Effort without reward

Defeat of Básquet Girona on the court of a very consistent Isover Basket Azuqueca  (64 – 60)

| Saturday, 26 January 2019

Básquet Girona lost at Polideportivo Municipal La Paz against an Isover Basket Azuqueca defensively rocky and that prevented the fast play of the Girona players. The success from the three-pointer (10 in total) was not enough to overcome a game where the difference always moved in the ten points.

Although Básquet Girona started in command with some good first minutes from Berry in the paint, a partial 10-0 favorable to Azuqueca opened the first gap in the scoreboard (12-6 minute 7) and forced Quim Costa to stop time. However, lost balls and inaccuracies in attack did not allow Girona to get closer (14 – 8 minute 10).

In the second quarter, the zonal defense of the local team hindered the attack of Básquet Girona and, a basket by Apolinario – eight points in this period – gave the Mancheques the maximum advantage (31 – 18 minute 19) . In the last minute, however, four points from Robert Cosialls reduced the difference slightly (33 – 23).

In the second half, the team led by Sergio Vicente maintained the 2-3 zone and this greatly hampered the Girona attack, although Azuqueca was not very inspired in the other ring either (eleven points between both teams in the first five minutes of the quarter). However, baseman Ignacio Ballespín and Carlos García broke the deadlock with two consecutive three-pointers that put the game very much uphill for Quim Costa’s boys (45 – 29 minute 25). The team from Girona wanted to react, but the local team returned all the baskets and kept the income obtained (50 – 36 minute 30).

In the last period, the Girona team did not throw in the towel and with pressure all over the court and the success from Bolton’s three-pointer (four in total), Básquet Girona gradually reduced the difference, imposing the fast rhythm that characterizes them and not the positional game of Azuqueca. Nil Angelats and Sergi Costa also joined the party from 6:75 and, in five minutes, the deficit was reduced to just four points (58 – 54 minute 37). Despite everything, the Castilla – La Mancha team did not get nervous. Two baskets by Carlos García and Ignacio Ballespín when the ball was burning the most, decided the match against a Girona Basketball team that tried until the end but got there late.  

The next meeting will be on Saturday, February 2 in Fontajau (7:00 p.m.) in another momentous match against CB Villarrobledo.

*Quim Costa’s assessment:

“They have run more, they have defended more, they have shown more excitement and desire. They have been more intense in all aspects”.

“The mistake was a direct consequence of the bad game we were playing. If you don’t go to the maximum of your possibilities, you can’t be able to face anything”.