Valencia Basket Advances to Copa de la Reina Final with 82-72 Victory Over Zaragoza

The first semifinal of the Copa de la Reina was a spectacular display of basketball. Two of Spain's best teams delivered an outstanding game. Valencia Basket claimed victory 82-72 against Casademont Zaragoza in a hard-fought contest. Led by an impeccable Leo Fiebich (18 points), they become the first finalist and will compete for the title in tomorrow's final. Five Valencia players scored in double figures.

The start of the game did not disappoint at all, as it began at breakneck pace. Both teams started aware of what was at stake—a Copa final. Valencia Basket got off to a better start, sharp on offense. As a result, they built early leads. A three-pointer by Leo Fiebich (6-12 at the 5-minute mark) extended the gap further, just as rotations began on the benches. This frantic pace would be difficult to maintain throughout the entire game.

Casademont Zaragoza couldn't find their compass in Mariona Ortiz, and this was taking its toll on the Zaragoza squad. To make matters worse, the player from Calella picked up two personal fouls with just six minutes played.

A two-plus-one by Carla Leite brought Zaragoza closer (15-19 at the 9-minute mark), but Khaalia Hillman (6 points) was excellent in the paint and scored Valencia Basket's 21st point. At the end of the first quarter, 15-21 for the Valencia side.

Valencia's dominance on the boards (13-6) gave Casademont no second chances, and they couldn't close the gap. As a result of the high pace of play, imprecision began to creep in. After a two-plus-one by Elena Buenavida (5 points), Rubén Burgos' team reached their largest lead (19-30 at the 5-minute mark of the second quarter).

Past the midpoint of this second half, we witnessed magnificent basketball. Elena Buenavida (9 points) continued her hot streak, while Casademont's three-pointers began to fall. Pure basketball (29-36 at the 27-minute mark).

Zaragoza, with an accurate Merrit Hempe (9 points), kept cutting into Valencia Basket's lead (35-40 at the 19-minute mark), but two consecutive three-pointers by Carrera and Fiebich (10 points) to close out the first half pushed the Valencia side further ahead (35-46 at the 20-minute mark). Rubén Burgos' team went into halftime with the best of feelings.

After the break, the movie of the game changed radically. Casademont Zaragoza came out firing. With an 8-0 run, the Zaragoza team had gotten back into the game (43-46 at the 21-minute mark). The Valencia coach had no choice but to call a timeout to try to deflate the Zaragoza momentum.

Rubén Burgos achieved his goal, reversing the run and even extending it (2-12), closed with two three-pointers by Leo Fiebich (45-58 at the 26-minute mark). The German was already at 16 points without a miss from the field.

Now it was Carlos Cantero's turn to stop the bleeding, as he didn't want his players to fall out of the game. To prevent that, an excellent Helena Pueyo (12 points) entered the scene. Thanks to her, Casademont Zaragoza entered the final quarter with life (57-64 at the 30-minute mark).

The excitement was palpable. Everything indicated we were going to witness a thrilling finish. A fast-break basket by Mariona Ortíz (63-70 at the 34-minute mark) tightened the score even more. The tension was tangible on the court and in the stands.

All of Zaragoza's attempts to cut the lead further came to nothing. Awa Fam (10 points) scored underneath the basket and left Casademont on the brink. With less than two minutes to play, Valencia Basket had the game under control (68-78 at the 38-minute mark).

That's how it went—Rubén Burgos' team managed the final possessions with ease and will deservedly compete in tomorrow's Copa final. Final Valencia victory 82-72. .