Three preseason games and three victories by more than twenty points. UCAM Murcia defeated MoraBanc Andorra 91-65 in San Javier, after winning by 43 against Albacete and by 39 against Boca Juniors. It's a significant trend just eleven days before the Liga Endesa season begins.
An Andorran first quarter and three for Murcia
The start, however, belonged to Andorra. Wesley Iwundu and Artem Pustovyi dominated in the paint and gave the Principality team early leads during the opening ten minutes.
Everything changed after that. Murcia found their offensive rhythm and put together a 28-15 run in the second quarter that turned the scoreboard around and allowed them to go into halftime ahead. Souley Boum was the protagonist of that comeback with 15 points.
The verdict came from defense
The third quarter was decisive, and not because of their own scoring but because of the opponent's: UCAM held Andorra to just nine points in those ten minutes. With Michael Forrest taking control of the offense, the gap became insurmountable.
Forrest finished as the game's leading performer with 16 points and nine assists. On the other side, Aaron Best was Andorra's standout with 14 points and four assists, in a direct matchup between the two that was the game's highlight.
In the fourth quarter, Murcia didn't let up and closed out the 91-65 victory.
What it says about each team
UCAM arrives at the start of the season with a flawless preseason and clear references: Boum and Forrest have led the scoring in all three games. The team faces a double competition this season, with Liga Endesa and Basketball Champions League, so that depth will be necessary.
For MoraBanc Andorra, however, the takeaway is less favorable. Zan Tabak's team already fell in overtime against Barcelona in Encamp and fell apart here after a strong start. With the roster still coming together after a summer of changes, in which Kostas Kostadinov left on loan and Leon Radosevic arrived, Andorra needs game time.