Last week’s derby brought smiles to the Donostialdea area and long faces in the Urola region. The GBC will want to continue smiling at the expense of Lleida on Saturday in Illunbe (7:00 p.m.), while Juaristi Iraurgi intends to change their mood on the TAU Castelló track, a classic in the category but which is giving the occasional alarm signal this Friday (9:00 p.m.) on the shores of the Mediterranean.
It is this type of encounter that the group led by Mikel Odriozola needs to recover morale. Right now it is the red lantern along with Melilla and Albacete and has salvation two games apart, marked by Almansa and Oviedo. He means this to say that on Friday night the Gipuzkoan team will not be in a privileged position, but if they add a positive result, it may be worth it to start the climb. There are four consecutive defeats and in this type of situation the passage of time is always pressing and a reaction is expected.
The good news for Juaristi is that they are going to recover their top scorer, Nathan Hoover, who was absent in the derby against the GBC due to knee problems. For a team that fights for permanence, not having the 16 average points of its escort is too much toll. Iraurgi has a key week ahead of them, since there will be a day during the week. After Castelló, he will host Cantabria and then travel to Albacete.
Partidazo en Illunbe
The clash against the Encinas team comes at a good time with five wins in their last six appearances and a feeling of solidity that money does not pay for. Of course, his rival comes from winning Andorra, with which his confidence level will be through the roof. Lleida has lost the MVP of the League, Michael Carrera, who has signed for Gran Canaria. To do this, they have brought in the Bosnian-Croatian Bakovic, from Cibona in Zagreb, and López de la Torre.
Guuk Gipuzkoa Basket is fighting to move up the table and they will have it in their hands since half of the games they have left are against direct rivals. The state of form of Xabi Oroz, Jaworski, Sollazzo or Delas invites optimism so that the San Sebastian squad is embedded among the best. The average is at three points, since the GBC lost in extra time in the first leg and, after the fantastic game against Burgos, a good start is expected to support the team, which will need encouragement from the stands.