Passalacqua Ragusa takes home Game 1 of the quarter-finals of the Scudetto Playoffs, doing the feat on the parquet of the women’s Virtus Segafredo Bologna. On Sunday 28th on the friendly parquet the Sicilian team can try to close the series.
At the end of the match against Ragusa these were the words of coach Pierre Vincent: “It’s difficult to comment. It’s a match we waited for and emotionally we handled it badly, we started badly in particular in defence. Ragusa plays the zone a lot and with many changes, leaving shots open.”
And again: “We took these shots but with anxiety, we lack easy points under the rim and free throws, which is why we have to pass the ball under the basket but we struggle. It seems that we are much more comfortable away from home than at home, Now we don’t have to be afraid of anything and we have to win.”
THE MATCH
The news (Source: LBF Press Office) – The inertia of the match shifts continuously in the early stages: the Bianconere go ahead 6-2 after less than 120″, the guests keep in line and in the following minutes manage to respond blow for blow until to get to 12-12 with 4′ left in the quarter; a three-point game rewards the Bolognese, but the Sicilian partial (0-7) closes the first 10′ at 15-19.
A triple from Passalacqua opens the second quarter, Virtus Segafredo’s reaction has no effect and so Ragusa continues to attack until it takes a double-digit lead; coach Vincent’s team shakes itself off and thanks to a shot from behind the arc they open a decisive run of 12-2 which brings the score back to parity (31-31) and forces coach Lardo to take refuge in a time-out.
The away attack was no longer able to break the deadlock and remained starved until half-time, while Bologna continued with its partial scoring another ten points, ending the first half at 41-31.
The opening minutes of the second half are lacking in emotion, but after the triple scored by Virtus Segafredo, the guests score a 0-7 run which significantly shortens the distance between the two rivals; a back and forth from behind the arc galvanizes Ragusa who, after slipping to -6, comes to her senses, reaching -1 with 90” left on the half hour mark.
With the game in clear balance, shots with the clock stopped play a fundamental role on both sides, however it is a jumper with 14″ left to give the score 51-51 after 30′ of play.
The intensity grows and the tension rises which is palpable on the faces of everyone present: Passalacqua is the first to take the lead, a triple helps Bologna to get to +1 before the exchange of courtesies which puts everything back on equal footing after a short while more than 3′ of the fourth period; the plot of the match does not change, because the Sicilians come back ahead but are separated by a full possession in the following two actions, only to return ahead 63-64 in the following minutes.
Virtus Segafredo rises to +2 with a bomb immediately canceled out by Ragusa’s five consecutive points, which however sees itself resumed in the score by another Juventus triple; coach Lardo’s team wins thanks to a 0-5 break which is worth 69-74, but a foul on the home three-point shot calls everything into question 30″ from the end.
Systematic fouls bring Passalacqua to the line for a new +4, Bologna connects the basket from behind the arc to make it 75-76, then the guests convert only one of the two free throws available, but the home team’s bomb fails to reach destination and the game ends with a score of 75-77.
For Virtus Segafredo Bologna the sumptuous performances of Zandalasini (27 points with 6/9 from three, 7 rebounds) and Dojkic (26 points with 5 triples) are not enough; Passalacqua Ragusa is led by Juskaite (26 points with 4/5 threes, 6 rebounds and 3 steals), Chidom (17 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists) and Jakubcova (13 points).
THE SCORESHEET
Virtus Segafredo Bologna – Passalacqua Ragusa 75 – 77 (15-19, 41-31, 51-51, 75-77)
VIRTUS SEGAFREDO BOLOGNA: Del Pero NE, Pasa* 2 (1/4, 0/2), Peters 5 (1/2, 1/6), Cox 2 (1/3, 0/3), Rupert* 3 (0 /3, 1/3), Barberis, Dojkic* 26 (4/6, 5/11), Andre’* 8 (3/6 from 2), Zandalasini* 27 (2/4, 6/9), Orsili 2 (1/2, 0/1), Consolini Coach: Vincent P.
2-point shots: 13/31 – 3-point shots: 13/35 – Free throws: 10/12 – Rebounds: 33 13+20 (Andre’ 7) – Assists: 16 (Peters 4) – Stolen balls: 6 (Andre’ 3) – Turnovers: 10 (Zandalasini 3)
PASSALACQUA RAGUSA: Thomas* 4 (1/5, 0/1), Di Fine NE, Milazzo 7 (0/3, 2/2), Salice NE, Jakubcova* 13 (4/5, 1/5), Pastrello* 3 (0/1, 1/2), Juskaite* 26 (5/6, 4/5), Miccoli M. 7 (0/3, 1/1), Chidom* 17 (6/9, 1/4) , Nikolic Coach: Lardo L.
2-point shots: 16/32 – 3-point shots: 10/20 – Free throws: 15/21 – Rebounds: 33 6+27 (Chidom 8) – Assists: 17 (Thomas 6) – Stolen balls: 6 (Juskaite 3) – Turnovers: 13 (Juskaite 4)
Referees: Vita M., Barbiero M., Lanciotti V.
