The team started with more energy and accuracy than the Penya, with an initial 8-17 run with an inspired Guillem Ferrando leading the team’s pace and scoring. An 8-0 run, coinciding with the entry of Ricky Rubio, turned the difference in favor of Girona despite finishing ahead on the scoreboard (16-17). In the second quarter, the defense and the blunder capitalized on the attacks and Girona took advantage of it, taking a six-point lead with two triples, from Hughes and Geben, which allowed them to win the set by one point again (29-31). <\/p>\n\n
In the second half, the Girona team continued to show more clarity in what they had to do with and without the ball and, from the defensive display they had shown throughout the match, they managed to run on the counterattack. With a smash by Sergi Mart\u00ednez, one of Girona’s best players, the Girona team established the maximum advantage of +10 (47-57) at the halfway point of the third quarter. The Penya came within four points and, with a three-pointer, they cut off the good momentum in the final stretch of the period that the Girona team had taken when they regained the +9. Moncho Fern\u00e1ndez’s players maintained the good intensity at the back and, although in the last minute the Penya came close to scoring, two free throws by Sergi Mart\u00ednez and the good defensive positioning at the back made the victory in the derby a reality (71-74). <\/p>\n\n