2023-04-22 22:18:36
Dominating from start to finish, Basket Esch regained the advantage of the floor and now leads 2-1 in the final after its big victory (75-95) on Saturday in Steinsel and is only one victory away from the title.
It was already reunion time for the Amicale and Basket Esch. Three days after Steinsel’s equalizer on the Lallangeois floor, the two finalists found themselves on the side of the Hall Alain-Marchetti for match n°3 of this dream opposition.
A week earlier, the Amicale had made the best start, inflicting a 30-16 in the first quarter, before seeing Esch come back and finally win on the wire. Change of face on this Saturday evening. From the start, we feel Esch very focused on his subject. The best defense in the championship is determined not to leave the same boulevards as in game one. Dominated on the rebound during their defeat at home three days earlier, Franck Mériguet’s players immediately showed themselves dominating in both rackets. And even if the shots are struggling to come in, as the Amicale cannot find an opening either, suffering the Lallange lock, the first ten minutes are very balanced (14-18).
But the visual impression is clearly in favor of Thomas Grün, very involved and who seems to be having a much better evening than three days earlier, and his teammates. The ball travels fast and well and Clancy Rugg is immediately very aggressive. Determined to do battle face to face with Alex Reese, one of the lethal weapons of Steinselois. And most of the time it is the Eschois who takes over his direct opponent.
In this game, it’s the Amicale who are chasing the score most of the time. When a ball is lost, it is most often on the Steinsel side. Clearly, the defending champion really seems to suffer. And often relies on personal exploits, like two very spectacular baskets signed Jarvis Williams. And the visual impression will be confirmed on the display board. “The objective is to ensure that the five players on the floor play well at the same time”, likes to say Franck Mériguet. And the Eschois technician can smile because that’s exactly what is happening in this second quarter. Thomas Grün leads the way with three points, imitated by Corentin Cornu a few seconds later. Clancy Rugg continues to have the upper hand over Alex Reese and above all, Jeffry Monteiro Neves is proving to be formidable at mid-distance. The substitute interior perfectly compensates for an Alex Rodenbourg who receives three fouls after less than a quarter of an hour of play.
Steinsel relies on a few warheads from Alex Reese and the exploits of Jarvis Williams to limit the damage and reach the locker room “only” 11 pts behind (32-43). A real but far from insurmountable gap for Strawberries. Provided that they return to the floor with better intentions: “We often have trouble in the third quarters”, confided captain Noah Medeot a few days ago in our columns. We therefore waited to see who would come out the best when hostilities resumed.
Exit triggers
And it is the visitors who reboot the strongest. Nailed to the bench for long minutes, Alex Rodenbourg planted two long-distance missiles in a row to give Esch a 17-point lead. A lead that will stabilize thereafter around ten points. Esch seems to have a small margin but several small errors and fourth fouls from Rodenbourg and Monteiro cut him off a bit. Alex Reese and Jarvis Williams, who caused a lot of faults, somehow limited the breakage but ten minutes from the end, there was still a 14 pts difference (53-67).
The case seems decidedly well underway for Esch, who does not relax his effort. And which even goes to +19 on a long distance missile from Thomas Grün (58-77, 33rd), who clenches his fist. Jordan Hicks, also very good on Saturday, will take care of giving a 20 pts lead a few moments later. Three days earlier, it was in the fourth quarter that everything had been decided for the Amicale, who had scored five three-point baskets to break away definitively. On this Saturday evening, the flies have changed hands. And it is the Eschoises trigger that are out.
The last minutes of the match will confirm the Eschoise superiority during this third round of the final. A match perfectly controlled by the visitors. Who are only one match away from the title.
Romain Haas
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