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News article on: Basketball
Navarro MVP
From disappointment to glory
As Daniel Santiago said in his comments after winning the ACB league, the team had always been just a step away from winning a number of trophies, such as the Cup and the Euroleague. But the ACB was different.
The FC Barcelona basketball section went through five long years without winning a trophy, ending
the drought in 2009 with the ACB league. But it wasn’t an easy season and was made even more
difficult when a number of doubts were expressed at the beginning of the season about the viability
of the new project. A combination of good work in the Club offices together with the decisions on
the bench finally proved that the approach had been correct and now looks set to generate success
for some time to come.
A preseason with ups and downs
The first titles up for grabs were the Catalan League and the Super Cup. In the final of the
Catalan League, DKV Joventut beat Regal Barça 83 - 95 while in the Super Cup Barça slipped to a
narrow 73-70 defeat against TAU.
The first victory in the ACB league against DKV Joventut by 95 to 77 coincided with the
arrival of the last new recruit, Daniel Santiago. As the months passed, Barça climbed the table
until reaching second place behind an unbeatable TAU.
TAU superior in the Cup
TAU showed their splendid form in the Kings Cup played in Madrid. Barça beat Real Madrid in
the quarterfinals 83-75 but in the semi-finals Regal Barça lost to Baskonia 77-90 in a game
illuminated by the 44 points shared by Splitter and Rakocevic.
The Euroleague
Despite this setback, Xavi Pascual’s players continued to improve and produce more and
more attractive basketball as the season progressed. From the first opponent, SLUC Nancy, to
Panathinaikos, who they beat both at home and away, they put together a run of victories that took
them into the Top 16 of the European tournament.
This wave of success continued into the Top 16 where they came up against some tough
opposition in the form of Maccabi and Real Madrid. Despite the first defeat in Vistalegre, the team
bounced back with vital wins such as the one in Tel Aviv (74-90). Barça hadn’t won in Tel
Aviv for 18 years.
Destiny brought TAU and Regal Barça together again in the quarterfinals but this time Barça
booked their ticket to the Final Four in Berlin with a 3-2 win over their bitter rivals. However,
Barça lost to CSKA Moscow 78-82 in the semi-finals but took the consolation prize of third place
with a comfortable 79-95 win over Olympiakos.
The league, a dream fulfilled
The team’s wonderful performances over the season - their entertaining basketball
delighted the fans in the Palau -.deserved a reward and it turned out to be the last tournament to
be decided – the ACB league.
Once again, TAU was the team to beat. After dismissing Pamesa in the quarterfinals (2-0) and
Unicaja in the semis (2-1), the club from Vitoria came up against Barça. But this time, after
TAU’s elimination in the quarterfinals of the Euroleague, it was going to be a different
affair.
The first game went to Barça (80-82) and was the key to recovering the home advantage. In the
end, five years after winning their last trophy, Regal FC Barcelona, sent the Palau fans delirious
with a 3-1 series win.
Fixtures 11/12
