GROSSETO – The Final Three of the Regional Division 1 championship begins with a bitter defeat for Gea Basketball Grosseto, beaten (64-83) by Cus Firenze at the end of a game with two faces. Marco Santolamazza’s red and whites, thanks to a super start, dominated their opponents for 25 minutes but then were unable to stem the guests’ overbearing return, favored by a pair of referees truly inadequate for such an important scenario, which began to whistle fouls which allowed the Florentine team to reach 19 points with free throws, thirteen in the final part of the match.
“We were chickens – Santolamazza’s bitter comment – we rested on our laurels too soon, convinced we were superior. Cus Firenze had to come out sooner or later, but we weren’t reactive when it happened, we stopped playing. Well done to them for believing it, but I feel like saying one thing: in such an important match it was not appropriate to designate a pair in similar grey, truly unspeakable.”
In a Palasport in via Austria packed in every row of seats, with the home fans who responded to the club’s appeal, Gea Grosseto immediately put their heads forward, presenting themselves with a 12-0 in two minutes which immediately split the race. The university players, followed in Maremma by a good number of enthusiasts, organized themselves and made up for it, reaching -5 (12-7). Consecutive bombs by Lorenzo Fanelli, Davide Liberati and Mirko Mari send the opponents back to within 14, the maximum advantage of the first period. Cus Firenze gets closer, but the triple from the returning Dario Romboli once again gives the local team a double-digit lead. In the second quarter, history repeats itself: Cus Firenze tries to close the gap, but Gea always finds the flash to keep the reds led by Frizzi at a distance.
In the second half, the Grosseto team seemed able to close the match very quickly, reaching a maximum lead of 17 points, at 48-31, but Cus Firenze, point after point, managed to nibble away at the considerable delay and, taking advantage of some local uncertainty, arrived right at the 30th minute siren at -4, 54-50. On the wings of enthusiasm the Florentines equalize at 54-54 and with eight minutes to go they even find the +3 (54-57). Fanelli with a basket from underneath and the free throw brings the game back to a draw, 6’55 from the siren. Within a minute, Cus Firenze was back ahead, this time by six (57-63), which became eight at 3’07. The inexperienced referees gave the guests a hand, with a couple of wrong decisions and three technical fouls, which allowed Cus to manage a nine-point lead with 2’37 to go. Fanelli shortens to six from below and a free throw. The exit of Piccoli and Furi and the free throws resulting from the volley of fouls unfortunately marks the end of Gea’s hopes, who are now waiting for the duel between Cus Firenze and Virtus Certaldo to understand if they can still have their say for that place in series C, or if they will have to be satisfied with having played an extraordinary match.
Gea Grosseto-Cus Florence 64-83
GEA GROSSETO: Pepi, Fanelli 19, Piccoli 13, Ignarra 5, Furi 2, Simonelli, Liberati 6, Romboli 3, Alvarez Rodriguez, Mazzei 2, Mari 13, Baccheschi. Coach Marco Santolamazza.
CUS FIRENZE: Cambi 15, A. Martelli 7, Dodaro, Conti 3, Sighel 6, Mugnaini, Tarchi 26, Minniti 5, Rosi 3, Vienni, Cappelli 15, P. Martelli 3. Coach Maurizio Frizzi,.
REFEREES: Tommaso Gigoni from Livorno and Alessandro Carta from Pisa.
PARTIALS: 25-13, 41-36; 54-50.
NOTE: coach Santolamazza expelled in the 4th quarter; Liberati was released for fouls in the 3rd quarter (then sent off the bench), Piccoli, Cambi and Furi in the 4th quarter.
