FCBARCELONA.CAT

23.04.2009 22:00

TAU crowned champions (83-79)

Carles Cascante

TAU Cerámica defeated Regal FC Barcelona on Thursday evening to be crowned as Liga ACB champions as they stayed in front despite a spirited comeback from the visitors to the Buesa Arena.

Despite the impressive display in the second half of the game, particularly from Ilyasova, Barça could not overtake their hosts and make up for a second quarter that cost them victory. While the Blaugrana were left to ponder what might have been, they congratulated TAU on their triumph in winning the league title. Ivanovic's side were unbeaten at home throughout the campaign and that has been the cornerstone of their success.

Great intensity

The first quarter began with the home side playing an intense game as the team looked to put their elimination from the Euroleague behind them. TAU made a bright start and took a 10-2 lead as they began to find the basket regularly while Barça were still sorting themselves out. Xavi Pascual recognised this and sought more aggressiveness from his defence by putting Fran Vázquez and Roger Grimau on to the court. The changes worked and Barcelona reduced the gap to just four points by the end of the quarter to trail by just 25-21.

Teletovic stands out

TAU began the second period in the same way that they had begun the first as they pressed forward with Rakocevic and Teletovic scoring nine points between them without reply to put their team 34-21 ahead. That left Barça reeling during the period as only a long-ranger from Juan Carlos Navarro stood out among the imprecise passing that followed and saw the visitors lose more ground. The hosts, helped by some rigorous refereeing decisions, believed that they had the game wrapped up, but Barça did stage a mini-comeback with some triples before the break that saw them close the gap to 15 points (45-30).

Navarro and Ilyasova

While Teletovic continued starring for TAU; the 4/5 was a good signal for Ivanovic's side. But two triples from Navarro in quick succession ensured that Barça recorded a score of 2-8 in the opening minutes of the third quarter. Things continued to go in the visitors' favour as they closed the gap to 53-42 with five minutes remaining. Ilyasova added to his tally as he was on his way to 17 points and ten rebounds before the third break, and Pascual began to look happier on the sidelines as his side began to shine. The comeback was not quite complete as the third quarter finished with the Blaugrana still just behind on 57-54.

Pulling clear

Vázquez started the fourth quarter dominating the rebounds and that gave Barcelona hope of being able to pull off a dramatic victory. The away team moved to within a point, 59-58, but that provoked a reaction from TAU and Vidal, their captain, led his forward and Pascual tried to stem the tide with a couple of time outs. While that did work in the short-term, the Basque Country outfit were able to move far enough ahead to leave Barça with too much to do before the end of the game.