Bayern Munich’s basketball team missed another upset against EuroLeague title favorites FC Barcelona and have their backs to the wall.
Coach Andrea Trinchieri’s team lost the third quarter-final game in their own hall on Wednesday 66:75 (31:49) and is now 1:2 behind in the “best of five” series. On Friday (8.45 p.m. / MagentaSport) Barca have their first match ball in game four in Munich.
The winner of the duel advances to the Final Four in Belgrade (May 19-21) and meets Real Madrid in the semifinals. Bayern were the first German team to reach the playoffs in Europe’s premier class last year. In the quarterfinals against Armani Milan was the end of the line after five games.
FC Bayern missed the start
In the sold-out Audi Dome, after the surprising 75:90 home defeat, Barcelona started the second game with great determination and after just under five minutes they were already 18:5 ahead. With the support of the fans, Bayern fought their way into the game with a better defense in the further course of the game, at Barca the throws were no longer quite as natural.
But with the exception of the third quarter (18:10 for Bayern), the concentrated guests around the in a good mood Nikola Mirotic (25 points) brought their greater individual quality to the floor. Bayern, who had their top scorer in Vladimir Lucic (17), had a problem with the three-point quota of almost 17 percent.
“You have to show a top-top-top performance with a lot of concentration and commitment that we have a chance,” sporting director Marko Pesic said before the first home game against Barcelona. The fact that it didn’t come to that was also due to the convincing opponent this time.