Too much tension, Blue U16 collapses

While tonight in Udine the U16 women’s team returns to the court in the quarterfinals against Croatia, to meet the winner of Czech Republic-Spain in the semifinals if they win, the U16 men’s team made its debut in Radom, Poland, for the men’s competition, losing to Latvia. Despite a combative game, Italy was dominated at rebounds (48-30, hence the baskets on the many second possessions) and suffered a skid at the moment of reaping the rewards (partial 7-19) by going over the top, with a technical foul to the bench, unfailing as with every new edition, that determined the turning point in the last quarter.

The team’s management was frantic, as if trying to open a door with headers, a fact that created nervousness and confusion. Something that has been repeated for years, so we urge President Petrucci to do as some other federation presidents do and realize for himself the enormous waste of talent and energy in recent years in the youth ranks, especially in the face of the absurd situation of not having at this time a technical manager, a guide of charisma who can pass on guidelines to the coaches and make them understand that results count, but also and above all a positive graft in the national team trafilament.

A guide who can also evaluate the various curricula of the chosen coaches. It is not possible to always circulate the faces that have not brought medals in so many years and lack a replacement. Petrucci has woven the praise of Valerio Bianchini: well, why then did he not think of giving him an interim tutor position in the particular situation of this summer with the termination of Pianigiani’s contract and the Messina last-time and next-time (in the sense that the door is left open to him at his discretion, another critical issue…).

This way an objective role of responsibility was in fact left completely uncovered, because Capobianco has to do with the U18 and the women’s major. And wasn’t there, eventually, also Luca Delmonte under contract until September as 1st assistant of the senior national team?

Latvia took a 10-point lead at the beginning, Italy nullified it thanks to the Genoese Miaschi, an athletic wing who also gave two spectacular dunks on the counterattack, a possible new Bariviera, and thanks to the ‘interesting dark-haired Bergamo-born Omar Dieng, not very fast but powerful, well set up, also able to hit from 3. And then again thanks to the sharp Trentine Conti and centaur Palumbo, Italy managed to go ahead by 4 points between the last minute of the first quarter and the beginning of the second.

However, Latvia, which would have – according to the American agencies that select world players for the 2017 draft – the best European prospect for 2017, wing Kurucs, made the best of it. A Zagars baby-face show, a unique genius more than a play (17 points, 8 assists, 4 triples), who gave the team confidence, ideas and baskets: lucky the European team that will manage to sign him. Besides the rebounding supremacy of the blonde big man Berkis (10) and, last but not the least, that educational technical school of his for fundamentals, two-man games and fluidity of play.

This Italy has really interesting players, but it lacks a real play, a real center, did not shoot well from 3 (20.6), certainly because you cannot play with breath on your neck. Everyone jumps in as soon as they find an opening, they know how to play, it is an enterprising team that can be a nuisance, it will have to be seen if it can withstand the constant pressure to which it is subjected by the trio of coaches, who want to remote control it, in a tournament that still allows them to go to the quarters even if they lose the first 3 games, but that obliges them to find the team well assembled, convinced and not agonistically excited for the round of 16.

Latvia won silver in 2014 and last year was ranked 11th, since 2010 Italy has lost two finals for 3rd-4th place with good players, last year they finished 9th, in 2014 at the final 5-6th and in 2010 and 2011 they played for 9-10th place, the gold medal is missing since ’91.

Second match tomorrow against Sweden, then the third with Spain after the rest day. Dieng exited in the final due to a knee knock or possibly cramp, was put back on the field limping when there was nothing left to do: pointless sacrifice. Losing 1st place in the classification round, Italy could face one of the four teams in the strong Group B, consisting of Turkey, Poland, Croatia and Germany, in the round of 16.

EUROPEAN U16 Men’s August 12-20 RADOM (Poland). Podium 2015: Bosnia Herzegovina- Lithuania- Turkey. Qualifying: Aug. 12,13 15. Eighths August 16. Quarterfinals: Aug. 18. Semifinals and Finals Aug. 19-20. GROUP A: 1ag: LTV-Ita 79-71; Spa-Sve; 2ag: ITA-Sve (2 p.m.), Spa-Ltv; 3rd g: ITA-Spa (4.15 p.m.), Ltv-Sve. GROUP B: 1st g: Tur-Pol, Ger-Cro. GROUP C: Ltu-Bih, Fra-Mne. GROUP D: FIN-Gre 74-67, Srb-Est.

These are the U16 Azzurri: 8 Alvise SARTO (pg, 1.96, Venice), 9 Matteo LAGANA’ (pg, 1.92, Melito di Ponte Salvo/RC), 10 Alessandro CIPOLLA (pg, 1.95, Sesto S.Giovanni/MI), 11 Federico MASCHI (sg, 1.95, Genoa), 12 Mattia PALUMBO (pg, 1.94, Rome), 13 Matteo GRAZIANI (sg, 1.91, Livorno), 14 Luca CONTI (sg, 1.95, 15, Trento), 15 Leonardo BATTISTUZZI (pf, 1.94, 15, Treviso), Matteo CAVALLO (pg, 1.92 Rome), 18 Niccolò Dellosto (c, 2.02,Trieste), 19 Omar DIENG (p.f, 1.98, Porte San Pietro/BG), 20 Gabriele BERRA (sg, 1.95, Rho/MI). All: Antonio Bocchino (Benevento)

LITHUANIA-Italy 79-71 (21-17, 23-24; 18-21, 17-9). LITHUANIA: 17 Zagars (1/3 4/8 da3 tl3/4 8a 6pe 3re, 8 Berkis 1/1 tl6/6 10r, 9 Snipke, 6 R.Berzins 1/5, 14 A.Kurucs 3/15 tl8/10 6r 5a 4pe 2re, 9 Veveris 1/5, 1 Viksoe, 3 Salenietikis , Kermanvskis, Hoebovick, 8 Mezulis, Liiska. ITALY: 20 Maschi 10/18 0/5 da3 tl 8/10 6a, 13 Palumbo 2/7 2/4 da3 tl3/3 3r 3a 2re, 4 Graziani 0/1 0/4 da3, tl1/2 3r, Battistuzzi, Cavallo, Dellosto, 18 O. Dieng 5/8 2/6 da3 tl2/4, 7r, 1 Berra 0/2 0/1 da3 tl1/2 3r, Sarto 0/1 0/2, 5 Laganà 1/1 1/5 da3 , 3 Cipolla. NOTES: Italy Tot shooting 28/68 41.8 (25/57 43.8), Tiro2 22/39 59.4 (17/35 51.5), Tiro3: 6/29 20.6, (8/24,),Tl 9/14 64.8 (21/27 77.8), Rebounds 30/48, Assists 18/22, Fouls 25/17, Losses 11/21, Rating 76/100.

Audited by ENRICO CAMPANA.

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