Second semifinal match at the Palau

Barça Regal are looking to get the 2-0 lead in the Liga Endesa semifinal series against Valencia Basket this Sunday at the Palau at 12:00 (Esport3) Pascual: “I’m convinced that we will play against a tough rival that’s willing to go to war to make it to the final. The win this Thursday only means we’re up 1-0 in the series” The Azulgranas could break their winning streak record of 11 consecutive victories in the playoffs After the exhibition this Thursday, Barça Regal will return to the court at 12:00 (Esport3) in the second match of the semifinal series of the Liga Endesa against Valencia Basket. “I don’t want my players to be overconfident. We will have to play with the same intensity that we had on Thursday if we want to go to Valencia with a 2-0 advantage,” warned Xavi Pascual. The manager doesn’t want his team to get carried away with the 84-57 scoreline from the first match: “I’m convinced that we will play against a tough rival that’s willing to go to war to make it to the final. The win this Thursday only means we’re up 1-0 in the series.” Perasovic’s men have shown throughout the season that they are a competitive, tough, hard working team. And this is well known to the Barça Regal players and managers. The demand to play well will be very high. Navarro, on the road to recovery Juan Carlos Navarro, who played this Thursday for seven minutes, is slowly making his comeback to match fitness. Pascual confirmed that the Azulgrana captain is on the road to recovery and that he’ll progressively spend more time on the court: “this Thursday he took the first important step. Let’s see how he progresses. If everything works out, we’ll be able to give him more minutes and that is good news for us.” Favourable statistics Barça Regal could break their winning streak record in the playoffs, which currently stands at 11 matches (a mark they’ve reached twice). Furthermore, Barça have gone on to win 58 ties after winning the first match of the series. Historically the 1-0 is very valuable. In best-of-five series, 90% of the time the team that wins the first match goes through to the next round.