Another step towards promotion to A1 for Trapani Sharkwho also won game 2 of the playoff final against Fortitudo Bologna, at the end of an exciting match which saw PalaShark unleash all its joy at the stroke of 40 minutes, on 72-70 which gives a difficult success to the home team. Yes because the guests commanded for a large part of the match, with the grenades came out at the decisive moment, leaving no way out for the opponents. So game 3 on Friday in Bologna will be fundamental for the fate of the series, which sees the Sicilians favored to move to the top flight.
Fortitudo brand start
The beginning is of the Bolognese brand, and at 5-11 for the guests in 4 minutes coach Diana is forced to call time out. Alibegovic puts the team on his shoulders and scores 4 in a row. Then Horton takes care of bringing the Sharks back under, but the guests are confident and lead to plus 11 (12-23). So Freeman makes his weight count for Fortitudo, and Volpin puts on a show, scoring the 18-28 outside at the end of the first quarter. The second period sees Notae unblocked, hero of game 1, with 5 consecutive points. This rekindles the enthusiasm of PalaShark, even if Bologna recovers from a temporary blackout, moving to a safe distance at 29-39. Among the Sharks, Alibegovic is not very precise in free throws, but he improvises as an assist for Notae, and together they keep Trapani alive. A questionable foul in attack by the Bosnian ignites protests from the home fans, and tension rises on the parquet too. Gentile enters the match atmosphereand with a forceful steal at the end of the first half he gave his team a jolt, also providing the magic of a 3-point shot on the siren which brings the game to halftime at 38-41.
We will return to Serie A
The balance in the third quarter was broken by a series of three free throws for Fortitudo, who took the lead 40-46. The atmosphere is always incandescent, and a technical foul called against the Bolognese bench allows the Sharks to get back to minus 3. However, the inertia stops, and a triple from Taflay keeps the Romagna team in front. Notae shows up again by scoring a bomb, plus two free throws that make it 49-51. The Sharks’ momentary advantage is signed by Marini, before the third quarter ended at 52-52. Ready to go, and Imbrò scores a triple that puts the Sicilians back in front. The head-to-head continues, even if little is scored. Fortitudo then regains the lead at 57-63. Alibegovic took care of bringing the Trapani team back to 64-65, and with Notae it was 69-65. There are less than two minutes left, with Trapani reaching maximum advantage. PalaShark is a powder keg, but Fortitudo doesn’t give up and regains parity. 13 seconds left, when Notae earns 3 free throws, all on target: it is 72-70 that closes the game in favor of Trapani, with the Granata crowd singing “We’ll be back in Serie A”.
