Barcelona beat Valencia to win basketball Copa del Rey 2013

Regal Barcelona won their second Copa del Rey in three years as they beat Valencia basket 85-69 in the final of the knockout competition of Spanish basketball held in the Basque city of Vitoria.

Barcelona only qualified for the competition on the last possible occasion and had the toughest possible route to the final defeating league leaders Real Madrid and hosts Caja Laboral, who are second in the league, on their way to the final showdown with Valencia.

Valencia had also hit form in the cup, beating Asefa Estudiantes and Herbalife Gran Canaria in the quarter and semi-final to end a run of four defeats in the ACB Endesa league.

Valencia began the game strongly and held a narrow lead, 18-17 at the end of the first quarter, but that was the sign for Barcelona to begin their reaction, despite the fact that star player Juan Carlos Navarro played 20 minutes without scoring a single point.

Instead of Navarro leading the way as he so often does, several Barca players made their mark on the score with Pete Mickael top scorer with 14.

Mickael's final display was not his best over the four days of competition, but his displays against Madrid and Caja Laboral were enough to see him named MVP for the tournament.