Historical courses and recurrences. Pistoia, exactly as happened fourteen years ago, on its return to Serie A gained access to the play offs and exactly as it did fourteen years ago starting from an initial 0-4 in the league. The 2013-14 season was also a year worth remembering, with Pistoia being newly promoted, exactly as happened this year, among the candidates for relegation and instead managing to surprise everyone by putting the battleship in crisis Milan in the first round of the play offs. Paolo Moretti was leading the team, the red and whites qualified for the play offs by placing eighth with 30 points and meeting Armani in the first round. Wanamaker, Johnson, Daniel, Washington, Gibson, Galanda, Meini and Cortese were the architects of the great red and white season, which ended with Pistoia leading Milan to an incredible game 5, a match that left many consequences and at the end of which Gek Galanda announced his retirement from playing basketball.
The encore came in the 2015/2016 season when “El Diablo” Vincenzo Esposito arrived on the Pistoia bench. Pistoia closed the season in sixth place with 32 points and in the quarterfinals faced Avellino with the series ending 3-0 for the opponents. A team that remained in the imagination of the red and white fans with Moore, Filloy, Antonutti, a very young Severini, Knowles, Kirk, Blackshear and Czyz. It was also the year of the first participation in the club’s history in the Italian Cup finals.
In the following season Esposito also brought Pistoia back into the play offs with a seventh place finish with 30 points scored. The company confirms Moore, Antonutti, Lombardi, Magro returns and the rookies Boothe and Petteway arrive. A season that saw several changes of players with the arrival in the red and white of Crosariol who probably played their best championship in Serie A. The opponent in the first round was Reyer Venezia and the match ended 3-1 for the Venetians who then won the championship.
Estra is trying again to be a protagonist in these play offs with the intention of perhaps playing a few pranks on one of the greats of the championship or at least with the desire to try. The red and whites show up at the starting line with the awareness of having everything to gain and nothing to lose and therefore being able to play with a free mind without any pressure. And while waiting to know the opponent (in all likelihood it will be Brescia, as explained yesterday in our columns), the party is being prepared at the PalaCarrara on Sunday: yesterday afternoon the presale for the home match against Varese opened (two-way time 6.15pm ) and the two curves, Pistoia and Florence, promptly sold out, as did the unnumbered steps. It is reasonable to think that we are heading towards sold-out.
Maurizio Innocenti
