In the first two matches of the playoffs, which began yesterday evening, an important confirmation, that of Sassari, and a surprise, even if by now defining Reggio Emilia in this way is at least an understatement. The island team, which arrived in these playoffs in great form, immediately started off on the right foot, carried away by the enthusiasm of its fans, and clearly beat Cantù with the final score of 90-70, in a match dominated from start to finish end, led as always by the Diener cousins, in addition to the excellent performances of Becirovic and Gordon. For Cantù, who will inevitably have to change his attitude starting from race 2 if he wants to lengthen this series, the good performances of the usual Aradori, Tyus and the latest arrival Ragland (best scorer of the team) weren't enough.
In the other match, Reggio Emilia's umpteenth seasonal feat, capable of breaking the field in Rome, immediately bringing the series on its side. Bad debut in these playoffs for the capitolini, who closed the first quarter with the pittance of 5 points scored and forced to chase their opponents for the whole match, in a dumbfounded and incredulous Palazzetto for the disastrous approach put on the parquet by the Giallorossi. Reggio Emilia led the whole match with great authority, always keeping the hosts at a safe distance, except when, 5 minutes from the end, thanks to a super Datome and a 14-2 run, Roma incredibly managed to the match in a draw. But at that point, instead of taking advantage of the psychological momentum in his favor, Roma sensationally shut down again, with the guests extending again until the final 58-70. Miracle only touched for Datome and his companions, but in the end home factor already overturned and only lots of applause (yet another this season) for Reggio Emilia.
Tonight, simultaneously at 20.30, the two matches in the upper part of the scoreboard complete the picture, with the highlight of this first round of the playoffs, the super challenge between Milan and Siena, and the winners of the regular season in Varese who will have to see it against Venice.
Milan-Siena is certainly the most awaited and most fascinating match of these quarterfinals, it is the remake of last year's championship final (finished 4-1 for the Tuscans, their seventh title in their history and sixth in a row) and it was the final act in three editions of the last four. EA7, which has the home factor on its side, starts for the first time with the, albeit minimal, underdogs, while Montepaschi, after six years of absolute domination, has reached these playoffs after a season of ups and downs , moments in which the strongest team still seemed to be, albeit revolutionized in men, but alternated with periods characterized by too many defeats for a club used to always winning, the last of which (albeit irrelevant) the internal knockout with Sassari in the last championship.
Milan, on the other hand, after the umpteenth troubled start to the season to say the least, in 2013 (in which it has the best record together with Rome) seems to have finally put itself in order and was the protagonist of an excellent regular season finale, also thanks to additions (perhaps finally hit the spot) of the former Avellino spinner Marques Green (who immediately changed the face of the team), the experience of JR Bremer, the return of the young (but grown up) Leon Radosevic and of the latest arrival, the British long Mensah Bonsu, snatched at the last minute from the competition from Varese. But for Olimpia, the extra man could be Alessandro Gentile, born in the family in 1992, who has literally (and finally) exploded in recent months (16,5 points on average in the last ten games, making the most of the space in the quintet due to the alternating physical problems of Langford and Hairston) and already protagonist in the two seasonal matches against Siena (2-0 for the Lombards), in which the young guard showed all his offensive talent.
For Montepaschi, who play with the Scudetto on their chest and as always will sell their skin dearly, everything revolves around the offensive numbers of Bobby Brown and the performance of Daniel Hackett (the true barometer of the team), with Eze who will have to hold up under the basket physical impact of the opponents, while the athleticism and frontal skills of the Kangur-Sanikidze-Ress trio could be fundamental. What is certain is that the reigning champions have no intention of interrupting their series of triumphs and, if it happens, this year's one would certainly be the sweatiest and most unexpected, and therefore the most beautiful.
There will also be a moment of amarcord for the Olimpia fans during tonight's match, in fact during the interval the number 18 shirt of Arthur Kenney, Simmenthal's pillar of the 70s, will be officially retired. Rosso (for the color of his hair) between 1970 and 1973 won a Scudetto, a Coppa Italia and two editions of the Cup Winners' Cup with the Milan shirt, but above all in a short time he was able to distinguish himself by managing to conquer the Milanese fans thanks to the his commitment and his competitive skills. Tonight the former idol will be present again at the Forum for this celebration but he has already said that Niccolò Melli, the one who now wears the number 18 shirt, can continue to wear it if he wants as long as he wants.
In the other match, Varese hosts Venice, in the only series that on paper should have an already written ending, with the Lombards taking the next round, almost perfect during the season, but ironically, the Venetians are the only formation that with the number 1 in the tournament can boast a 2-0 record in their favor (and the only ones during the year to clear the red and white field), a record that materialized on the last day of last weekend when Umana overtook Cimberio in a sort of "race zero", after she had secured a place in the top eight by winning the "play-off" against Avellino the week before. Venice is the only team to have managed to enter the top half of the standings after the first leg (7 of the 8 protagonists of these playoffs are the same ones that played the Coppa Italia at the beginning of February, only Brindisi is missing, which only 6 points in the second round) and to try to counter Varese and try to trip her again he relies on Clark, irrepressible at times and great star performer of the previous two seasons, in addition to the strength and explosiveness of Diawara and ballistic skills by Szewczyk.
Cimberio, as mentioned, arrives in this first round as a great favorite, after the great things shown during the regular season, Mike Green is the technical and emotional leader of the team, perfect for triggering Dunston's extraordinary athletic potential, in addition to terminals Banks and Ere on the perimeter. In addition, the Lombard team has recently brought home two important awards: Francesco Vitucci was rightly awarded as coach of the year and Achille Polonara (playoff debut) for the second time best young Under 22 of the tournament, after the season last he was one of the protagonists of salvation with the Teramo shirt. Varese, therefore, is preparing to realize all the good work it has done from the beginning up to this point, but Venice, from the start, is ready to make life difficult for Vitucci's team.
