This afternoon, the Unicaja of Malaga and the Joventut Badalona will kick off the most competitive Copa del Rey in recent memory (17:30). Recent vulnerabilities displayed by the two powerhouses, Real Madrid and Barça, alongside Baskonia’s absence—another major Spanish team typically competing in Euroleague—appear to have opened the field of contenders, rendering it challenging to identify a clear favourite to lift the champion’s trophy next Sunday at the Arena in Gran Canaria.

The only previous encounter between the Andalusians and Catalans in the KO tournament’s quarterfinals took place in February 2003, in a closely fought match that ended with a 77-75 victory for the Malagueños. Considerable time has passed since that day, yet during this season, both teams faced off on the seventh matchday in Badalona, resulting in another tight contest ultimately decided in favour of Ibón Navarro’s men (75-79), thanks to notable contributions from Kalinoski (13 points) and Carter (12 points).

Despite arriving on the island ranked second in the Endesa League, the Malagueños have stumbled significantly through the early phase of the qualifying rounds.

Conversely, Penya enters as the fifth seed, with two fewer victories than their opponent, having recently triumphed against Leyma Coruña from the lower tier of La Rabla (107-104).

At 20:30, the second quarterfinal clash will take place between two teams that have been accustomed to securing privileged positions in the ACB in recent years.

The Tenerife lagoon has established itself as the top seed, presenting an outstanding first round, guided by Marcelinho Huertas while Fran Guerra has taken the spotlight from his usual counterpart, Gio Shermadini, who has found himself somewhat overshadowed this season.

Typically, an advantage for Tenerife has turned into a double-edged sword, as Barça, after a lacklustre first round that nearly led to their elimination, has managed to regain form and finished seventh, overcoming Valencia Basket in Fonteta, the Gran Canaria’s rival for tomorrow (86-100). Meanwhile, the aurinegros scraped through a tough match against UCAM but emerged victorious (77-78).

In their three previous cup encounters, Barça has always emerged victorious, winning once in the quarterfinals and twice in the semifinals. Furthermore, the Culés defeated them earlier this season at Santiago Martín on the third matchday (91-95).

La Laguna Tenerife’s coach, Txus Vidorreta, regards Barça as “without a doubt” the favourite. “We’ll aim to spring a surprise,” he asserted, highlighting that the Barça squad is “in fantastic form.” “This is illustrated by their commanding victory over Maccabi and the decisive win against Valencia. They also put up a good fight against the current best team in Europe, Olympiacos,” he remarked.

Vidorreta reiterated that the Catalan side is playing “exceptionally well”, although he acknowledges that his team is “performing well and sees positive results.”