Bertram fights, but falls in the sprint to Scafati
Givova Scafati-Bertram Derthona 82-74
(19-20, 43-37, 66-52)
Scoreboards:
Scafati: Markovic ne, Portannese 8, Tommasini 8, Crow 9, Spera ne, Lupusor 6, Rossato 13, Fall 3, Stephens 15, Frazier 20. Coach Perdichizzi
Derthona: Valle ne, Buffo ne, Tavernelli 5, Seck 4, Festinese ne, Gaines 18, Mascolo 3, Čepić 6, Gražulis 24, Martini 12, Casella 2. All. Ramondino
Defeat for Bertram Yachts Derthona in the trip to Scafati: without Formenti, Pullazi and De Laurentiis, the team coached by Ramondino played on par with their opponents for the first half before suffering a partial setback from Givova in the third half. In the last quarter the Lions returned to just one possession behind without being able to complete the comeback and finally surrendering to Givova. A favorable start to the match for Bertram Yachts, led by the play of Gražulis and Čepić, which made it 5-8 after 2': in the following minutes the Bianconeri maintained the advantage thanks to a good team of attacking solutions. The first draw in the match – at 16 – was signed by Portannese's triple in the 8th minute; Gaines then closes the first quarter, which sees Tortona ahead 19-20. At the start of the second period, Crow's precision in the shot from outside pushes Givova to their maximum advantage (28-23 at 13') and forces coach Ramondino to interrupt the match. Coming out of the time-out, the guests rely on Gražulis, who with a couple of realizations from the low post, favors a counter break of 2-6 which brings the Lions closer (30-29 at 16'): this time it is Perdichizzi who stop operations. The match is played on the edge of balance and is made up of continuous partials by both teams: Rossato and Portannese put Scafati back in the lead (39-35 with 90 seconds left before the break) and at the break the hosts lead by 43- 37. Upon returning from the locker rooms, after Martini's two free throws, Tommasini and Stephens push Givova to the maximum margin (48-39 at 23') of the match: in the following moments it is Rossato who fuels the partial in favor of the yellow and blue, who reach +13 (57-44) at 26'. The home team's precision in three-point shooting (five made in the half) widened the gap: in the 30th minute the scoreboard was 66-52. Seck and Gaines open the last quarter, before the American player is given a second technical foul which eliminates him from the match: Bertram still manages to close the gap by returning to a two-possession deficit (70-64 at 33'). A new 7-0 break opened by Frazier and closed by Lupusor brings Scafati's advantage back to double figures; Derthona, thanks to some good defenses and the play of Gražulis and Tavernelli in attack, then managed to reduce their gap to just one possession (77-74 with 2'20" to go). In the following actions Stephens scores with Frazier's assistance, while Tavernelli's three-point shot is short and Lupusor, with a triple, gives Scafati +8 (82-74) with 45 seconds left. The score does not change until the siren, Givova prevails 82-74.
