He scored his second game-winning basket of the season in Round 15.
Joventut’s Andres Feliz showed that he’s the man for the big moment
Article
3 Mins read
With the London Lions and Joventut Badalona tied at 80-80 with 5.4 seconds left on the clock, the Spanish visitors had one last chance to win the game. Such is Joventut’s wealth of options that it wasn’t clear who would take the last shot as Andres Feliz prepared to inbound the ball: Shannon Evans, Andrew Andrews, Ante Tomic or Vladimir Brodziansky. Well, the answer should have been clear.
Feliz managed to pick out Tomic, but the veteran Croatian center immediately passed it back to the Dominican Republic international. That left 4.7 seconds to go. Would Feliz pass it? Of course not. Feliz took on Donte Grantham one-on-one, created a bit of space on his drive and sent up a floater, which dropped with 0.2 seconds remaining to give Joventut an 80-82 win. A clutch basket if ever there’s been one.
Incredible self-confidence
It is worth bearing in mind that prior to his game-winning basket, Feliz had just 5 points and had committed 6 turnovers. Yet, with the game on the line, he knew it was his time to shine. This is already the second time this season that Feliz has come up big for Joventut in the final seconds of a game, as he also netted the game-winner in overtime at Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana back in Round 2. He had an incredible half-court game-winner in the Spanish League earlier this season, too.
"The last play is clear for me: give the ball to Andres and enjoy the game," head coach Carles Duran said in the post-game press conference.
Evans, making his Joventut debut in Round 15, had a similar outlook during the post-game flash interview: “Of course [I trusted him]. I think that’s like his fourth game-winner of the season, so we definitely trust him, for sure.”
Joventut is in great form at present, having won seven EuroCup games in a row, and Feliz’s evolution into becoming the team’s go-to guy in clutch moments has made Coach Duran’s squad even stronger. His heroics in London not only wrapped up the win but it also booked Joventut’s place in the EuroCup Playoffs.
This has been somewhat of a breakout season for Feliz, who is averaging career bests across the board – 13.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.3 steals and an 18.3 PIR – and it’s clear he’s not going to slow down any time soon. Feliz and Joventut are certainly going to be a big threat come playoff time, that’s for sure.