Series A basketball, last verdicts for regular season: scenarios toward playoffs
The last day of the regular season as far as Serie A basketball is concerned is just around the corner and on Sunday, May 10, the final verdicts in terms of playoffs will come. The final round proposes decisive challenges such as Treviso-Reggio Emilia, Virtus Bologna‑Varese, Trieste‑Cremona, Napoli‑Udine, Brescia‑Sassari, Venezia‑Tortona and Trento‑Milano, while the standings see Virtus Bologna firmly in the lead with 44 points, followed by Brescia and Milano at 40, Venezia at 38, Tortona at 32, Reggio Emilia at 30, Trieste at 26, Varese at 24 and Trento at 22.
Already certain of salvation in the field are Udine, Vanoli Cremona, Napoli, Treviso and Cantù (the latter, by the way, has already closed the season, having just Sunday off), while at the tail end everything is already written: Dinamo Sassari is arithmetically relegated and is preparing for a summer very different from the previous ones.
For the playoff race, therefore, only the top nine positions count: only one of the contenders will have to end the sporting year prematurely. At the top, Virtus has already secured first place and will be able to rely on the home court factor in every series. The fight for second place, on the other hand, is a two-way affair: Brescia retains it in the event of a win, while it risks slipping to third place if it loses and, at the same time, Milan beats Trento.
Olimpia, for its part, can finish second only by winning, with a simultaneous defeat of Brescia: in all other scenarios it will remain third. Venice, on the other hand, is already certain of fourth place. More intricate is the situation behind the top four: Tortona starts from fifth place but could be overtaken by Reggio Emilia: that would happen if Unahotels wins in Treviso and at the same time Bertram falls on Venice’s court.
The race for seventh place is also open: Trieste risks overtaking Varese, which would rise to seventh place in case of its own win and simultaneous defeat of the Giulians. But the situation may become even more complicated for the Lombards: if they lose in Bologna and Trento manages to beat Milan, it would be the Dolomiti Energia that would take eighth place, ousting Openjobmetis from the playoffs.
Last day, Sunday, May 10, 5 p.m. Virtus Bologna-Varese, Brescia-Sassari, Trento-Olimpia Milano, Trieste-Vanoli Cremona, Treviso-Reggio Emilia, Venice-Tortona, Naples-Udine. Rest: Cantù.
Standings after 29 days: Virtus Bologna 44; Brescia and Olimpia Milano 40; Venice 38; Tortona 32; Reggio Emilia 30; Trieste 26; Varese 24; Trento 22; Udine, Vanoli Cremona and Naples 20; Treviso and Cantù 18; Sassari 14. Cantù played one more game, Trapani excluded from the championship.
