Hiopos Lleida took a key victory at Barris Nord by defeating Tenerife by 103 to 101 in a game that was decided in the final seconds and that gives breathing room to the Lleida team in the fight for permanence in the ACB.
Gerard Encuentra's team secured its ninth victory of the season and is now three wins above the relegation zone with nine rounds remaining until the end of the regular phase. The result has weight in the standings, but also for how it came about. Hiopos Lleida was trailing throughout the afternoon and ended up finding a reward in a tight finish.
Final comeback in an always uphill match
Tenerife took the initiative from the start and dominated the scoreboard throughout the match with leads that fluctuated between five and twelve points. The visiting team found offensive production in Marcelinho Huertas, who finished with 23 points, and took advantage for many minutes of their greater control of the game.
The absence of Shermadini also conditioned the game of the Canarian team. Even so, Tenerife had the clash in its hands until the final stretch, when Hiopos Lleida raised the pace and found solutions to turn around a situation that had been very unfavorable for many minutes.
Ejim leads and Batemon pushes in the second half
Ejim was the great offensive reference of Hiopos Lleida with 29 points, decisive in sustaining the team in moments of greatest difficulty. Alongside him, Batemon had a notable contribution after halftime, key for the locals to cut differences and arrive with real options at the close.
The debut of Adrià Rodríguez with Hiopos Lleida also left a notable mark on an afternoon of maximum competitive demand and with a Barris Nord pushing in a match of great tension until the end.
A final ruling avoids overtime
The outcome was decided in a last action in which Abromaitis missed the basket that would have taken the game to overtime. That error sealed the Leridan victory by a tight 103 to 101 and unleashed the celebration of a team that had been needing a result of this caliber.
The victory also comes shortly after the renewal of Gerard Encuentra, who thus adds a triumph of enormous sporting and emotional value. In Lleida, with nine matchdays still to play, the margin over relegation widens and the team gains oxygen to face the decisive stretch of the championship.