Barça reacts in Munich thanks to Mirotic and approaches the ‘final four’

The Barca took a decisive step to ensure his presence in the Euroleague final four. A solid victory on the field of Bayern Munich (66-75) gave him back the initiative this Wednesday in the European play-off against the German team and will allow him to have two opportunities to secure his ticket to Belgrade, the first this coming Friday also in Germany. mirotic, With 25 points, 6 rebounds and a PIR of 31, he emerged to boost the Barça team, who were able to react in the opposite field, restore their image and make amends for the defeat at home.

“The start of the match was key to the victory. The intensity and physicality with which we started did not allow them to play as they did at the Palau. It is a great victory but the work is not done yet. We will try to finish it this Friday”, he proclaimed mirotic, elected the MVP of the match.

DO WHAT YOU WANT, NIKOLA! 🔥

Mirotic dressing up as a hero in Munich and making a final quarter 𝐁𝐑𝐔𝐓𝐀𝐋🦸🏻‍♂️@FCBbasket #EuroleagueDAZN 🏀 pic.twitter.com/kIIJJBNNUk

— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) April 27, 2022

It had nothing to do with the staging of the Barca in it Audi Dome with what he offered at the Palau. The players from Jasikevicius and changed part of the script, looking in the first attacks for an inspired Laprovittola, author of three triples from the start, with which Barça opened an unexpected gap from the start, which helped him settle in a pulse of maximum pressure, with a lot at stake. It was a very solid start. He also knew how to play the Barça team with the bonus to lean on free kicks, especially miroticand in that scenario, Bayern did not find a way to keep up and lock the scoring as they did in the two Barcelona games.

The improvement of Barca It arrived in all statistical aspects, but above all it was appreciated in the attitude. A 180 degree turn. The determination and intensity of the Barça players was essential to recover the initiative, until now held by Bayern in the tie, and draw a much more favorable scenario for their interests.

Smith’s impact

The Barca He displayed a much more direct basketball than in the first two games. As soon as he had the opportunity, he attacked the rim and that change of approach opened cracks in the defense of the German team, much more permeable than had been seen. Without so much elaboration, he beat J’s team in punchasikevicius, who found much more scoring both inside and outside the area, and also points from the players on the bench, who disappeared in the second match. Instead, Bayern had nothing to do with the infallible block of the Palau. His success rate plummeted. Only Lucic kept up the pace. But DeShaun Thomas, the hero of the German victory in the second match thanks to his 25 points and six triples, was a shadow of himself and finished with 4 points.

.@Rolands_Smits receives the pass from @Nick_Calathes15 to get the dunk 🚀 #7DAYSMagicMoment pic.twitter.com/pXS5trWqHq

— Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) April 27, 2022

Roland Smith was one of those who most unbalanced the Barcelona side, physical and intense as always, but also exum reinforced the efficiency of the rotations and, in general, Barça recovered part of the competitive image that it had missed in recent weeks to achieve a more than comfortable margin at half-time (31-49).

In a critical situation, Bayern went all out after the break. The leadership of the exvalencianista Lucic and also the struggle of Weiler-Babb managed to revive the noisy audience of the Audi Dome. Barça, on the other hand, after controlling the scoreboard with some solvency, slowed down and began to make concessions that the team from trincheri He managed to take advantage to re-enter the game, placing the differences at the border of 10 points (49-59, m. 30).

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On that hot stage, the talent of mirotic in all its greatness. Eleven consecutive points from the Barça star in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter returned control to Barca (56-72, m. 34) and cooled the spirits of the bayernwho tried, already unsuccessfully, to prevent the triumph from slipping away.