IBSA Next Gen Cup, Tortona beats Reggio Emilia and flies to the semi-finals for the third consecutive year
Allianz Derthona Tortona – UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia 78-69
(16-17, 26-33, 51-49)
Allianz Derthona: Cissè 4, Brizzi, Lisini 2, Aprile 10, Farias 14 (5/6 free throws, 5 rebounds, 5 ast.) Albertinazzi, Fogliato ne, Korlatovic 11 (4/5 two-pointers), Di Meo, Bellinaso 5, Bazan 13, Josovic 19 (7/11 two-pointers, 9 rebounds, 6 sub. fouls). Coach Ansaloni, Assistant Fanaletti, Lombardi.
Reggio Emilia: Lusetti 3, Selva 2, Bonaretti 9, Bardelli ne, Yadde 11, Mainini, Lusetti 4, Emokhare, Deme 18, L. Manfredotti 9, A. Manfredotti 5, Abreu 8. Coach Rossetti.
Referees: Fourth, Castellaneta, The Cave
Allianz Derthona Tortona is among the top 4 of the Legabasket IBSA Next Gen Cup for the third year in a row. The black and white team wins the quarterfinal against UNAHOTELS Reggio Emilia at the Final Eight in Brescia of the tournament reserved for the Under 19 Eccellenza of the sixteen Serie A clubs and reaches the semifinals as happened in past years in Naples and Trento.
The team coached by Luca Ansaloni wins the challenge against the Emilians, after a good start where they manage to take advantage of the movement without the ball finding excellent shots giving the first mini-leap to the game. Upon returning from the time out Reggio Emilia immediately reverses the trend, with an 8-0 partial that allows them to end the first period in the lead. After an initial back and forth Rossetti's team extends again bringing themselves after the first twenty minutes of play to 26-33.
Upon returning to the field, Allianz recovers the gap, bringing it to -4, but the good moment for the black and whites lasts little, until Reggio, with its current best scorer Deme, gets back to a double-digit lead (31-41). Derthona does not give up: two baskets by Farias and the feats of Josovic halve the gap. Reggio takes advantage of its superiority with the big men, but Allianz remains in the lead: Josovic's free throw and Bazan's layup bring Tortona back into the lead (51-49 at 30').
In the fourth quarter, Tortona finds continuity, trying to give the definitive extension; the Emilian team tries to respond so as not to raise the white flag but yet another lost ball allows Tortona, with a basket by Bazan, to establish its maximum advantage. The official passage to the semifinals comes with the achievement of the "target score", the technical innovation introduced by Legabasket for the Final Eight: starting at 70-58 with less than four minutes to go, the last points that allow Tortona to reach the target result of 78 points bear the signature of Andrija Josovic.
The starting forward, Andrija Josovic (pictured), finished as the team's top scorer, taking the MVP title with 19 points (7/11 from two), 9 rebounds and 28 evaluation; usual decisive impact also for Bruno Farias with 14 points (5/6 from free throws), 5 steals and 5 assists.
Tomorrow at 16 pm the semifinal against Pollini Brescia, the challenge will be broadcast live on DAZN, on the website legabasket.it, on the Italbasket Twitch channel and on the ItalHoop Youtube channel.
