Seventh victory in a row for the Sicilians, Bertram prevails after two extra hours
By sending six men in double figures, Trapani achieved the tenth victory in eleven days against Udine and without the 5 penalty points they would be first in the standings, but the news of the day is that the Sicilians were directed by captain Petrucelli in the player-coach version due to the regulatory impossibility of having coach Latini on the bench. Following two extra times, Tortona surpasses Sassari thanks to the Vital-Baldasso duo, who combine for 64 points. Brescia maintains the top spot by defeating Varese in the Lombard derby with the usual Della Valle (23 points) on top. Guerri Napoli only needed one half to get the better of Cremona, tied to eighth place by the Neapolitans (Flagg 21). Treviso (Weber 21) wins their first home victory of the season by beating Cantù. The Venetians reach Reggio Emilia with 4 points and leave last place in the rankings thanks to the direct clash.
TRAPANI-UDINE 91-73
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Coach Latini, the second assistant to whom the team was entrusted after Repesa’s resignation, was in the stands because the adjustment of the contract required by the regulation to take the bench again has not yet been successful due to the block on memberships currently affecting the Sicilians (which is also affected by the uncertainty of the achievement of the necessary twelve professional contracts after the termination with Allen). But despite everything, it is the seventh consecutive championship victory for Trapani. In the first half of the match, Apu struggled to find reliability outside of Calzavara, while Shark was unleashed from beyond the arc (7/15 from 3 by Trapani versus 3/11 by Udine): the clear run of 26-13 in the second quarter, driven by Cappelletti’s excellent playmaking (already with 6 assists after 20′) allowed the Sicilians to end the first half ahead 46-33. After the long break, the Granata point guard needed just 4′ to complete the double double, while Eboua and Notae continued to grind out points, reaching their maximum lead of +22 (70-48) with 1′ left in the third period. The guests don’t throw in the towel, Alibegovic goes up with shots and Apu gets back to -10 (77-67) halfway through the last quarter, but it’s not enough: Eboua’s triple in the final stages of the match brings Shark back to +20 (91-71) and definitively closes the proceedings. At the end of the match, Trapani president Antonini reported a verbal attack on his wife.
Trapani: Notae 16, Cappelletti 14, Eboua and Hurt 12
Udine: Calzavara 15, Spencer 14, Alibegovic 13
TORTONA-SASSARI 118-113 dts
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After a stop forced by a couple of complicated matches against Venezia and Bologna, Fioretti’s team returns to winning at the Nova Arena. Bertram soon took control, thanks to a 27-15 first quarter driven by the physicality of Olejniczak, but during the second half Buie and Marshall warmed up from long range: Bertram loosened up and left traces exposed under the basket for Sassari, who with the support of Vincini found a sensational overtaking (80-82) in the 36th minute. Shortly afterwards, however, some bad news arrives for coach Mrsic. Pecchia landslides on the knee of Marshall, up to that point the best scorer of the evening, who is forced to leave the field on a stretcher. Sassari loses concentration, Pullen commits a naive foul on the perimeter against Vital, who makes 3/3 from the line and puts Derthona back ahead (88-86) in the 39th minute. But the Juventus number 1 himself loses a bloody ball in the next play and leaves room for Visconti’s counterattack, which equalizes: we go to overtime. Vincini once again returns to make space under the basket, Baldasso and Johnson exchange shots from the arc, and thus we enter the last minute of the first extra half with Sassari ahead by just one point (95-96). Buie scores two important ones from the line, but Baldasso equalizes once again from the arc: a second overtime is needed. Sassari is in full emergency, after losing Marshall and McGlynn due to fouls, Vincini also commits his fifth offence. Vital and Baldasso’s free throws allow Bertram to enter the final part of the match with a 3-point lead (113-100): Pullen tries to force the third overtime from the corner, but this time his shot goes short and Buie’s last-gasp miracle is of no use. Vital closes it from the line, Tortona triumphs after 50 minutes of play.
