SINGAPORE (Singapore) - Copa del Rey in February 2023, Basketball Champions League in April 2024, and the FIBA Intercontinental Cup in September 2024 - Unicaja just keep winning major events.
The team from Malaga defeated the NBA G League United 75-60 in the Final on Sunday, drawing "oohs" and "ahhs" from the 8,205 fans in the stands of the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Unicaja are the fifth different Spanish club to win this event, after Real Madrid, La Laguna Tenerife, Hereda San Pablo Burgos and FC Barcelona. They've combined for 11 titles, four more than the Italian clubs in second spot on the all-time list.
Turning point: Facing Unicaja is tough because they keep playing the same pace and rhythm throughout the game, and if you have a lapse, they will punish you so brutally.
United held on for the first 15 minutes, but then the usual Unicaja charge to end the first half and start the second one was put the game beyond reach.
Ibon Navarro's men took a six-point lead to the locker room, then held the G Leaguers without a single point for five minutes in the third quarter, opening up a massive 18-point lead with Kendrick Perry and Dylan Osetkowski leading the scoring in that run.
There was no comeback after that, as the Spaniards cruised towards their first Intercontinental trophy.
Game hero: Unicaja fought hard to keep Dylan Osetkowski on their roster over the summer, and this competition just proved how important he is.
Osetkowski had 15 points with 4 rebounds and 3 steals in the Final, and the best part was the +31 for Unicaja in the boxscore in 21 minutes with him on the floor.
The 28-year-old American-German player now joins teammates Tyson Carter (Copa del Rey 2023) and Kendrick Perry (BCL Final Four MVP) with a big individual award in Unicaja's last three major trophies across two years.
Stats don't lie: Pick your poison. Unicaja dominated all the stats, perhaps the most impressive part being the 36-16 advantage in points from the paint.
Bottom line: The NBA G League United was put together for this experience, and the players showed how competitive they can be, but at the end of the day, the fact that they only spent a few weeks together, compared to Unicaja's few seasons together proved to be the biggest difference between the two teams.
Jordan Bowden was their best player on the day with 20 points.
For Unicaja, there's another chance to add a major trophy already next week, as they take part in the Spanish Supercopa Final Four in Murcia.
Coach Navarro once again used all 12 of his players, and had 13 points from Tyler Kalinoski (finished 10-of-18 from beyond the arc in three games), 13 from Yankuba Sima, as well as 10 from Kameron Taylor.
The final standings of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup have Unicaja ahead of the NBA G League United and Tasmania JackJumpers as the three medal winners. Al Riyadi Beirut finished fourth, followed by Petro De Luanda in fifth and Quimsa in sixth.
FIBA