Barça showed itself that it can compete for anything if it puts its five senses on the hardwood, chasing the European classic with a victory that is pure oxygen for Roger Grimau, who after a black month of December also needed a push of this caliber to your roadmap. His defense was as magnificent as it was unprecedented so far this year, capable of holding Real Madrid to 31 points after the break. And Vesely was also sublime, the undisputed architect of the change of direction that Barça completed.
The Palau had been dressed to the nines, including a fundraising record, to experience a classic that was always special in itself but which this Wednesday had an extra dose of drama given the delicate results situation that Barça is going through. It was not decisive for the classification, far from it, but it could mark a turning point on both sides. It was noticeable in the stands and on the hardwood, where the two greats of Spanish basketball put on a great show.
With its impressive record of 33-2, Madrid arrived in Barcelona and began leaving its mark. Musa's triples, up to four in the first quarter alone, sowed anxiety among the long-suffering Barça fans, who chanted each point of theirs as if it were an entire final. Between Kalinic and Vesely they managed to contain the whites at the beginning but the Serbian committed the second foul very quickly and headed for the bench. Two free throws by Tavares, who started out discreetly in the statistics but always exerting influence on the game, widened the score to 14-22 (minute 7) which caused the nervousness to be palpable in the Palau.
More restless than usual, Grimau added kilometers and protests in his technical area until he exploded after an uncalled foul from Tavares on Parra and received a technical foul that, although perhaps burning a bullet too early, ended up having an effect. Once again failing in the free throws – what a burden – Barça blessed the emergence of Laprovittola, a surprising substitute at the start, who dressed as a leader with points but also with encouragement to his teammates. But every time the Blaugrana came close to equalizing, the incombustible Llull emerged, taking over from Musa, to once again mark the ground for Madrid. Vesely's return to the court became pure oxygen for the Barça scoreboard, although behind him Poirier was playing with the hoop as if it were a mini-basketball.
Despite everything, Barça remained focused, aware of the importance of the game, and a three-pointer from Parker launched a final rush that concluded with another three-pointer from Brizuela on the same horn that unleashed madness in the Palau and encouraged all the dreams. almost tying the game at halftime (45-47).
Barça took an indisputable step forward coming out of the locker room and even regained control with Kalinic's triple that opened the second half. Although where his improvement was based was from the defense, one of his great Achilles Heels, which practically dried up a Madrid that despite everything seemed not to leave the game and even faced the last act ahead thanks to the inspiration of Sergio Rodríguez . But the Canarian lost his way with Laprovittola as soon as the final quarter opened, causing a clash and generating tension that Barça knew how to handle much better than the whites. Accentuating this enormous defense, the Blaugrana completed a 14-0 run to the tune of a sublime Vesely to climb to 74-62 (minute 35).
Madrid exhausted its last life with a triple from Causeur but Barça had the classic tied up well and handled themselves with ease in their last possessions. The victory was going to stay at the Palau, the Barça redemption completed and the respect of their rivals regained with a victory that is worth gold
83. Barça (21 24 15 23): Satoransky (2), Kalinic (13), Parker (10), Da Silva (2), Vesely (27) -starting team-, Parra (2), Hernangómez (6), Laprovittola (14), Jokubaitis (4), Brizuela (3) and Paulí (-).
78. Real Madrid (25 22 15 16): Campazzo (6), Musa (19), Abalde (3), Ndiaye (4), Tavares (6), Llull (9), Causeur (2), Poirier (6), Hezonja (16) and Rodriguez (7).
Referees: Emin Mogulkoc (TUR), Mehdi Difallah (FRA) and Kristaps Konstantinovs (LET). They pointed out a technical foul to local coach Roger Grimau (min.9). They called out unsportsmanlike fouls against the local Laprovittola (min.31) and the visitors Llull (min.10) and Rodríguez (min.31).
Incidents: matchday 18 of the Euroleague played at the Palau Blaugrana in Barcelona before 7,488 spectators. The public address system did not work until midway through the second quarter due to a technical problem.
