Italbasket, Gianmarco Pozzecco warns his team: ‘It won’t be easy’
Italbasket, c'è Puerto Rico
After the clear success with Bahrain (+61, 114-53), the widest ever in a Pre-Olympic tournament and the fourth largest gap in the history of the national team, Italbasket will return to the court on Friday, July 5 at 2:30 a.m. Italian time in the very delicate challenge against Puerto Rico. The hosts will make their debut tonight in the event precisely against the Asians and will be able to count on the crowd at the Coliseo de San Juan.
Impossible to forget the last precedents between Italy and Puerto Rico: the last one, in Manila, was not exactly a walk in the park, with the Azzurri looking for qualification to the round of 16 along three quarters of suffered competition. Clash also at the 2019 Chinese World Cup (Italy down by 20 at halftime and then victorious at the end after overtime) and at the Pre Olympic in Belgrade. A total of 20 games played with only two losses. Among the victories, also the one often mentioned by CT Gianmarco Pozzecco at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens: 83-70 Italy with 20 by Massimo Bulleri, 23 by Arrojo and 8 points by the very same coach.
Solicited on the’topic, the CT acknowledged post Bahrain, the good level of Puerto Rico: "It will not be" easy – he said – also becauseé our opponents will be moreù complete than last year. Playing then in front of the home crowd will give them additional boost". The reference è to the grafts of Josè Alvarado, an NBA player at the Pelicans famous for his skill in stealing balls (Grand Theft Alvarado is his nickname, named after a well-known video game) and Gian Clavell, an experienced guard with a lot of Europe behind him.
The match will be a de facto watershed because with a win the Azzurri would fly to the semifinals facing the runner-up of group A with a good chance of avoiding Lithuania (96-84 yesterday to Mexico) and crossing one between Mexico and Ivory Coast. In case of defeat, the path could get complicated and not a little by putting the Azzurri immediately in the Baltics’ path.
