• María Conde "You see them and you think: 'What happened'"

It was a cruel defeat, because Spain died on the same shore, with one of those dying baskets, that of the nationalized

Alexandria Bentley

, which have no answer.

But it was also cruel because there was no joy in the team, crammed all night at the San Luis Fountain, with too many ghosts to display its usual power, which has made it accumulate medals as if it were a routine.

[53-51: Narration and statistics]

Not even the heroic impulse of

Cristina Ouviña

- nine points in the last minutes - in the denouement managed to loosen Spain from its shackles, those that torment her mind after these last days of setbacks. A defeat from which to escape soon, as Sweden awaits this Friday (9:00 p.m., TDP). Belarus was not superior, despite the dominance of Marya Papova (19 points, 13 rebounds). The point is that it was never the real Spain that was in front of it.

The debut was marked by all of the above, impossible to escape the circumstances. Of

the absences of Alba Torrens and Tamara Abalde

, a preparation with shocks and a lot of uncertainty in times of uncertainty. This was noticeable on the track, where pride was not lacking, but freshness and, above all, success, with very low pitch percentages.

It was soon proven that the problem was going to be the attack (five points in the first eight minutes), where

Lucas Mondelo

must explore new alternatives after losing his best weapon. Each basket cost a world, but the national team knew how to adapt, chameleon. Close the Belarusian tracks to turn the game into a mud where no one would be comfortable. He avoided greater evils with a 0-6 partial starring two of the young women, Raquel Carrera and Laura Quevedo. And soon Astou Ndour became the owner of everything.

Fresh from the WNBA, with hardly any preparation, the MVP of the last continental gold is the main player of this selection, the beginning and the end of everything. Five points from the African were an incentive to return to the changing rooms, which was joined by

the self-confidence of Leonor Rodríguez

, the desire to run, to liven up the night at the Fonteta. But that first arreon was stopped short by Belarus, a physical team in which Papova dominated the area.

Between failures and equality, the duel was pure anguish. Without Astou on the court, the Spanish scoring ability was reduced to bragging. Five points followed by Papova were the first warning

(44-38, min. 35)

. And there, for a moment, the usual tusk of the European champion returned. Spain released the pressure and dawned, at last, in the Eurobasket. More defense (still), Ndour back and a triple from Ouviña, the revulsive. Nobody like them in these fields of suffering, those who forged their legend.

A basket of pure self-love from the Aragonese guard, from zone to zone, made it even more spicy (49-49) in the absence of a minute.

Neither she nor Papova missed their free throws afterward.

But the last possession, with almost nine seconds left, went to Belarus.

And there Bentley made the difference with a perfect suspension.

And painful.

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  • Belarus

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  • Sweden

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