Bertram Derthona defeats PalaFerraris 88-90
Junior Casale – Bertram Derthona 88-90
(17-18, 31-34, 52-49, 75-75)
JUNIOR CASALE: Ielmini, Banchero ne, Denegri 19, Tomassini 8, Valentini 1, Blizzard ne, Martinoni 29, Severini 5, Cattapan, Bellan 3, Sanders 23, Lazzeri ne. All Ramondino
BERTRAM DERTHONA: Stefanelli 1, Alibegovic 15, Sorokas 8, Radonjic, Divac ne, Apuzzo ne, Quaglia 3, Garri 16, Gergati 8, Johnson 34, Pilati ne, Spanghero 5. All. Pansa.
The law of the derby is also confirmed in its sixth act with Bertram Derthona conquering PalaFerraris and bringing home the sixth consecutive away victory in the history of these derbies. It's a basket by Melvin Johnson that makes the difference with 5 seconds left. For a Derthona who had been extremely good at reopening a match, which seemed lost, with a great comeback and the coolness of Olympic silver medalist Luca Garri. Congratulations go to Casale for having been able to make up for the absence of Blizzard and Marcius and for losing Cattapan and Tomassini due to a foul.
A balanced start to the match between the two Piedmontese teams. Martinoni, the main offensive terminal at this moment for the Junior, responds to the attacks of Spanghero and Sorokas, but the break soon comes for Tortona with Johnson, author of 6 consecutive points. The hosts try to shorten with Sanders, but Bertram gets ahead of the game, thus closing the first quarter with a score of 17 to 18 for coach Pansa's men. The Lions try to lengthen the pace with Johnson and Gergati, but the rossoblu team tries to make the deficit less bitter with Sanders. Johnson finds the bomb, but Martinoni remains relentless, bordering on perfection from inside the area. The Junior tries the final assault but fails to close the gap: thus we go to halftime with a score of 31-34. At the restart Johnson opens the ball by scoring again from three points. Casale opens a tremendous break with Denegri, who scores three consecutive triples, and with Sanders, sending coach Ramondino's team into the lead for the first time (42-39). The Lions try to react with Gergati, Garri and Johnson, but Casale proves to be solid defensively and mentally, not allowing the men in the black and white jersey to recover. Thus we go to the last act with a score of 52-49. Last ten laps of the clock at very high pace. Alibegovic's long-range bomb and Sorokas' dunk put the Lions ahead in the score (54-56), but Casale doesn't give up an inch with Sanders' shots. Tortona is always proactive in the scoring phase with Alibegovic and Garri, but Tomassini's triple keeps his teammates two points away. The new signing Alibegovic (14 in the fourth quarter) shows all his shooting qualities by scoring his second consecutive triple, putting Derthona ahead again (67-68). With 18" to go, Sanders goes 1/2 from the line, coach Lorenzo Pansa calls a time-out, thus taking advantage of the throw-in in attack. The final moments of the match were played from the line with Garri scoring with 3 tenths of a second left to send the teams (75-75). SI travels point to point, but a defensive error favors Captain Garri's basket and thus regains the lead (80-81). The score remains tied until 5" from the end, when Johnson's basket brings Derthona to +2: Casale calls a timeout, organizes a shot with Denegri, but his conclusion barely touches the rim, sparking the joy of the four hundred Tortona players who crowded the guest sector of the PalaFerraris, supporting the Lions for all 45 minutes of the match.
Lorenzo Pansa: “Analyzing this match is difficult for me. We played a very good first half even if we made some mistakes in defense. In the second half we must underline the emotional impact because all the breaks that occurred could have made the reaction difficult. We still lack Casale's level of solidity, which has developed over the years, but we were really strong from an emotional point of view. Coming here to play wasn't easy and I have to congratulate my players. In the final part we conceded some baskets in transition where they were good at punishing our small errors, but now we're enjoying these few days since the cup is upon us."
