By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
FC Barcelona made history as the first top-seeded team in modern EuroLeague history to lose in the opening game of the playoffs on Wednesday, though they returned to business on Friday, to beat Zenit St. Petersburg 81-78 in overtime and even the series.
With Arturas Gudaitis sidelined possibly for the rest of the playoffs, the Russian side suffered a big blow, as Brandon Davies took charge for Barcelona in Game 2 with 22 points on 5/8 FG along with 7 rebounds.
As Barca remained up by one point in the last 13.3 seconds of overtime and Zenit had the possession, Adam Hanga stole the ball and converted two free throws to give the hosts a “safety net” towards their final victory.
Sarunas Jasikevicius commented about the nerve-wracking finale, as well as the realization his players need to make. “I think my guys don’t understand one main thing: that is supposed to be difficult. It is supposed to be hard. We are trying and fighting for the Final Four against a very good team. And of course, we are nervous because we lost the first game. We didn’t compete well. We put ourselves in a hole and now it is up to us to dig ourselves out of this hole”.
Kevin Pangos, who tied the game to 66 points with 40 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, couldn’t help his team take a 2-0 lead in the series despite a 23-point performance. Will Thomas followed with 17 points for Xavi Pascual’s squad and Austin Hollis tapped 12 points.
Barcelona’s 38-29 lead by halftime was quickly vanished, as Zenit returned cool and composed to tie the game at 48 points while keeping Barca restricted from the perimeter in the third period. A series of ties followed in the fourth quarter, with no team able to hold on to more than a one-point lead four minutes into the period until Davies took charge to push the hosts to a three-point lead.
A steal by Kyle Kuric (9 points) that converted to a basket with three minutes to play in the fourth gave a breather to the hosts (63-58). With the game tied to 66 points, Pangos shot from middle-range, though history didn’t repeat itself and the game was sent to overtime.
The series now travels to St. Petersburg next Wednesday (28/4, 19:00 CET), where Zenit will look to make use of its homecourt to bounce back.
Photo: EuroLeague