Bad defense and long-range shots, the game was immediately scored. Reale Mutua ahead 2-1, Sunday game 4 at PalaOltrepo
VOGHERA. A cyclone hits the Bertram al PalaOltrepo. Clear ideas, energy, fairytale percentages. Turin dominates game 3 from start to finish taking an important margin in the first quarter and then maintaining it throughout the race. Pimkins (21 points) is devastating under the basket, on the American Tortona he finds no countermeasures, Cappelletti skillfully directs his teammates from the perimeter. The long lions run into an evening to forget and fail to mark the match with the defense. Cannon leather (top scorer with 17 points) sells dearly, but it is not enough to stay afloat.
Tribune del PalaOltrepo populated like a leopard spot, but the 368 spectators of the Vogherese building participate and sing as if there were a full house. The pre-match is all for Mascolo (awarded as mvp of the semifinals), on the pitch one of the last to give up. After race 2 the inertia of the series had to pass to Tortona, but Turin starts strong with Cappelletti (three bombs in the first quarter) to lead the dances, running and pressing. Tortona, as usual, does not break down and puts Cannon in the game who is the only one to score the first nine points of the match for the Lions. The PalaOltrepo feeds on every little challenge won on the parquet, just a little is enough to turn it on, but Turin is tremendously on the ball. On the one hand there is a team that wants to raise the pace and on the other Tortona who plays with twenty-four seconds. The first escape attempt is in progress, Cappelletti plays in pick n ‘roll with Diop, regularly holes the Juventus defense and the partial for Turin becomes 11 points (24-13). The first perfect quarter of Reale Mutua ends 32-18 with 6/9 from the long after the first two negative games from the arc.
This time it is Tortona who makes a terrible effort for three (2/14 in the first 20 ‘), while Turin continues to choose good shots and to dose the ball well in and out of the area. Reale Mutua is a roller that does not stop and Tortona cannot find the key to get back into the game, the +19 (41-22) silences the building. With Sanders, Severini and Fabi at zero points after 15 ‘Ramondino chooses the area, but the expert Bushati immediately punishes the Tortonesi.
A mountain to climb
The emotional thrust for Bertram comes after six consecutive points from Sanders and a bomb from Severini, but the mountain to climb after the first half is 17 points with a triple on Pimkins’ siren (already 15 points). Turin is solid and Cannon’s fourth foul complicates things further. Lions raise aggression, but get nervous. Pimkins and Diop are dominant, Clark fires the +23 bomb. Now only the Turin fans can be heard – a few dozen – the faces of the Bertram boys are lost because the defensive efforts have no effect. At the end of the third period there are 22 points of distance between the two teams and game 3 is virtually over. Turin easily manages the last period and goes 2-1 in the A1 series, Tortona raises the white flag and is already thinking about how to react in race 4 on Sunday at 8.45 pm again at PalaOltrepo.
BERTRAM TORTONA
Morgillo, D’Ercole 7, Gazzotti, Mascolo 11, Ambrosin, Cannon 17, Severini 3, Fabi 5, Tavernelli 5, Sanders 8. All. Marco Ramondino.
REALE MUTUA TORINO
Origlia, Penna 3, Pagani 2, Ferro, Toscano 2, Cappelletti 11, Alibegovic 11, Pimkins 21, Campani 6, Diop 11, Clark 16, Bushati 3. All. Demis Cavina.
REFEREES: E. Bartoli, Wassermann, Barbiero.
NOTE: first half 34-51 (partial 18-32, 16-19, 15-20, 7-15). 2-point shots: Tort 13/24 (54%), Tor 20/38 (53%). 3-point shots: Tort 5/28 (18%), Tor 12/30 (40%). Free throws: Tort 15/18 (83%), Tor 10/14 (71%). Rebounds: Tort 26, Tor 47. Lost balls: Tort 11, Tor 10. Assist: Tort 8, Tor 21 (Cappelletti 9).