The Juventus heart beats strong, Derthona wins in Sassari
Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari-Bertram Derthona 83-87
(19-23, 42-49, 65-69)
Scoreboards:
Sassari: Bilan 10, Logan 7, Robinson 17, Kruslin 3, Gandini ne, Devecchi 3, Treier, Chessa ne, Burnell 2, Bendzius 29, Gentile 10, Diop 2. Coach Bucchi
Derthona: Mortellaro ne, Wright 15, Rota ne, Cannon 2, Tavernelli, Filloy 10, Mascolo 7, Severini 14, Sanders 23, Cain 11, Macura 5. Coach Ramondino
Stronger than the difficulties and the absence of Daum, solid and present for all forty minutes of the match, Bertram Derthona achieved an important success in Sassari showing off a display of great clarity and character. A concrete performance on both sides of the pitch, with different protagonists at various moments of the match, gives the Bianconeri two important points in the standings. The ability to resist Dinamo's return in the last quarter, after thirty minutes of leading, was decisive for the victory.
The first quarter of the match flows at a high pace, between two teams who execute with precision and find fluidity in their shots. Derthona leads in scoring right from the start, led by Sanders (9 p), and ends the opening ten minutes ahead 19-23. In the second half the game was the same leitmotiv, with Bertram exploiting her verve in her three-point shot (10/19) to maintain their lead in scoring throughout the first half. Precisely with two consecutive outside baskets by Wright, the team coached by Ramondino reaches the double-digit margin (37-49), before 5 consecutive points by Gentile which closes the first half at 42-49.
Upon returning from the changing rooms, Derthona made a further move, updating the maximum gap to +14 (42-56) in the 23rd minute. In the following minutes of the quarter, however, the Bianconeri lost Macura (sent off for an unsportsmanlike offense in the first quarter and a technical one in the third) and Cannon for reaching the limit for fouls. Sassari returns to contact thanks to the zone press which yields some recoveries: in the 30th minute the score is 65-69. In the last quarter, Dinamo, driven by Bendzius' precision shooting, put their head ahead (77-75 with 6' to go) crowning a long chase. The finish is physical and fast: Derthona puts in place a great defense and relies on Wright, Sanders, Severini and Cain in attack to carry out the counter-overtaking (83-85). In Dinamo's last offensive possession, Cain is once again providential with a deflection which is worth the recovery of Sanders (at his career high in Serie A with 23 points): the number 22 is glacial on the line and scores the 83-87 with which Bertram prevails at the siren.
Thus coach Marco Ramondino at the end of the race: ʺIt is a match in which we must be very happy for the result and for the caliber, the form and the history of our opponent, one of the most important clubs in our championship. This is why the victory, which I believe is deserved, is really important in terms of ranking: we must be proud of it both for the quality of the game expressed on both sides of the pitch and for the prestige of Sassari. One of our qualities during the year is that of coming out in difficulties, finding alternative energies and resources. When one or two players are absent, the others have more responsibilities, but also peace of mind and trust. I believe that in these victories there is a small component of all these aspects. It was a match with excellent technical content from our players: we moved the ball well against a team that is physically bigger than ours, trying to involve all the athletes. We did well, over the course of the forty minutes, not to go behind Sassari's exaltation, maintaining the game plan and the choices we had prepared during the week..
