2018-19


01/06/2019

The start of the following season led to changes in the squad. On the bench, a new stage began, with Jaume Ponsarnau as first coach after two years as an assistant. Borja Comenge would join the staff as second coach.

 

The starting position would continue at the hands of Sam Van Rossom, Guillem Vives, Antoine Diot and Sergi García. In the external positions, Joan Sastre, Rafa Martínez, Alberto Abalde and Fernando San Emeterio would continue, to be joined by the North American Matt Thomas, from Obradoiro. Straddling the interior and exterior, Aaron Doornekamp would continue on the team.

 

In the interior game, both Will Thomas and Bojan Dubljevic continue, and both the American Mike Tobey, who returns to the club after a year in Tenerife, and the Frenchman Louis Labeyrie joined the team.

 

The first major tournament of the season, the Copa del Rey held in Madrid, provided a difficult quarterfinal match against all of FC Barcelona. In a match played face to face, the victory traveled to Barcelona, ​​a team that would end up taking the final victory on the tournament.

 

The great joy of the season was to come in the 7Days Eurocup. In an almost perfect competition, Valencia Basket would achieve a new title, the fourth in that competition and the seventh in the club's history, in a practically immaculate competition in which only 3 losses were recorded in the 23 matches. A balance of 8-2 in the first round to pass as group leaders, a resounding 6-0 in the Top16 against important rivals such as Unicaja or Estrella Roja, as well as superiority at crossings, with 2-0 against Lietuvos Rytas and Unics Kazan in the quarterfinals and semifinals. In the final, against Alba Berlin by Aito García Reneses and Luke Sikma, a 2-1 victory with defeat in overtime in Berlin in the second match with more than 800 taronja on an unforgettable journey, and a final victory 89-63 in the definitive match against a delivered Fonteta. Will Thomas was awarded the best player in the finals.

 

Once the title and the pass to the next edition of the Turkish Airlines Euroleague were sealed, it was time for the final stretch, in which there would still be strong emotions to be lived.

 

The classification as Liga Endesa Regular League quarters led to an electric pairing of the quarterfinals against Unicaja. The people from Malaga hit first, winning in Valencia, forcing Ponsarnau's men to win in Malaga to stay alive in the competition. Valencia Basket overcame and managed to win both that match and the final, accessing a semifinals against Real Madrid, who did not give the taronja much choice, winning the semis 3-0.

 

This last game, played at the Fonteta, marked the end of Rafa Martínez's career as a Taronja player after 11 seasons (2008-2019), receiving a loud ovation from the entire Fonteta who, standing up, starred in one of the most emotional of the club's history.


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