Guerri Napoli suffered a defeat away to Una Hotels Reggio Emilia for 91-80 in the twenty-ninth matchday of Serie A. The Azzurri played a good match against their highly-rated opponents, only losing in the final minutes.
Scoring was plentiful in the early stages of the game, Napoli with Totè, Reggio hitting two three-pointer with former player Woldetensae, . Williams scored on a foul to make it 11-6, but Mitrou-Long tied the score. The game was very intense, Rossato scoring five points in a row, making it 20-15 with three minutes to go before first Break. Repesa called a timeout. Reggio extended the lead with Rossato, Flagg responded from the corner, El-Amin tied the score. The first quarter ended with Napoli leading 26-24 with Caruso's basket. The first half of the second quarter was evenly matched. Thor and El Amin scored, Bamford's basket tied the score. Napoli goes with Mitrou-Long, Caruso dunked to make it 31-37. Reggio called a timeout. The home team pulled -1 e with a three-pointer from Woldetensae. Flagg made no mistake from the line, Bolton made a three, Rossato responding. The score went into halftime at 42-48 with a basket from Caruso.
Reggio tied the score early in the third quarter with scores from Rossato and Severini. Doyle scored for the Azzurri, but another Unahotels run brought the score to 60-54. Napoli called a timeout. Guerri didn't give up and tried to close the gap with Bolton and Doyle. El Amin was fouled by an unsportsmanlike foul, putting the Azzurri ahead again, 62-63, with one minute remaining. The quarter ended 63-63. Reggio starts strong with Caupain and Williams, a 6-0 run, prompting a timeout for Napoli. Doyle scores a three-pointer, Echenique makes a deep layup, and Caupain from the free throw line gives Reggio the maximum lead, 77-68 at mid-quarter. Bamford and Bolton exchange three-pointers, but the Azzurri are unable to close the gap, while Thor's three-pointer seals the game. The match ends 91-80.
The Azzurri will return to the field next Sunday, May 10th, at 5:00 pm, at the Alcott Arena for the final matchday of the championship against Udine.
Coach Repesa:
"I congratulate Reggio Emilia. They deserved to win, but we also tried hard to win the game. We're not at the level to compete against a team in great shape. They're much more physical than us, but we don't have the ability to run. We played a good first half, controlling the defensive rebounds and scoring plenty of transition baskets. In the second half, Reggio grabbed more rebounds than us. We weren't good at responding to their tougher defense. The referees also lost control of the game a bit. It created a lot of tension."