Perugia completes the'opera and flies to Champions League Final Four

A night to remember under the vaults of Perugia’s Palazzetto. The reigning European champions of Sir Sicoma Monini, on the strength of their first-leg success on the court of Guaguas Las Palmas in the tie-break, conquer with authority the access to the Champions League Final Four (scheduled for Saturday, May 16 and Sunday, May 17 at the Inalpi Arena in Turin), overcoming the Canarian lineup with a dry 3-0 in the return match.

The first two sets flow smoothly (25-18, 25-21), while the third turns into a point-to-point battle. The Spaniards tried to reopen the games dragged by Osmany Juantorena’s powerful attacks and Spencer’s plays in the middle, forcing Perugia to chase. But the hosts didn’t falter: they found rhythm in the ball change and responded with lucidity to every comeback attempt, closing with determination.

The Block Devils dominated in all the fundamentals: effective on serve, solid at the wall (10 points in three sets) and incisive in attack (63% against the opponents’ 54%). Absolute protagonist of the evening Oleh Plotnytskyi, named MVP thanks to his 13 points, embellished by an ace and an excellent 63% in attack.

Before the starting whistle, space also for emotion. President Gino Sirci presented special guest Nicolò Filippucci with an autographed ball. The Perugian singer-songwriter, already the protagonist of last June’s Champions Night, returned in front of the home audience fresh from winning Sanremo in the “Nuove Proposte” category with the song Laguna.

For him, a former HCL youth athlete, it was a special evening, experienced with transport from the stands of PalaBarton Energy. A return full of meaning, before leaving for the promotional tour related to his first album Un posto dove andare, anticipated by the single Tutte le ragazze vogliono canzoni d’amore, which was also the soundtrack to this unforgettable evening.