UDINE. He goes under, and badly, but he believes in it, fights, and five times, at least five times, the Old Wild West has the ball in hand to go to the final.
Nothing to do, next Wednesday, while placid Naples rests, the APU awaits Scafati for the showdown. Too bad, because there is so much regret. A lot. And the bad luck is great: Amato, yesterday formed an extra-luxury, had a relapse of the injury suffered in Trapani and is in strong doubt for Wednesday.
The game splits exactly in two. Indeed, in three. First two quarters and a half: Scafati has more energy, the long ones put the Udine ones in difficulty, especially Cucci and Benvenuti, the two and three shot percentages of the Friulians are not a good omen. First quarter: 23-18, basically little compared to what we have seen.
The environment is hostile, the irons of the shovelMangano repeatedly spit the shots of the people of Udine, Mian and Italian are out of phase.
Captain Antonutti, however, knows about competitions so he knows and plays for his part. Boniciolli, in a game in the chess game with Finelli tries to increase physicality with Mobio, also draws the game, but Scafati, who swings from the outside, wins the battle under the basket.
Other, very dangerous, I extend to +10 with two free throws from Thomas (36-26). The inertia at the interval is all of Campania also because, if Pellegrino shortens from three, Sergio, right on the siren, sends his forward 40-31, a good blow.
In Udine, to avoid a very dangerous race 5, we need 20 minutes of mastery. The 4 out of 13 from three or the 9 out of 25 from two needs to be improved, long baskets are needed and soon to put pressure on the opponents.
It is clear that the game will be decided a lot at the resumption. In fact it seems to happen, more or less, like in race 3: Scafati finds Gaines: +14 (47-33) after less than two minutes.
But, as if by magic, the Apu regains the lost fluidity in attack and with it a full of energy and self-esteem. First Antonutti, then Nobile and Amato, with three triples in a row, see at the bottom the red lights of the Givova train: 61-52 at 10 “, minus 9 points and could be seven if Johnson (mistreated by rivals and not protected by the referees, it must be said) was not wrong at the end.
We start again and the Apu believes in it, returns to minus 4 (61-57), misses three times the shot of minus one with Amato who, with a 4 out of 5 from three, at one point tries in transition even from nine meters.
Giuri preaches calm, he is right, the inertia for the first time here in Campania is from Udine; 2 + 1 of an extraordinary Antonutti: 61-60 with 6 ‘from the end, here he is minus one.
Two triples from Gaines and Thomas seem to give another blow, but this time it is Mian who gets into the game with two science fiction bombs that draw 69-69 with 3 ‘from the end. At 2 ‘the Apu has the ball to stretch Mian misses the triple, DJ no with a two-pointer. But then he fouls Gaines’ three-pointer.
Two free inside, not three. A triple from Johnson comes out of nothing, but who but Antonutti could be under the basket to take the foul and send Thomas out for fouls?
And so 73-71 Udine at 1’07 “from the end. Scafati is now at the gas barrel, he is wrong. He attacks badly, however, Udine with a forced triple by Giuri and Gaines impacts with 10 ”from the end. Last action, Johnson’s triple out of nothing, Antonutti fails the magata from below: overtime. Phase three that Scafati plays without Thomas.
Antonutti is heavenly with a basket throwing himself backwards. Without Mian out for fouls Udine attacks under 80-79 with 34 ”from the end. Missed two triples with Nobile and Johnson. Two well constructed pitches, which the iron spits out of nothing.
In the end Cucci closes it from the line, because the miracle fails to DJ from the midfield.
There will be game five, okay, on balance Udine had 5 match points in the match point between the end of regulation and overtime. But the guys from the West, especially those seen after 35 ‘, have the strength to win it. And how if he has it year. –