By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Paving the way for FC Barcelona in the Quarterfinals of Spain’s Copa del Rey, Jabari Parker dropped 19 points.
Barca beat BAXI Manresa, 102-91, in Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena on Friday.
Setting the game-high, the native of Chicago made 7/9 from the field. He also pulled down five rebounds. Nicolas Laprovittola paired 18 points with eight assists and Willy Hernangomez posted a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double. For the losing side, Brandon Taylor recorded a team-high 17 points.
The team coached by Roger Grimau went from a double-digit lead late in the first half to trading blows with the fellow Catalonia club through most of the second half. Shutting down the opponents down the stretch by scoring 15 of the last 17 points drew victory in Malaga.
A potential addition to the squad later in the 2023-24 campaign, Ricky Rubio sat out. Other scratches were Oriol Pauli and Michael Caicedo. James Nnaji stayed on the bench.
Fellow Turkish Airlines EuroLeague participants, Real Madrid and Valencia set up a semifinal clash on Thursday. Up next for Barca is Lenovo Tenerife.
Coming back from a 10-point deficit in the second half to avenge a narrow loss in the 2023 Final, the Canary Islands outfit eliminated host Unicaja with a 91-83 victory.
Nearing his career-high, veteran Aaron Doornekamp piled up 25 points by tucking in all of his shots, including six three-pointers. Kyle Guy added 23 points.
In the Final, the winners of the Semifinals meet each other on Sunday.