This Barça saves a first check. He finds oxygen on the court of the Euroleague leader, who would have thought: he is blessed by an inspired Brizuela and the Monaco bird, almost always sleepy and in tow, as lazy as it is intermittent.
Brizuela’s 27 points, unexpected hero and author of six triples (out of eight attempts), vindicate Joan Peñarroya’s team, in need on all fronts since right now they are out of the direct playoff in the Euroleague and also out of the Copa del Rey in Spain.
With Willy Hernangómez and Sarr as unexpected spectators (they do not jump onto the court even for a second), Barça sets the tempo in almost all scenarios, under the rings and on the perimeter.
The Euroleague leader never enters the game, not even in the third quarter, when it registers its only advantage on the scoreboard after two consecutive triples by Strazel (57-54): this time, Barça is not scared or intimidated.
On the contrary.
This time he commits, suffers and grits his teeth. By then, the entire Peñarroya team is already involved in the exercise, a kind of vindication in a time of crisis.
We are not that bad, we don’t deserve these troubles, they seem to say to themselves.
Reaction
The Peñarroya group returns to the leader’s court and shows what we know: it can do much more than it does
And Punter even appears, a calamity until then (he had reached the second quarter with a basket of seven attempts), much more engaged in the last two periods.
In reality, Monaco comes and goes. It depends on James, his best man, a roller coaster this Thursday (he has 24 points, but he scores two of eight on two-point shots and four of nine on three-pointers), and on Papagiannis, as intimidating under the hoops (four blocks) as he is inconsistent. in time. There, Metu stands up to him. He seeks to tickle him, he dances to him like a tap dancer. When it surpasses him, he pups. Metu ends up adding thirteen points and eight rebounds.
Faced with the accelerations and stops of Monaco, Barça is doing things.
Closes the first quarter with an eight-point margin 17-25), overcomes a 10-0 deficit in the second (41-45; minutes before, Spanulis has bared his fangs to his Monegasque pupils in a timeout ) and it is not dismantled in the third, when Strazel’s two consecutive triples register Monaco’s only advantage (57-54): what in other recent moments would have been a disaster now becomes a spur
That’s when Brizuela multiplies.
If Satoransky and Juan Núñez don’t shoot, the basque mamba He asks for the ball, takes risks and grows. He scores from all sides, makes triples and also makes incursions that avoid the arms of Papagiannis, and his inspiration also catapults Punter, who makes up his statistics with fourteen points and confirms what we all know: this Barça can do much more than what we are facing. showing.
Technical sheet
Monaco, 84 – Barça, 98
Monaco: Calathes (8), James (23), Loyd (7), Vitto Brown (2), Motiejunas (2); Strazel (15), Blossomgame (9), Papagiannis (10), Okobo (4), Tarpey (0), Mam Jaiteh (4).
Barça: Satoransky (3), Punter (14), Anderson (8), Jabari Parker (12), Youssoupha Fall (6); Juan Núñez (4), Brizuela (27), Metu (13), Abrines (11), Parra (0).
#Oxygen #Barça #breathes #prevails #field #leader #Monaco
