The Barça big man stars in first game since Round 15
Shengelia's return sparks Barcelona past Maccabi
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 20 of 38
Regular Season
FC BarcelonaBAR
9383
Maccabi Rapyd Tel AvivMTA
Overview
w
l
l
w
w
l
l
w
w
w
FC Barcelona has a star-studded roster, but the return of one of its best players, Toko Shengelia, sparked an important home win over Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv to snap a two-game losing streak.
Shengelia played his first game since Round 15 and the veteran big man scored a team-high 22 points in a hard-fought 93-83 victory as Barcelona improved to 13-7.
Barcelona opened a 24-point lead in the second quarter but watched as Maccabi trimmed the gap to 5 points in the final frame. Shengelia stepped up with two plays to stop the momentum and get Barcelona back on track.
“It was very important for us how we got the win,” said Shengelia, who also collected 2 rebounds and 4 assists. “They are a team that never gives up. Even though we were up, we had the feeling that they were right there. We had to lock down and be focused for 40 minutes.”
Shengelia last played in the EuroLeague in Round 15 - Barcelona’s 98-85 win over Olympiacos Piraeus in mid-December - as he was dealing with a groin issue.
“It was important for me to come back. I am back in better shape,” said the 34-year-old center.
Head coach Xavi Pascual was happy to have the Georgian big man back.
“He’s one of the most important players we have. He’s a top-level player and we are very happy that he is back. We were missing him a lot. With him, we have another dimension to the team,” the coach said.
In addition to Shengelia’s production, Nicolas Laprovittola scored 14 points, Kevin Punter had 12 points and Willy Hernangomez tallied his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
“I’m just trying to do my job and follow the gameplan and execute. I feel more confident every day,” said Hernangomez.
“I am happy the way we fought today without our fans. It was a very difficult game. We fought together, we helped each other. This was a very important victory for us.”
Barcelona played in front of an empty Palau Blaugrana and the team struggled to control the ball with 18 turnovers. But the team knocked down 15 three-pointers.
Barcelona was hot from the start with 6 triples in a 22-3 run to pull ahead 29-12. The advantage swelled to 24 points - 44-20 - with a 12-1 start to the second quarter.
Maccabi drained 6 triples of its own over the rest of the first half in getting the deficit to 56-44 at the break. Barcelona was up by 14 points going into the final 10 minutes. Barcelona failed to score for the first 4 minutes of the final frame and Maccabi inched to within 77-72. Shengelia scored to put Barcelona on the board and immediately drew an offensive foul followed by a Myles Cale triple for a 10-point lead to weather the storm.
Maccabi has now lost two straight after a five-game winning streak to fall to 8-12 as it fights to stay in the race for the postseason.
Tamir Blatt tied his career high with 5 three-pointers in scoring 17 points and 9 assists, Jaylen Hoard added 15 points and Iffe Lundberg scored 14 points.
Maccabi head coach Oded Kattash knows where the game was lost.
“We started the game terribly. It was not the first time it has happened to us. It’s like we don’t want to learn our lessons,” said the coach. “We have to come out really aggressive. In order to win here against a very talented and well-coached team, you have to be focused. You have to start the game way more aggressive and focus on both sides of the court. Sometimes you lose the game in the first 7 minutes and that’s what happened tonight.”
Barcelona improved its all-time record against Maccabi to 24-13, including winning the last eight games. Maccabi last beat Barcelona on April 7, 2022, in Barcelona.
