Best regards to the playoffs. Gevi succumbs against Reggio Emilia (88-74) without Jamar Smith, and will close his championship next Sunday at PalaBarbuto in the derby against Scafati (6.15 pm). Pistoiawinner against Trento, and Tortonabeaten by Virtus, they will be the seventh and eighth teams to continue the season. The Piedmontese are only ahead by 2 points in the match against Napoli but in the direct matches the home success of over 20 points gives them ample margin for entry. For the Azzurri it is the tenth stop in the 14 matches of the second round, the eighth after the success in the Italian Cup. And there’s more: how can a medium-level team think of winning the right games to reach the postseason if in the second round the average points conceded is close to 94? Napoli was disastrous in the second half of the championshipLet’s face it clearly. The Italian Cup has certainly produced a better list of winners but it has dented the mettle of a team that probably with a dignified attitude would have calmly ranked between seventh and eighth place. And instead it will be early holidays for everyone.
The race
When it comes to defensive rebounds, Napoli was practically non-existent. The Reggio team built their victory between Faye and Atkins (7 rebounds in attack only): 20 rebounds in the Naples area and 52 in total against the 34 of the Neapolitans. Double and triple chances flew by in spades for the locals. Even with the two pinnacles Zubcic (2.13) and Mabor (2.16) Napoli suffered terribly from the explosiveness of all the Reggio players, not just the big men. And what’s more, Naples lost clearly against Reggio Emilia who from the perimeter were able to do worse than their opponent with their 26%. Faye and Galloway scored 40 points in tandem, Atkins’ 16 points with a 6 of 8 from 2 were vitamins for Unahotels who conquered the playoffs by confirming fifth place. Even Tariq Black at one point looked like Olajuwon due to his dominance in the colored area. Napoli found its best player in the usual Polish warrior Sokolowski (23 points) regardless of his personal score. His attitude should be emulated but evidently the team’s batteries are too low. Playing with 7 men for an entire season is seriously exhausting. For next year we need more balance and some certainly more competitive resources that can allow the roster to get more oxygen.
