Covirán Granada suffer 88-83 loss

Covirán Granada lost another game the way struggling teams usually do — close for a long time, then short on legs and answers when the last few possessions really matter. The 88-83 defeat at Surne Bilbao Basket on May 3 did more than add one more mark to the loss column. It left Granada bottom of the Liga Endesa table at 5-24, still winless away from home, and staring at what Spanish coverage is already calling virtual relegation. Bilbao, meanwhile, used the win to stay in the playoff race just days after lifting the FIBA Europe Cup. (acb.com) ### What actually happened in Bilbao? Granada competed. That is the frustrating part. The game stayed alive deep into the fourth quarter, and Granada had real chances to steal it in Miribilla. But Bilbao closed better, won 88-83, and turned a nervous afternoon into a huge week for itself. The home side had just w(acb.com)ulnerable favorite. Granada still could not cash it in. (acb.com) ### Who swung the game? Luka Bozic was again Granada’s main reference point. Local coverage framed him as the team’s leader once more, and other match reports put him at 21 points. But the decisive late stretch belonged to Bilbao and especially Melwin Pantzar, who finished with 17 points and a valuation of 24. Th(acb.com)granadahoy.com) ### Why does this loss feel bigger than five points? Because Granada did not just lose a road game. Granada burned one of the very few remaining chances to drag the survival fight into the final weeks. The club came into Bilbao in a desperate spot already, after a run of defeats and with injuries shrinking the rotation. Losing by five after hanging around only sharpens the sense that the margin for error is gone. (granadahoy.com) ### Was the ending the real problem? Yes — and it has been a theme. GranadaHoy’s read was blunt: Granada competed well for much of the day but fell because of another bad finish, “como casi siempre.” Granada En Juego described the same pattern in basketball terms — foul trouble, fatigue, and a short bench finally cat(granadahoy.com)e ending stops looking random. It starts looking structural. (granadahoy.com) ### How bad is the table now? Very bad. The official ACB standings show Granada 18th at 5-24 with a league-worst -259 point differential and an 0-14 away record. The nearest teams above them are several wins clear. GranadaHoy’s point is that relegation is not official yet, but it now looks likely to become mathematical the following weekend in Zaragoza. That is why “virtual relegation” is the phrase attached to this result. (acb.com) ### Why does Zaragoza matter now? Because that is the next checkpoint where the season can formally tip over. GranadaHoy singled out next weekend’s trip to Zaragoza as the place where the drop could become mathematical. So the conversation around Granada changes here. It is less about building a miracle run and more about whether the club can delay the inevitable, protect what is s(acb.com)of going down. (granadahoy.com) ### And what about Bilbao? Bilbao got exactly what ambitious mid-table teams need — no letdown after a trophy. The win pushed them deeper into the playoff fight and capped what ACB called a fantastic week. That matters because Granada did not lose to a distracted opponent. Granada lost to a team with momentum, confidence, and more functional late-game offense. (acb.com) ### Bottom line? Granada’s season did not end mathematically in Bilbao, but it may have ended competitively there. The team can still point to effort, to Bozic, to stretches of good basketball. But at 5-24, with no road wins and another late fade, those are no longer survival arguments. They are relegation arguments in softer language.