Tortona: Vital 34, Baldasso 30, Olejniczak 19
Sassari: Buie 25, Marshall 23, Pullen 14
Brescia-Varese 102-94
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Tenth roar in 11 matches for the Leonessa, which remains at the top and is preparing for next Monday’s top clash against Virtus Bologna with a streak of 6 victories in a row. Coach Cotelli wins the Lombard derby against Varese with super Della Valle, 33 rating, 4/7 from three and 9 assists of which 5 in the first quarter, a period in which three consecutive triples, two from Ivanovic and one from Burnell complete with an additional free throw, give way to the Germani partial which already extends in the 1st quarter (29-18). Brescia with the turbo, maximum advantage after 15′ (45-28) while Varese’s big men have foul problems (already 3 from Renfro and Nkamhoua in the 1st half). But the -17 is also the wake-up call for Openjobmetis: 5-19 on the other hand, 5 points from Iroegbu and 4 from Ladurner, 11 turnovers for Brescia and the game reopened: 50-47 at halftime. The balance in the second half lasted 6’30: a triple from Della Valle and then another from Mobio cooled the opponent’s comeback, Brescia in attack found itself by heart (25 assists in total) and went back ahead 75-65 with Ivanovic already at 20 before the last mini-break. Again +17 for Germani, 90-73, but as in the 1st half it is also the sound of the bell for Varese. Which 23” from the siren returns to -4 with a partial score of 21-8, thanks to 8 points from Stewart and 7 from Nkamhoua. Alviti has the triple in hand for a possible -3 at 100-94 for the league leaders, but has no luck. MVP Della Valle’s 4/4 from the line seals the match for Leonessa.
Brescia: Della Valle 23, Ivanovic 21, Burnell 16
Varese: Iroegbu: 17, Stewart 16, Nkamhoua 11.
Naples-Cremona 102-76
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There is a new candidate for a place in the Final Eight, and it is Napoli. It beats Cremona, closes it to 10 points in the standings, occupying eighth place in head-to-head matches and brings home its third victory in the last 5 races. The defense of coach Magro’s boys was decisive (27/64 shooting for the Lombards) but also the triples: 15/36 for Guerri, well above 40% compared to a seasonal average that did not exceed 32%. Campani already ahead by 19 points (54-35) at the end of the 1st half, after also reaching +21, led by the usual Savion Flagg, 21 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and equaled the seasonal record with 5 triples scored. With Durham on the pitch but not yet at his best after the injury seven days ago against Varese (he started on the bench), Cremona lasted just a quarter, the first: down 23-21 after 11 minutes of play, Casarin and his teammates surrendered to a 26-7 run from which they would never be able to recover. In the 2nd half Napoli limited themselves to maintaining the advantage and then extended it in the last quarter to the maximum advantage of 93-66. Finally he gives the championship debut to the 1995 born Mirko Gloria who also scores 2 points. Third knockout in a row for Vanoli, perhaps tested by the surprising start to the season (in this sense the Ndiaye-Willis pair does not work, 4/18 shooting).
Naples: Flagg 21, Croswell and Treier 14.
Cremona: Veronesi 16, Casarin 12, Durham and Jones 11
Treviso-Cantù 86-81
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Treviso hadn’t won for more than a month. Briante Weber takes her by the hand, interrupts the negative streak of 4 consecutive defeats and gives herself the first home victory of the championship. The last quarter was decisive, the one in which the former Pesaro player Abdur-Rahkman scored 11 points in the 14-6 run which was worth the second victory of the season for Nutribullet which tied Reggio Emilia to 4 points in the standings, abandoning last place thanks to the direct clash. Acqua San Bernardo started better, never trailing in the first 17 minutes of the match. The maximum advantage for Bortolani and his teammates coincides with two free throws from Basile for 34-26 halfway through the 2nd quarter. Olisevicius, the first to reach double figures, started the Venetian comeback: his triple started the 19-7 run with which Treviso snatched the inertia of the match away from the Lombards, closing the first half ahead 45-41 with 16 points from Weber. Despite the initial 1/8 shooting, Treviso maintained the advantage without ever managing to escape. He tries with the +8 at the start of the last quarter (62-54) but two triples in a row from Cantù, one from Basile and one from De Nicolao, close the deficit. The contact does not last long. Because driven by Weber, who also brought in 9 rebounds and 6 assists, the Venetians extended their lead again thanks to the decisive baskets from Radosevic’s Abdur-Rahkman (10 points all in the 4th quarter). Treviso extends, 82-71 and maximum advantage. Gyliard and Moraschini rekindle the host’s hope from beyond the arc but the US point guard’s triple of possible -2 10” from the siren was unsuccessful. For Cantù it is the fourth defeat in a row.
Treviso: Weber 21, Olisevicius 18, Abdur-Rahkman 16
Cantu: Sneed 16, Gilyard and Bortolani 15.
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