Girona 74-79 Manresa
The derby was decided in the final two minutes as Manresa embarrassed Girona on their home court at Fontajau. After heading into halftime with just 32 points and struggling with 18 turnovers, Diego Ocampo’s side turned the game around in a decisive fourth quarter, outscoring the hosts 19-31. Moncho Fernández’s team suffered a crushing 2-14 run in the last two minutes, allowing Manresa to leapfrog Girona in the standings and strengthen their push for a European spot.
The home side started strong, opening with a 7-0 run that ignited the crowd at Fontajau. David Duke Jr. stopped the bleeding, and Kaodirichi Akobundu thrilled the traveling Manresa fans with a high-flying dunk in a frantic opening period dominated by outside shooting. Álex Reyes found his range to try and lift his team, but Girona responded with a 10-0 blitz to take a 32-18 lead. Diego Ocampo, unhappy with what he saw on the court, made tactical changes to address the mounting turnovers. Agustín Ubal brought energy for the visitors, but Pepe Vildoza answered with two consecutive triples to restore a 12-point advantage, sending Girona into halftime with a 43-32 lead.
Fatigue began to set in for both sides after the break. Scoring struggles led to a stagnant stretch until Otis Livingston broke the deadlock with a three-pointer. Moncho Fernández’s team saw their lead shrink when Ferran Bassas connected from deep, cutting it to 53-48. Livingston then stepped up as the hero, hitting a long-range shot to push the lead back to 10. A flurry of technical fouls followed: first on Diego Ocampo, then on Retin Obasohan, resulting in the Belgian’s ejection. Derek Needham added another three-pointer, making it 64-51 and putting Manresa in a deep hole.
But Ocampo’s squad refused to quit. Veteran Pierre Oriola kept them alive heading into the final stretch, trailing 70-65. Ferran Bassas struck again, leaving Moncho Fernández shaking his head as Ubal cut the deficit to 72-71 with 84 seconds left. Ubal then forced a turnover, and Bassas hit a triple to flip the score. It was the decisive blow, as Girona completely lost control. A foul on Bassas allowed Manresa to complete the epic comeback from the free-throw line, with young Ubal sealing the win. The victory lifts Manresa in the standings and solidifies their European aspirations.