Leuven started the match very eagerly, driven by the Tate-Key tandem. Initially, Limburg United managed to close through two three-pointers from Delalieux and one from Lesuisse: 11-11 (5′). At 19-17, the home team made a 7-0 intermediate spurt: 26-17 after 11′. Leuven continued to force the ball (32-23), which made coach Westphalen take two timeouts in four minutes. Due to errors from the Bears and a second bomb from Lesuisse, United crept closer within sight of half time (41-37). “Our first 30 minutes were fantastic,” said Leuven coach Casteels. “But we still have to grow conditionally to be able to win against a team of this level. During the last quarter the energy tank was empty and a very strong Penn made the difference.”
© Serge Minten
After the break, Leuven led again: 55-46 (25′). Thanks to three-pointers from Hammonds and Delalieux, United closed in on 61-57. But the home team kept the upper hand after quarter three: 66-60.
In the last quarter, Leuven only scored from behind the free-throw line after five minutes. United had already achieved a 0-12 intermediate sprint through an excellent Penn, Cale and Osunniyi: 68-72. An unleashed Limburg managed to limit Leuven to just one basket in the final quarter and ultimately steamed through to a big victory. “We only played a good final quarter,” coach Westphalen was critical. “We were not sufficiently alert for that against a more eager Leuven. They played very physically, but in a healthy way. In the first half we gave the right pass too late a number of times, resulting in too many turnovers. In the end we still got into our game with a few key figures taking the lead. There’s someone different on there every week. But I pay more attention to players who perform at a more consistent level and show what is expected of them. Today everyone took responsibility at the right time, which helped us turn the game around, especially defensively.”
© Serge Minten
Osun Osunniyi: “They quickly grabbed us by the throat”
“Leuven is a very strong team that is very well coached,” Osun Osunniyi analyzed. “They weren’t going to get slaughtered like last time. They quickly grabbed us by the throat. We couldn’t get the right stops and let them get the offensive rebounds. Both teams played very physically, causing many errors to be made (47 for both teams combined, ed.). In the last ten minutes we put everything right. We were more aggressive and grabbed the rebounds. If we also place the right blocks, we are very strong. Now we have to protect our Berg against Ostend on Saturday and go into the short break with a good feeling.”
QUARTERS: 24-17, 17-20 (41-37), 25-23 (66-60), 7-27.
LEUVEN: 25/ 54 shots including 3/15×3, 20/26 vw, 26 rebounds, 23 errors, TATE 6+2, KEY 9+10, VANDERHAEGEN 0+3, RILEY 4+8, JR DAVIS 9+4, Bucumi 5 +5, Meeusen 2+0, Huurman 4+0, T. Nunes 2+0.
LIMBURG UNITED: 33/55 shots of which 10/20×3, 11/15 vw, 27 rebounds, 24 errors, PENN 5+16, CALE 4+8, LESUISSE 6+0, DELALIEUX 8+6, OSUNNIYI 2+10, Lambot 5 +2, Hammonds 2+6, Ceyssens 0+0, Leemans 3+2, Van Ounsem 2+0, Raedschelders 0+0.