Barcelona fell to Unicaja 87-89 in a dramatic finish that stretched beyond regulation. Darío Brizuela led Unicaja with 27 points and Kendrick Perry added 22, fueling a late surge that finally broke Barça’s resistance. After building a double digit lead at 34-21 in the first half and extending it to 64-53 after the timeout in the 34th minute, Barça could not sustain the advantage as Unicaja fought back with relentless energy and astringent defense. The Andalusians forced extra time at 76-76 and carried that momentum into the overtime session to claim a win against Barça for the first time in eight competitive meetings.
From the opening tip, both teams locked into a grinding defensive battle. Barça managed a slim edge early thanks to outside shooting. Satoransky opened the scoring with a three and Nikola Mirotic kept the offensive pressure up with a string of points. Perry sparked Unicaja, initiating a run of aggressive play that produced five early points while launching three turnovers that disrupted Barça’s rhythm. Brizuela answered with a seven-point burst as Unicaja moved ahead, but Rokas Jokubaitis answered back with a timely three and a late basket to reclaim the lead for Barça at 21-20 as the first period closed.
Barça’s second unit, anchored by Cory Higgins and a strong post presence from James Nnaji, pushed the lead to 34-21 as the first-half clock wound down. Kalinoski steadied Unicaja with a patient perimeter attack, punctuated by a trio of baskets including a timely three by Carter. Satoranski trimmed the deficit with a late jumper before the half, leaving Barça ahead 41-34 at the break.
In the third quarter coach Ibon Navarro surprised Barça by switching to zone defense, sparking Unicaja’s comeback. Brizuela then delivered seven straight points to put Unicaja in striking distance. But Kalinic and Satoranski hit two timely three-pointers to push Barça back to a 49-41 advantage with 5 minutes remaining in the third. The game drifted into a physical, slower pace as both teams fought for every ball, with defense dictating play. Unicaja used Perry’s speed to close the gap, finishing the third quarter down just five at 55-50.
Abrines added five points and Brizuela found his rhythm to push Barça’s lead again to 64-53 near the 34th minute. Perry and Brizuela continued to threaten, and Unicaja kept the pressure high on defense. With 55 seconds left in regulation, Osetkowski converted a three to knot the score at 67-65. Vesely and Brizuela traded free throws, and Higgins’ potential game winner clangs iron, sending the game to overtime at 76-76.
In the extra period, Perry, Brizuela, and Kalinoski carried Unicaja forward. The visitors grabbed momentum from their defensive intensity, taking a 81-85 edge with minutes remaining. Laprovittola momentarily tied the game with a three, but Perry answered with two key free throws that restored the visitors’ lead at 87-89 with 0.8 seconds left. Barça could not find a last scoring opportunity, missing a final attempt from one of their players as time expired.
Data sheet: 87 for Barcelona consisted of Satoransky with 11, Laprovittola 12, Kalinic 3, Mirotic 15, Vesely 7, Sanlı 4, Sergi Martínez 0, Abrines 8, Higgins 10, Tobey 6, Jokubaitis 7, Nnaji 4. 89 for Unicaja included Perry 22, Carter 3, Barreiro 0, Kravish 10, Ejim 0, Osetkowski 8, Kalinoski 12, Brizuela 27, Djedovic 0, Thomas 5, Saint-Exupéry 0. Referees were Carlos Peruga, Fernando Calatrava, Jorge Martínez and Martín Caballero. The guest Díaz was fouled out with five personal fouls in the 45th minute. This was the second leg of the King’s Cup quarterfinals, played before 10,147 spectators at the Palau Municipal d’Esports in Badalona.