Copa del Rey basketball: Badalona examines a hegemony

Badalona breathes basketball. It is hard to believe that 38 years have passed, since 1985, since the last time the home of the historic Joventut hosted the Copa del Rey, an event with a hook: the eight best teams battle in four frenetic days surrounded by the twinned coexistence of their fans . The Olimpic recovers from this Thursday that mixture of romanticism and spectacle in an edition that examines the duopoly of Spanish basketball. Madrid opens the dance in the quarterfinals against Valencia (6:30 p.m., Movistar) and Barca, champions for the last two years, will follow them on the court (9:30 p.m.) against Unicaja. If they climb the first rung, the two greats will face each other in the semifinals. There will be no classic in the final. The door for the other applicants is open.

The first Canarian derby in a Cup, Tenerife-Gran Canaria (Friday, 6:30 p.m.), and an electric Joventut-Baskonia (Friday, 9:30 p.m.) dress the other part of the table. One of those four teams will fight on Sunday for the title and to close a solid duopoly. Barca is the king of four of the last five appointments, and only Barcelona and Real Madrid have been crowned since Baskonia won in 2009. Since then, seven titles for Barca and six for Madrid, and only Unicaja, Gran Canaria and Valencia Like other finalists. Between 2000 and 2009 there were five different champions (Tau, Estudiantes, Joventut, Barca and Unicaja). The iron fist of the greats has ruled since that time. And his voracity does not stop.

Barca will match Madrid’s 28 cup titles if they win their third Cup in a row in Badalona. Jasikevicius has not lost a duel in this competition as a Barcelona coach: six out of six. The third step of the podium is far below, the eight crowns for Joventut, six for Baskonia. Barca’s climb begins with Unicaja, whom they have beaten in their seven cup matches. The green team lands without Yankuba Sima, but with two Eurobasket champions, Alberto Diaz and Dario Brizuela, in front. Barca left them at 60 points in the league match at the Palau.

Barca and Madrid rule the ACB with only three defeats in 20 days. The Barcelona fans, against Gran Canaria, Joventut and Obradoiro. The whites, against Baskonia, Zaragoza and Barca. Chus Mateo’s team faces a Valencia on a roll (nine wins in 12 games), grown in the Euroleague, captain Dubljevic recovered (at Fonteta since 2012) and with Texan point guard Chris Jones plugged in at decisive moments. In Madrid, Rudy and Llull are chasing their seventh Cup.

Free track in Badalona, ​​precisely where the host’s curse was born. Zaragoza had been crowned in 1984 in their pavilion, and a year later Joventut fell in the final on their stadium against Madrid (76-90), inaugurating a very long sequence of local disappointments. In these 38 years, only the Tau in 2002 has been both host and champion. No celebration of the home fans in the 18 editions that followed that successful hand or in any of the last 20 seasons in a row. Madrid, for example, have lost in the three finals they have played on their court in that section, 2011, 2019 and 2021, all three against Barcelona. More incentives for the great party of Spanish basketball.

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