Barcelona lose to Olympiacos in their Euroleague debut

Barcelona lost this Friday against Olympiacos in the first Euroleague game (70-80).

The azulgrana, who were playing at home, were unable to beat the Greek team that took the lead in the second quarter and were in the lead until the end of the match.

Laprovittola and Higgins were the best of a local team that came out with little momentum and many offensive failures.

Jasikevicius's men looked for a comeback until the end but Olympiacos prevailed based on many triples but little precision.

Barça has three defeats in its last four matches after losing against Real Madrid in the Super Cup final (89-83) and against Gran Canaria (88-85).

Anadolu Efes, Euroleague champion for the last two seasons, has beaten Red Star (72-59) in its debut in European competition.

Both teams were unsuccessful in a first quarter with a low score (16-13).

The low scoring is understood by the few shots and the defensive work in both zones.

A triple by Kalinic, after an assist by Laprovittola, seemed to loosen Barça a bit but it was just a mirage that brought the stands of the Palau Blaugrana to their feet.

Barça came out in the second quarter with the intention of picking up the pace after a calm first half.

Instead of the pace, what increased was the chaos of the match.

It was difficult for the azulgranas to start and they lost the advantage gained in the first set.

Olympiacos weren't much different either, the Greek team also made many offensive mistakes.

Another three-pointer from Kalinic seemed to put Barça back in the game, but the failures in defense combined with doubts in attack and left the Catalans with few resources.

Barcelona did not wake up.

Despite Laprovittola's work in attack and assisting for his teammates, the local team could not find the way.

In the second quarter, Olympiacos played more with the triples, and although the majority did not enter (5/17), the annotations of Peter and Vezenkov were key in the point difference.

Both teams were finer in defense but the Greek team rolled the ball a little better and that translated into the result at halftime (28-34).

Those from Piraeus took the lead in the second quarter and never went below.

After the break, Barcelona came out with a different attitude cheered on by the Palau fans.

But Olympiacos were undaunted and defended their fragile lead tooth and nail.

The azulgrana led by the always reliable Laprovittola (16 points) and by Kalinic had come out very well in attack in the first minutes of the third quarter, but the Greek team left again.

A basket by Higgins at the buzzer, which had to be reviewed, prevented Olympiacos from starting the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead over Jasikevicius (49-57).

In the last period Olympiacos came out on top.

The advantage against a Barça with quality to spare was not enough to overcome it.

A play by Bolomboy made the intentions of the Greek team clear.

The Russian scored and forced a free kick to put his team at 11. The worst omen for Barcelona.

But the local team did not collapse.

A three-pointer by Abrines from almost 10 meters raised the Palau's stands and cheered the culé, who managed to get within 3 points thanks to two baskets in a row by Cory Higgins.

Barça, who had gone the whole game in fits and starts, was close to coming back.

The pace of the match increased.

Those from Piraeus were not far behind.

Giannoulis Larentzakis appeared with three triples to maintain the advantage of the Greek team.

The party had gone crazy.

The azulgrana were seven points away in the last minute, in that area where comebacks are difficult, but possible.

A fourth three-pointer from Larentzakis, who scored his 12 points in the last quarter, drowned out Barcelona's few hopes with a 10-point difference on the scoreboard.

In the stands of the Palau, only the cheers of the Greek fans who had followed their team to Barcelona were heard.

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