Barcelona did its… duty and secured second place!

He did what he had to do and finished at second place of the regular season of the Euroleague Barcelona!

Putting in a very good and at times highly aggressive performance, the “Blaugrana” prevailed comfortably 85-71 of the statistically indifferent Valenciain the context of the 34th and last competitive event.

Somehow, the Catalans finished the regular season with 23-11 record and now they will face the Zalgiris with home field advantage in the playoffs.

Leading for the winners was Mirotic with 18 points, while closely followed by Abrines and Have fun with 15 and 13 points respectively. For Valencia, which finished in 13th place with 15-19, Harper stood out with 14 points.

The match:

Despite the fact that only Barcelona had motivation in tonight’s match, however, Valencia, playing freely and aimlessly, followed the fast and aggressive pace of the hosts. With Mirotic and Vesely breaking through, the Blaugrana led 22-12 in the 7th minute, with Valencia closing in on a quick 7-0 run to 24-21 of the first period.

The aggressive crescendo of the two gladiators continued in the second quarter, where the Catalans once again took the lead to double digits (40-29) at 15′. As before, so now, the visitors found the answers and with a sustained counter-attack reduced the difference to four points for the 51-47 halftime.

The scene was similar in the third quarter, with Jasikevicius’s team playing in a long high tempo, maintaining its high percentages in the executive part. With Mirotic leading the charge, Barcelona easily kept the lead above ten, ending the period with a good lead for the 72-61.

Playing excellent defense for five or so minutes in the fourth and final period, Valencia was able to build up the lead until the six (74-68), putting pressure on the hosts. However, Mirotic’s three-pointer and Vesely’s two-pointer in Barcelona’s subsequent attacks sent the difference at +11 (79-68) in the 37th minute, essentially sealing the victory, with the last horn of the match finding the “Blaugrana” with the pink match sheet with the final 85-71.

The quarters: 24-21, 51-47, 72-61, 85-71.