A sensational hitting streak of Cory Higgins in the third quarter has allowed the Barça shake off all the doubts shown up to that moment, completely change his face and head towards a clear victory in the first game of the Endesa League final against him Real Madrid. After 75-89 of this first duel at the WiZink Center, the team of Sarunas Jasikevicius He will have his first chance at the Palau on Tuesday (10pm) to seal the title and thus break a drought in the national championship that has lasted since 2014.
Eight points followed by Higgins they have marked the turning point of the match in the third quarter. The Barça, who had always been in tow weighed down by his problems in rebounding and errors in free throws, has seized the spectacular moment of inspiration from the American shooting guard to sign a brutal 0-17 partial with which he has gone from losing by seven points (44-37) to dominating by ten (44-54). Higgins has signed 14 of his 25 points in this third period, in which he has dressed in the cape of Mvp that took in the end of the Copa del Rey disputed a few months ago in this same scenario.
That knock on the table Higgins and the Barça in the third quarter he has completely dislodged the Real Madrid, who had been ahead throughout the game with leads that had reached nine points a couple of times. The fourth fault of Carlos
Alocen has ended by melting the whites, who under the baton of Sergio Llull They have not known how to attack with criteria the good Barça defense and to those who also this time they have not entered the triples (8/27 at the end).
Real Madrid – Barça basketball, in pictures
The opposite has happened with the Barça, who had taken to the track with much less intensity than his rival and had found himself very soon with a 9-0 against. The experience of Pau Gasol and the offensive impudence of Kyle kuric They allowed Barça to limit the damage in the first half, but they were insufficient arguments against an opponent who had many more shots thanks to their great superiority in the rebound. Repeating the 33 points of the first twenty minutes (36-33) after the break seemed the way to a certain defeat in this first round of the final.
The arreón of Higgins He has infected his teammates, who, seeing themselves ahead, have begun to play with much more confidence. Nikola Mirotic, invisible in the first half (1 points), has joined the party with two triples, Davies has begun to overtake Tavares and so much Calathes What Hanga they have wisely moved a team much looser than in the first half.
The differences have only grown in the last quarter, with the Real Madrid unable to play with the scoreboard against, something that had not happened to him in any of the games played at home in these playoffs. A couple of triples of Rudy They have given him some last hope (56-66) but from then on the heart has not been enough for the whites, nervous and without the pause or the necessary success to try the comeback.
The Barça, who had shown so many doubts so far in the playoffs, seems to have saved the best for last and is in an unbeatable position to add his second title of the season after the Copa del Rey. Winning the first game is always important, but even more so in a best-of-three final like this one.
The opportunity is golden. One more victory this Tuesday and Barça will close its best season in a long time. But, as you said Cory Higgins at the end of the meeting, “the work is not done, this is not over.”
(+) Look at the summary of Real Madrid – Barça
Data sheet
75.- Real Madrid (20 + 16 + 16 + 23): Alocén (7), Abalde (7), Taylor (2), Tyus (4) and Tavares (16) -the starting five-, Rudy Fernández (10), Carroll (3), Poirier (5), Llull (8), Vukcevic (-), Causeur (12) and Garuba (1).
89 – Barça (15 + 18 + 29 + 27): Calathes (12), Higgins (26), Hanga (6), Mirotic (9) and Davies (13) -starting team-, Abrines (-), Bolmaro (- ), Smits (2), Pau Gasol (8), Oriola (3), Kuric (10) and Westermann (-).
Referees: Carlos Peruga, Jordi Aliaga and Martín Caballero. They eliminated Usman Garuba for fouls and disqualified Jeffery Taylor after pointing out a technique and an unsportsmanlike behavior.
Incidents: First match of the Endesa League final, best of three, played at the WiZink Center in Madrid before a capacity reduced to a thousand spectators due to the pandemic.