Cáceres saw off Alhíscar 86-71 at the LEB Plata on Friday evening, a result that keeps them eighth in the standings after twenty-six games. The hosts have fifteen wins from their campaign and, by then, had already shown they can put together a run of results. To be fair, Alhíscar came into this one with some momentum of their own.
The visitors had won their last outing against Badajoz 87-69, so they knew how to finish a game. Cáceres, meanwhile, were unbeaten in their previous fixture, beating Toledo Rockets 82-66. Home advantage often counts for something when the crowd is behind you, and here's the thing — this crowd was there.
We'd tipped the hosts before kick-off, giving them a 64 per cent chance of victory. That felt like a reasonable assessment rather than blind faith. Cáceres have the deeper squad, something that tends to matter over a full season. The prediction held up, and not by a huge margin, but enough.
Eighteen points separate the two sides, a scoreline that tells you Cáceres controlled the tempo without dominating every phase. Alhíscar never really went away, but they couldn't find the consistency that would have seen them close the gap. The hosts reached for their pocket after the break and found something.
Recent form suggests Cáceres can string together wins, but they've also dropped points at home before — that 72-84 defeat to Sant Antoni in late April is still fresh. Alhíscar's away record has been patchy, with losses to Ponce Ferrada and Huesca among their recent results. Neither side is flying high, but both are hanging around the middle of the pack.
The result leaves Cáceres on fifteen wins from twenty-six games, maintaining their position in the standings. Alhíscar remain outside the play-off places with their latest defeat. Cup football has its own rules, and this league does too — consistency over the long haul is what separates the contenders from the rest.
