Race 5 with Scafati was the emblem of an entire season. Since the Italian Cup, APU has significantly raised its performance
UDINE. A firm shoulder was needed to take out an indomitable Givova Scafati. It arrived, thanks to a very solid test of the Apu Old Wild West, perhaps a bit contracted at the start of the race but tuned to the right frequencies from the second quarter onwards. The stamp on the coupon that is valid for the final for the promotion against Napoli is a reality, a worthy culmination of a season marked by a Rossinian crescendo.
Matches from “inside or outside” are usually won in defense, and so it was again this time. In an unhappy day at shooting (39% from two and 25% from three), Udine managed to win the tug-of-war with the Campania players thanks to the defensive intensity: guests limited to 70 and the 3-2 is served. The various Sergio, Palumbo, Rossato and Marino, who in the previous races had created more than a few headaches, have been reduced to a minimum (16 points in four), and Scafati has entrusted most of his attacks to the hands of the USA Gaines and Thomas . A couple of 43 points overall, but with very modest percentages: 30% from the field for the first, 25% for the second.
The precarious physical conditions of Amato have reduced the rotations available to coach Boniciolli, good at squeezing the most out of his men. Because in this APU, everyone takes turns taking turns as protagonists: in garacinque the limelight focused on “Ciccio” Pellegrino, decisive in the comeback from 10-19 in the first quarter. And even those who do not contribute with points and rebounds find a way to make themselves useful: we are happy to mention Schina, who in the year of his debut in A2 is playing these fiery play-offs with confidence and personality.
Now that the Apu Old Wild West is in the final, it’s time to rewind the tape and zoom in on the milestones of this growing season. After a convincing start in terms of results, but with some relaxation too much (remember the home slip with Casale Monferrato), Boniciolli’s team went into crisis in January. The positivity to Covid of Dominique Johnson, on the eve of the big home match with Turin, followed by other infections in the group, opened a more psychological than technical crisis. After six consecutive defeats (some of which with bottom-ranking teams), it seemed almost inevitable to think of Boniciolli’s exemption. Instead, the club avoided falling into temptation, trusted the coach and paid off.
After the crisis, in February and March the APU started winning again, albeit with great difficulty. The stops with Turin and Tortona seemed to bring out the limits of an incomplete team, which instead blossomed like a beautiful flower in April. A great Final Eight of the Italian Cup in Cervia was not enough to put the trophy on the board, but it gave the team great awareness and self-esteem. The Old Wild West entered the big group of the A2 series by arrogance, in the second phase of the regular season it won the right to play at home even the “beautiful” of the play-off semifinal and the time was a gentleman: Wednesday evening with the push of the 500 of the Carnera, the bianconeri reached the final against Napoli. The balance is already largely positive, now all that remains is to dispel the taboo against the Neapolitan team.