The Canarian derby in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey did not admit even the slightest place for surprise. Lenovo Tenerife overwhelmed Gran Canaria at the Badalona Olímpic and sealed their undeniable presence in the second semifinal of the tournament.
Jaka Lakovic’s team held out for less than a quarter against an opponent who was very dominant on the court until the end, Txus Vidorreta’s team hardened in a thousand battles, full of players with much more experience than those from Gran Canaria.
It was the first time in the history of the Cup that both faced each other and Jaime Fernández decided that the first cup victory between the two Canarian neighbors was going to fly to Tenerife. The Madrid point guard scored up to 26 points, with brutal percentages both in two-point shots (6/8) and in three-point shots (4/6).
After a few first minutes of testing, Tenerife began to settle between the final stretch of the first quarter and the start of the second with a resounding 13-0 run signed by the eternal Marcelinho Huertas. The greatest difference of the entire afternoon came in the final stretch of the match when Jaime Fernández, who else, with a triple raised the score to 84-49. Shurna’s triples had been one of the few salvageable in the ranks of Gran Canaria, which with a last stretch in the last minutes could somewhat make up the defeat.
89 – Lenovo Tenerife (30 25 17 17): Fitipaldo (15), Jaime Fernandez (26), Cook (8), Doornekamp (2), Shermadini (12) – starting five – Rodriguez (2), Huertas (9) , Salin (11), Diagné (or), Abromaitis (2) and War (2).
73 – Gran Canaria (25 13 17 15): Albicy (7), Benite (6), Brussino (-), Shurna (18), Diop (12) -starting five-, Inglis (2), Balcerowski (7), Kljajic (0), Slaughter (3), Bassas (8), Salvó (8) and López De la Torre (2).
Referees: Daniel Hierrezuelo, Benjamín Jiménez, Alfonso Olivares and Óscar Perea. Sentence eliminated.
Incidents: Match of the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey played at the Palau Municipal d’Esports in Badalona before 9,386 spectators.