After seven days of the championship there is only one team in the lead, but it is certainly not one of those expected at the beginning of the season, but the increasingly surprising Enel Brindisi, which with 6 wins and one defeat, for the moment enjoys the privilege of looking down on all the others. The fifth success in a row came by conquering the Palamaggiò of Caserta (increasingly in crisis at the fifth consecutive stop) for 65-69, thus dispelling in this super start also the taboo of the Campania field where it had never won in its history, after having done the same last week in Varese. The protagonists are always Dyson, James and Campbell, but this time Massimo Bulleri must be added to the party, who has crossed the finish line of 550 games in Serie A.
Of the trio that commanded before this shift, Brindisi alone left Siena and Bologna, which were joined in second place by Cantù and Sassari. The Italian champions were beaten by the Brianza players in the match between the two teams that in the last two and a half years fought for a Scudetto, 2 Italian Cups and 2 Super Cups. Beautiful and intense game, the final 90-88 rewarded the hosts, in the first with yet another new main sponsor Vitasnella, who brought the positive series of matches in the Pianella fort to 7 (between the championship and the Eurocup) and in the next round they are awaited by the very interesting challenge on the field of the leaders Brindisi. For Siena, who didn't need an excellent Hackett, another narrow defeat came after Thursday's defeat in the Euroleague against Galatasaray (also there by only 2 points), which practically condemned the Tuscans to elimination, while in the league the winning streak stopped at four. Two knockouts that burn, but, given the two performances, that shouldn't worry too much for the rest of the season.
Those who momentarily stopped at the most beautiful moment were Virtus Bologna and their terrible youngsters, even leading by 11 points at home against Venice, in the end surrendered 80-87 to their opponents revitalized by the care of the former Markovski (the last coach to lead Bologna to the Scudetto final in 2006-2007). For the black Vs a knockout that does not diminish the great potential shown at the start of the season, while for Reyer, pushed by the usual Smith (29 points), another important blow after the one against Milan and the climb in the standings continues.
At 10 points now there is also Sassari, in their third consecutive victory, which at home overcame Avellino 78-75 not without difficulty, thanks to the implacable Drake Diener who solved the challenge with a basket 1'' from the siren. A success that allows Dinamo, perhaps the formation with the greatest offensive talent, to start making their way into a tournament that awaits them as one of the protagonists of the season. For Sidigas, on the other hand, an excellent performance remains which confirms the improvements of the last few weeks, even if the points in the standings remain 6, waiting for the next round, with the affordable home match against Cremona.
At 8 points we find Milan and Rome arm in arm, awaiting the direct clash next week in the home of the capitolini. EA7 gets back on track in the championship, after the two away defeats in Bologna and Venice, clearly beating Reggio Emilia 73-52, thus maintaining the season's unbeaten run within the friendly walls of the Forum, with an audience that in recent outings has proved finally involved. If two days earlier, in the Euroleague match against Efes, it was the last quarter that made the Forum audience exalt, with the exciting comeback that had led to victory with the consequent practically mortgaged access to the Top 16, this time it was a devastating third quarter that ended the game and made the home fans euphoric, carried by an Olimpia who started the second half with an incredible 20-0 run, then finished the period 34-5.
EA7 is evidently the strongest team and with the longest bench, but has yet to settle the matter in control, despite Langford is trying to fill the role of point guard as well as finisher (another 15 points for him). For Milan also the first important signs of CJ Wallace, while the solidity of Gentile and Melli is no longer news. Reggio Emilia, penalized by a rather feeble attack so far, remains on 6 points and must postpone the first external joy of the season, while the derby against Bologna is scheduled for the next round. Of note, among the spectators at the Forum, the presence of George Karl, former coach of the Denver Nuggets (and therefore of Danilo Gallinari) awarded last season as coach of the year in the NBA, to witness live the test of his son Coby, currently among the ranks of Reggiana but with a brief appearance in 2011 also with the Milan shirt.
Roma beat Cremona 68-78 away, obtaining the third away success out of four (while at home they lost two out of three) and confirming themselves as the most discontinuous and very difficult to decipher team of this beginning of the season (also looking at the difficult path in the Eurocup) . Fluctuating performances even in the same match, as demonstrated by the partials made and suffered in this last match, where she was dragged by a super Mbakwe, the big man with a Nigerian passport who dominated under the basket. The impression is that Acea gets confused at the first difficulties, especially when the opponent rises in level, but the quality is there and in all probability in May we will also have to deal with Dalmonte's team. For Cremona, the standings situation is what it is, but so far we couldn't ask for much more from the Lombard team, which in any case has had the satisfaction of beating Cantù and Sassari in these first 7 days.
Montegranaro catches Varese in the standings at 6 points, after beating them 88-83 early on Saturday, proving to be more than competitive at home (and for a team aiming for salvation it could be enough) and forcing Cimberio to the sixth knockout in a row (3 in the league and 3 in the Eurocup). For the Marches, the best were Cinciarini with 21 points and Collins with 17, while Clark's 26 weren't enough for the guests, but he missed the shot for a possible draw. But above all coach Recalcati won the challenge of the former coaches in the confrontation with Frates (on the bench of Montegranaro in the 2009-2010 season, with the record of ten consecutive victories and sixth place overall, while Recalcati was the coach of the last scudetto of Varese in 1999, to then return from 2010 to 2012).
Recalcati, the teacher, and Frates, the pupil, both from Milan, saw their careers linked together for 10 years, three in Cantù and seven in the national team, with the first as boss and the second as assistant, but who, especially in blue years, those of the Olympic silver in Athens, had made an increasingly important contribution to the head coach. Then the paths diverged, but still today a great relationship and a sincere, mutual esteem remain between the two. The moment, however, smiles more than anything else at Recalcati, voted in these days in the Lombard capital as one of the 52 Ambrogini d'oro of 2013, while Frates has to deal with a Varese which, beyond this period of crisis, it is no longer last year's team, even if the potential is there, Coleman seems to have solved his problems and the return of Banks (who at first was thought to replace Coleman) has been made official.
Finally, Pistoia confirms itself as a specialist in salvation clashes, after beating Cremona three weeks ago, making the delicate match against Pesaro its own for 115-110 after even three extra times, at the end of a battle that never wanted to end and with Johnson decisive for the hosts with 37 points. The Tuscans thus obtain their second success in the top flight, while leaving Vuelle as a rear light. Both, then, in the next round are awaited by two prohibitive away matches on paper, with the Marches expected by a Varese eager for redemption and Pistoia which will be the protagonist of the derby with Siena, even if we have seen that in this championship there is no nothing for granted.
