Despite missing starting center Brandon Davies, Valencia displayed great frontcourt depth to edge Bayern in a thriller
Big guys lead Valencia to big win

Valencia Basket entered its Round 30 game against FC Bayern Munich without starting center Brandon Davies, but showed great frontcourt depth to earn a 70-68 home victory in a thriller that came down to the final shot.
Davies was sidelined and Boubacar Toure was far from his best self as he returned after an injury. The visitors arrived at La Fonteta without Danko Brankovic but with experienced center Serge Ibaka. Valencia took a potential disadvantage and turned it into an opportunity with a smart game plan in which putting Ibaka into foul trouble was mandatory.
Indeed, Ibaka picked up 2 quick fouls in the first quarter, which allowed Valencia to attack the rim as often as possible. Valencia outrebounded Bayern 13-7 in the first quarter and made 8 of 12 two-pointers (66.7%) while only allowing Bayern to make 1 of 6 shots inside the arc (16.7%).
Once Ibaka was temporarily out of the equation, Valencia ran its offense through Jaime Pradilla and Damien Inglis. In short, Valencia did the one thing no-one expected and it paid off really well. Pradilla and Inglis combined for 10 points and 7 rebounds in the first quarter and at the end of it, their team led 28-15.
Bayern did a terrific job to return to the game and as it often happens, Jones took over in crunch time to make the difference. Valencia, however, would not have been able to win without its centers. Pradilla had 8 points and a game-high 8 rebounds. Inglis added a EuroLeague career-high 15 points, 6 rebounds and a PIR of 18. Ibaka finished the game with 4 points, 4 rebounds and 4 fouls in less than 21 minutes.
"I didn't know that, thank you!" Inglis said about his personal-best scoring mark. "We were just trying to get the win and wanted to show our full support to our coach Alex to get the win for him. Without Brandon, one of our main scorers, we have to share the ball to be dangerous tonight. We did it tonight, so props to us and we have to get back on track on Friday."
Valencia plays against AS Monaco in Round 31. Inglis helped Monaco win the BKT EuroCup title in 2022 and the game arrives in a good moment for him. In the last three games, Inglis averaged 12.7 points on 16 of 24 two-point shooting (66.7%), 4.7 rebounds and a PIR of 13.3. Valencia now ranks 11th with a 14-16 record, just like Partizan, which is 10th. The two teams face each other in their regular season finale.