Joventut with an important win over Tenerife
Yesterday in a game that counted for Round 11 of the Spanish ACB League, Joventut Badalona welcomed La Laguna Tenerife.
As expected, it was a very close encounter and neither of the teams managed to take a double-digit lead until the halftime break, where the teams entered with the score tied at 45-45. Then in the 3rd quarter, Badalona made a 14-0 run that proved decisive. Their lead reached 20 points in the 4th quarter (87-67) before Tenerife made a run that proved to be too late as Joventut won in the end by seven points (93-86).
Devon Dotson scored 19 points for Joventut, followed by Adam Hanga with 14 and Yannick Kraag with 12 points. For the visitors, David Kramer and Bruno Fitipaldo scored 19 points each in the losing effort.
After this success, Joventut is in 9th place with a record of 6 wins and 5 losses, tied with two other teams from Catalunya, Barcelona and Manresa. In the next round, Penya will play in Coruna against Leyma, a game where they are favourites and need to win to stay close to the playoff places. It won’t be the only must-win game for Joventut next week, as before they travel to Coruna they will host Polish team Trefl Sopot in the EuroCup on Wednesday. The Greens had a terrible season so far in EuroCup and they are 3 wins behind the 6th place they need to qualify further in the EuroCup.
Meanwhile, yesterday’s defeat was the second consecutive for Tenerife in the ACB and they dropped to 7-4, tied with Gran Canaria and Zaragoza for the 4th place. Tenerife also plays in the European competitions on Wednesday, but in the BCL and unlike Badalona, they are in a comfortable spot, leading their group with a 5-0 record. On Wednesday, they will host Greek team Kolossos Rhodes in what should be an easy win for the Huertas and co. Then, on Saturday, Tenerife will play at home again, against Murcia, which should be a very intense game.
Imre Halasz
Photo credit: ACB
