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Regal FC Barcelona: No challenge too great anymore
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Boasting one of the most famous club names in the world of sports, Regal FC Barcelona arrives to the 2009 Final Four with every intention of claiming its second continental title of the decade. After seven previous Final Four appearances and five defeats in continental title games, Barcelona won the 2003 Euroleague crown before its home fans to finally break through to glory. In Berlin, the team will be making its record 10th appearance at a Final Four, and to win again, history shows that Barcelona will have to overcome some familiar foes. All three of this year's other semifinalists have stopped Barcelona's title hopes in the past, and in fact the semifinal matchup with defending champion CSKA Moscow marks their third such showdown this decade. Barcelona won their 2003 semifinal on the way to that season's historic title, while the opposite happened when they met in 2006 and CSKA pushed through to its own long-awaited trophy. This time around, Barcelona has plenty of confidence after welcoming back a signature superstar and following a young coach to the most victories of any Euroleague team so far.
Barcelona has always been a major contender for crowns, going back to the 1940s, when it won the Spanish Cup five times. The club was a founding member of the Spanish League in 1956 and won its first league title just three years later. Barcelona's first major European success came in the 1980s when it reached the 1984 Euroleague final before falling to Virtus Roma. Next came Saporta Cup titles in both 1985 and 1986 plus the Korac Cup in 1987 with the great Juan Antonio San Epifanio as team leader. Soon an even greater run would begin with an appearance at the first Final Four, in 1989. That was one of six berths in European basketball's signature event over the next decade. In 1990 and 1991, led by Epi, Nacho Solozabal and Audie Norris, Barca reached back-to-back Euroleague finals only to fall twice to Jugoplastika Split. Barcelona lost in the semifinals in 1994, suffered a heart-breaking loss to Panathinaikos in the 1996 final and went down to Olympiacos in the 1997 title game, too. Barcelona also made it to the 2000 Final Four in Thessaloniki, losing in the semis. All the while, the team was resolutely collecting trophies in Spain, with 10 national titles and eight national cups in the 1980s and 1990s. The turn of the century brought continued domestic success, but the moment that will always live in the memories of Barcelona fans came in 2003. That's when Dejan Bodiroga and Gregor Fucka led the club to its first Euroleague title at Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona in front of nearly 17,000 fans. Barcelona's long wait to join the exclusive club of continental champions was over, forever.
To prepare for a new title attempt this season, Barcelona had an active summer of team-building highlighted by the return of homegrown superstar Juan Carlos Navarro after one season away. A second major decision was to keep Xavi Pascual as head coach after he had taken over on an interim basis midway through last season. Barcelona also signed three-time Euroleague champ David Andersen, veterans Lubos Barton and Daniel Santiago, and another former player, Victor Sada, while retaining core contributors like Jaka Lakovic, Ersan Ilyasova, Fran Vazquez, Gianluca Basile and Roger Grimau. The new and the old faces came together quickly, perhaps aided by a pre-season trip across the Atlantic Ocean, just days before the Euroleague started, to play in the Euroleague Basketball American Tour '08. Barcelona returned more than ready for the Euroleague regular season, storming to a competition-best 9-1 record thanks to a seven-game winning streak. Then, despite starting the Top 16 with a loss against archrival Real Madrid, Pascual's men rebounded to win five games in a row, earning homecourt advantage in the Quarterfinal Playoffs. The team's resilience was proven again after it lost that advantage along with Game 1 of the playoffs against mighty Tau Ceramica, which was trying to reach its fifth consecutive Final Four. Barcelona bounced back strong, however, winning three of the next four - including the second-ever Game 5 in European competition - by an average of 20 points as Ilyasova, Navarro, Lakovic and Vazquez dominated. A giant was going back to the Final Four.
Although Navarro is the only player remaining from the 2003 Euroleague title team, the opportunity to raise Barcelona's status as a world basketball powerhouse will not be lost on any roster member in Berlin. A reigning world champion and Olympic silver medalist, Navarro will be counted on for his exquisite shot and growing leadership skills. Barcelona can also rely on the unique experience of Andersen. Now the first player ever to qualify for the Final Four with four different teams, Andersen can also become the first to win Euroleague titles wearing three different jerseys. Confidence will not be lacking in Barcelona's traveling party. With the club's many years of frustration long gone, Barcelona comes to Berlin as another former champion, on equal footing with the rest, ready to seize the title once again.
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Euroleague.net
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SCHEDULE
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SEMIFINALS, May 1:
Regal FCB 78-82 CSKA Moscow
Olympiacos 82-84 Panathinaikos
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3RD PLACE, May 3:
Olympiacos 79-95 Regal FCB
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FINAL, May 3:
Panathinaikos 73-71 CSKA Moscow
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2008-09 ALL-EL TEAM, MVP
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