Jaworski shines in his debut: Zaragoza beats Lleida 106-102

The Casademont Zaragoza began its preseason with a narrow victory that leaves both reasons for satisfaction and aspects to refine. Against iLerna Lleida, the Aragonese won 106-102 in a match that allowed Gonzalo García de Vitoria to observe the competitive level of his still-building team. Justin Jaworski, the major offensive bet of the summer, immediately responded with a display of 38 points that fully justifies the confidence placed in him.

A showcase start

The first minutes made it clear that Zaragoza arrived charged for the match. A 13-2 run in just three minutes highlighted the locals' attacking effectiveness and, simultaneously, the defensive weaknesses of the visitors. García de Vitoria's team took advantage of every opportunity in the first phase of the game, with a precision that contrasted with Lleida's defensive fragility.

However, the initial rotations gradually balanced the clash. The first quarter ended 24-20, still favoring the Aragonese, but with the Catalans already in the game. In the second period, iLerna took the lead thanks to a layup by Zacharie Perrin that made it 29-32. From that moment on, seven minutes of back-and-forth maintained the uncertainty, and the teams went into halftime with a 49-48 score that reflected almost perfect balance.

Dominance without a breakthrough

The third quarter repeated the script of alternation, with Casademont taking the initiative without achieving a definitive distance. García de Vitoria maintained control of the game, but the defense remained porous. The score reached 74-69, a margin that would prove insufficient to seal the match at that moment.

The last ten minutes were the most intense. Lleida took the lead for the first time in a long time with an 80-82 with five minutes left, forcing the Aragonese to react. It was then that Zaragoza executed a 5-0 run that practically sealed the match: 102-97 with one minute to go. The Catalan team found no response in the closing moments, and the victory was secured for the locals.

Jaworski, a perfect introduction

Justin Jaworski's 38 points are much more than just a number: they confirm what the club was looking for when it signed the 27-year-old shooting guard from Surne Bilbao. The 1.90-meter tall player arrived at Príncipe Felipe for one season after winning the FIBA Europe Cup with the Basque team, where he also tied the historical record of the entity with eight triples in a single game.

His previous career is equally relevant. Jaworski was the Italian Cup champion with Napoli against Olimpia Milano and the top scorer in the Bundesliga with Oldenburg, where he averaged 19.5 points per game. In his official presentation, the shooting guard acknowledged that conversations with García de Vitoria were decisive in his decision to sign, and that the coach informed him that he would be one of the offensive references of the project. With this performance, Jaworski has fulfilled the first part of that tacit agreement.

A team in the making

It is essential to contextualize that we are in August and the Casademont is practically a new team. Only four players remain from the previous season: Trae Bell-Haynes, Jaime Fernández, Miguel González, and Gabriel Olaseni. In contrast, seven new signings arrive to strengthen the squad: Guillem Vives, Sergi García, Caleb Homesley, Jaworski himself, Nico Brussino, Roberts Blumbergs, and Laurynas Birutis.

In this first preseason test, three of those new signings were missing, as Bell-Haynes, Brussino, and Blumbergs were still concentrated with their national teams in the FIBA window. Brussino, in fact, was competing with Argentina in Mar del Plata the same week as the friendly match.

For García de Vitoria, who takes on his first major opportunity as head coach after serving as an assistant last season, the area to improve is defense. Conceding 102 points against a direct rival for survival is an aspect that requires enhancement. However, the coach has time to work on that facet. Before debuting in the Liga Endesa on September 27 at Tenerife's court, the team has four more friendlies ahead to refine details and gain cohesion.

This first victory, though narrow, provides a positive foundation for the upcoming preseason matches. Jaworski's offensive effectiveness and the team’s ability to react in the final stretch are encouraging signs, while defense appears to be the priority area of work in the coming weeks.

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