When Antonio Jesús López Nieto became president, he found an unmotivated club. He set out to recover ‘that Unicaja’. A familiar and competitive team that with its caste and fidelity left the charming Ciudad Jardín pavilion small, which will be renamed Alfonso Queipo de Llano in memory of one of the fathers of basketball in Malaga. Going back to the roots was gaining momentum to take two steps forward. That, and getting the sports director (Juanma Rodríguez), coach (Ibon Navarro) and, of course, the squad right. The faithful woke up and the Carpena is once again a caldera. 8,000 people on average who do not stop pressing from the usual environment. “We want to upset the big ones” was his declaration of intent.
The planned sustained resurgence has been reflected in this Cup tie against Barcelona where Malaga did not start as favorites. The verdipurados did not give up, they competed and did not go down when the Catalans seemed to be taking off. The triple from the phlegmatic Osetkowski helped to reach extra time when they were painting rough. Perry calmed down Ibon Navarro when the referees whistled a technique to make him look at it… And, of course, the spirit of Brizuela. ‘The Basque mamba’ appears when needed. Improbable defense, value and triples. 27 points and final crying. His little son came forward after being in the ICU.
Enlarge
The hobby. What a way to cheer up through thick and thin! Listening to those 400 stalwarts sing a cappella the beautiful hymn by Pablo López ‘Tu bandera’ makes your hair stand on end. With much to gain now faces the semifinal against the real Madrid, whom he defeated in the remembered 2005 final played in Zaragoza with Sergio Scariolo on the bench. The usual Unicaja returns to stay for a long time.
