Bertram fights but falls in the sprint, Latina triumphs at PalaOltrepò
Bertram Derthona-Benacquista Latina 90-95
(20-24, 40-51, 63-73)
Scoreboards:
Derthona: Alibegovic 22, Buffo, Ndoja 12, Ugolini ne, Garri 2, Lusvarghi ne, Viglianisi, Bertone 18, Gergati 8, Spizzichini 15, Lydeka 13. Coach Ramondino
Latina: Lawrence 26, Carlson 13, Tavernelli 9, Cassese 3, Fabi 22, Baldassarre 6, Ambrosin ne, Allodi 4, Cucci 12, Jovovic ne, Cavallo ne. All. Gramenzi
Defeat in the sprint for Bertram Derthona who, without Blizzard, suffered Latina's great shooting evening for over 25 minutes, reaching -21 (46-67), before starting a comeback of heart and character that reached the -2 (88-90) after Bertone's basket. In the final, a couple of baskets from Fabi allow Benacquista to achieve success in the sprint. Start of the match for the visiting team: baskets by Lawrence and Cucci push Latina to 0-7 after two minutes of play. The Bianconeri move the score from the line (4-10 at 4') and force Carlson to commit two fouls in rapid succession, but Benacquista finds effective solutions in the three-point shot with continuity: coach Ramondino stops the game after Fabi's basket which is worth the maximum advantage in the match (7-18). Coming out of the time-out, Bertram raises the intensity of her defense and finds good solutions in the offensive half of the pitch which allow her to reduce the gap: at the end of the first quarter Latina leads 20-24. After having shortened their gap to just one point (25-26 after Gergati's basket) Derthona suffers a new break (0-9) from coach Gramenzi's team: at 25-35 in the 13th minute coach Ramondino is once again forced to stop the game. In the following minutes the Bianconeri try to get back in touch, but Latina's precision in three-point shooting (70% at halftime) allows Benacquista to end the first twenty minutes ahead 40-51. In the first minutes of the second half the guests continued to lead the pace of the match and found the maximum gap after Fabi's triple (42-58 at 23'): Bertram suffered in defense and found no effective solutions in attack. Latina takes advantage of this and further extends the score: after Carlson's lay-up, which makes it 46-67, coach Ramondino is once again forced to stop operations. Coming out of the time-out comes the reaction of Derthona, who with a partial of 8-2 returns to -15 (54-69): this time it is coach Gramenzi who interrupts the game. The favorable moment for the Bianconeri continues until the end of the third period: in the 30th minute Benacquista leads 63-73. The hosts further raise their defensive intensity which is combined with greater fluidity in offensive solutions: with a basket from underneath Lydeka brings the Bianconeri back to -6 (78-84 at 36') and forces coach Gramenzi to time out. Two consecutive triples by Alibegovic further shortened the gap (84-87), which was then reduced by Bertone (88-90 with 45 seconds left). After a great defense by Bertram, Spizzichini's turnover and Fabi's triple allow Latina to win: the final score is 90-95.
