Cantù immediately scores against Cremona, coach Brienza gloats

Winning debut for Acqua S.Bernardo in the Valtellina Summer League. Cantù managed to make the most of an excellent start, leading the game with authority until the final buzzer. The White and Blue will be back on the court tomorrow, to face Trento in Sondrio.

The Acqua S.Bernardo team shows up without Ajayi, on precautionary rest due to a muscle strain. Coach Brienza confirms 4 elements of the quintet seen with Urania, with Ballo taking Okeke’s place in his debut. Sneed and Basile are the protagonists of the start of a Cantù that immediately takes the lead in the game. After the first changes, the white and blue gained two full possessions of lead, controlling Cremona’s reaction until 27-21 at the end of the first quarter.

De Nicolao scores two threes, but Vanoli stays in the wake thanks to Jones. Cremona raises the intensity level and ties the game, then finds the lead thanks to Willis. However, Basile and Bortolani immediately bring Acqua S.Bernardo back ahead. The end of the first half is dominated by Ballo, who allows Cantù to go to halftime on 48-43.

Aqua S.Bernardo comes out of the locker room well and immediately finds the first double-digit lead of the game. Cremona, after a time-out, responds with another 5-0 partial. The pace of the game drops. Vanoli again reduces the disadvantage, but Cantù is good at staying in the lead. With ten minutes to go, Acqua S.Bernardo is ahead 64-61.

Jones brings Cremona closer again, but Okeke and Bowden put Cantù back in the clear. Basile tries to give the decisive push to the match, but Vanoli doesn’t go for it and stays in the game thanks to Willis. Jones shortens to -3, but Cantù retaliates with Okeke. With two minutes to go before the buzzer, the White and Blue have a five-point haul to administer. Ballo and Bortolani try to close the score, but Ndiaye keeps Cremona’s hopes alive. Acqua S.Bernardo conceded something in the final round of free throws, but managed to keep the lead until the final 87 to 84.

“I’m happy, because we had some very positive moments both in offense and defense – commented coach Brienza. Clearly there are many things to fix, but today was the first real commitment on a physical and technical level, against a team in our league, and we saw positive aspects that we can continue to work on. I am further satisfied because all the players who came in managed to be, in different ways, protagonists and this means that we are all on the same page. We need to continue working in this way to improve and grow further.”