Liga ACB: Huesca La Magia - Real Madrid 10-2-1991 (Parte 1/3)

This game, corresponding to Matchday 28 of the 1990/91 ACB League regular season, was played in February 1991 at the old Parque Pavilion in Huesca and broadcast live on TVE with commentary by Pedro Barthe and Juan María Gavaldá. An interview with Brian Jackson was aired at halftime. The Huesca team's main change from the usual lineup was the presence of Iván Pardo, in the first of his six seasons with the green and white jersey, even captaining the team in their final ACB League campaign. Also surprising was the absence of Granger Hall after four years with Peñas. In his place, the veteran Edgar Jones (remembered for his peculiar angled free-throw stance) was signed for the season. He failed to impress and was replaced early in the season by Derek Strong, who played in this game. Strong later enjoyed a long NBA career with prestigious teams like the Lakers, Celtics, Orlando, and Milwaukee. However, in Huesca, although he played several games at a very high level, he didn't quite succeed, partly due to his youth and partly due to a knee injury that caused him to miss several games because of a hard foul by Mike Schlegel in a game played in León against Elosúa. Furthermore, towards the end of the season, the club saw the opportunity to bring back Granger Hall and didn't hesitate, so Strong didn't finish the season in Huesca. As for Real Madrid, the team was still reeling from the tragic loss of Fernando Martín the previous season, and it wasn't exactly the best Madrid team in recent memory. They opted for a pair of young foreign players who also went on to have distinguished NBA careers: Stanley Roberts and the Venezuelan Carl Herrera (the latter even winning a championship with the Houston Rockets). However, they arrived in Madrid very inexperienced and, according to rumors, were frequent visitors to Madrid's nightlife. On the bench sat the legendary Wayne Brabender, replacing George Karl, who, for one reason or another, couldn't replicate in Real Madrid what he later demonstrated in the NBA with a long and successful career, only missing the crowning achievement of a championship ring. As for the standings, Peñas finished eleventh, qualifying for the playoffs for the title, where they faced the sixth-placed team, none other than CAI Zaragoza, who that year had been runners-up in the European Cup Winners' Cup, losing the final in Geneva against PAOK Thessaloniki. Despite the final 2-0 score, the series was very close, and Zaragoza needed a last-minute overtime period to win in Huesca and avoid a third game. For its part, Madrid finished its lackluster season in a discreet fourth position in the regular league, and did not even manage to reach the semifinals, falling in the quarterfinals to the already thriving Taugrés de Vitoria.