The agony was worth it for Hereda San Pabo Burgos, who beat Argentine Quimsa to lift the Intercontinental Cup (73-82) in Buenos Aires.
The same competition, organized by FIBA after its split with the Euroleague, where Iberostar Tenerife had completed a double in 2017 and 2020. A tournament of exceptional value for
Joan Villarroya's team
, who came to dominate the final by 25 points before of committing himself to an agonizing outcome.
Four months after lifting the Basketball Champions League, with 17 triples in Athens against AEK (74-85), the Burgos showed remarkable authority.
The loss of the injured
Alex Renfroe
did not weigh on the spirits of a team that had just added 10 victories in its last 11 games.
Since its landing on Thursday in Buenos Aires, the Castilian team closed ranks to leave nothing to chance at the Obras Sanitarias Stadium.
His rival, a club from Santiago del Estero, had buckled their continental title against Brazilian Flamengo (92-86) and felt the tension of who knows before his last chance.
From the beginning, Peñarroya's team showed its superiority, guided by the wisdom of
Omar Cook
and the wrist of its captain,
Vitor Benite
, the only one on the track who had previously raised the Intercontinental, back in 2015 with Flamengo.
Only some distractions in defense prevented a takeoff that took place midway through the second quarter.
The main responsible was
Thad McFadden
, MVP of the final against AEK, with three triples and 12 points that unhinged
Jorge Sebastián González's team
.
Brandon Robinson's
attentions in marking
and
Dejan Kravic's
power under the hoops
finally stretched the score.
From 22-36 it went to an almost definitive 32-52, rounded off before the break with two free throws by
Maksim Salash
(32-56).
Peñarroya had allowed himself a few minutes for
Ángel Infante
, the 22-year-old point guard who replaced Renfroe in the call.
With 20 minutes to go, everything seemed resolved for the sixth classified in the Endesa League.
However, two triples from Robinson began to change the trend for Quimsa.
The erratic direction of the attacks led to eight wrong trips and the heaviness in the legs, in continuous neglect behind.
Thus, a Robinson steal, crowned with mate, forced Peñarroya's second consecutive time-out (50-62).
The message to his players from the former TDK Manresa guard left no room for doubt: "We believe we are so good that we can win by walking."
Under this dynamic, Saint Paul was forced to resolve through suffering.
With so many doubts, and without a trace of that dynamic game of 'pick and roll', only a triple by Benite and a couple courageous actions by
Jasiel Rivero
gave oxygen to a team that with two minutes left only dominated 68-74.
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