76-54) against Lenovo Tenerife. The Canaries, also classified among the top eight for sure, had their batteries fail, driven by rage on Wednesday against Unicaja in the League after losing in Europe but unknown in Lugo.