Bertram Derthona writes history by winning the Italian Cup in its first appearance, beating Ravenna 89-57
Bertram Derthona – OraSì Ravenna 89-57
(27-17, 49-26, 71-39)
BERTRAM DERTHONA: Spanghero 7, Johnson 29, Quaglia 6, Stefanelli 19, Sorokas 14, Radonjic 5, Garri 5, Gergati 4, Alibegovic, Cremaschi none, Apuzzo none. All. Pansa.
ORASI' RAVENNA: Esposito 2, Masciadri 13, Vitale 4, Montano 10, Raschi 2, Chiumenti 5, Rice 3, Sgorbati, Grant 9, Giachetti 9. Coach Antimo.
Bertram Derthona writes history by winning the Italian Cup in its first appearance, overcoming Ravenna with a masterful performance. In command for the entire forty minutes of the match, the Lions closed a memorable weekend in which they first beat Trieste, then Biella and Ravenna in the final. Dedication and intensity repaid the efforts of the Bianconeri in the three days in Jesi; the hunger for victory led the Lions to overturn the odds, managing to lift the cup in front of the numerous
fans who faced the Tortona-Jesi stretch twice to see their favorites lift the Cup.
It is the success of Piedmont, with Omegna of the former Simoncelli winning two hours before Derthona, making it a hat trick with the Serie A Italian Cup won by Torino in the top division three weeks ago.
A start played on equal terms between the two finalists with the Lions always finding the answer to Ravenna's attacks. Bertram Derthona explodes between the 4th and 6th minute when he imposes a 12-0 break from long range by Sorokas, Stefanelli and Johnson (22-10). An effective Bertram in attack and a biting defense did not allow Ravenna to score easily, thus closing the first quarter with a score of 27-17. OraSì showed more than just a few difficulties in getting to the basket, with Stefanelli and Johnson instead putting them in a corner in their scoring efforts. The difficulty of the Romagna players can be seen from the fact that they have not yet brought any man into double figures. The Lions return to the locker room, after two quarters where intensity and speed have their say, with a score of 49-29. When the games resume, the ball becomes very heavy for coach Antimo's team. The Lions travel at a thousand miles per hour under the blows of the American Melvin Johnson who scored 11 points in the reference quarter. Ravenna tries to react, but coach Pansa's team is unstoppable. The 32 points of distance set the score at 71 - 39 for the men in the black and white jersey with only the last ten laps of the clock remaining. For the Lions there was time to manage the match and they did so in a masterly manner, achieving the much desired victory by beating Ravenna 89-57.
