Green Isn’t Enough for Cantù: Tortona Wins in Overtime
The game starts a few minutes late due to a problem with one of the baskets. Midway through the first quarter, the Piedmontese team leads by 3 (15-12), and Vitucci brings in Erick Green, who is returning to Brianza after his stint with Reyer. The newcomer’s first basket is a gem, followed by a three-pointer, but Tortona pulls ahead and ends the quarter up by 6 (29-23).
In the second quarter, the visitors’ lead reached +10, partly due to the Bianconeri’s lack of accuracy: 33-23, prompting a timeout from Vitucci. Green dished out assists, but Cantù couldn’t score and struggled on defense. When they fell behind by 12, however, they fought back and, thanks in part to two three-pointers by Gravett and Olisevicius, cut the deficit to 2. The momentum was short-lived, though, as Tortona pulled away again and went into halftime with a 50-41 lead.
A red-hot Green propels Cantù in the third quarter: Tortona can’t contain him, and the home team closes the gap to -2 (58-60) with 3 minutes left in the quarter. There were plenty of mistakes under the basket on both sides, but the Bianconeri pulled away again: 69–68 at the buzzer.
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, Tortona was still up by 7, partly because Bortolani returned the favor to Moretti with a three-pointer of his own. Grazulis commits two fouls in 3 seconds and is ejected; Olisevicius first hits a 3-pointer and then goes 2-for-2 from the free-throw line: Cantù trails by 1 with 5’23 remaining. Alibegovic picks up an avoidable technical foul after blocking Brown, and Moretti ties the game from the free-throw line: 78-78.
A thrilling final four minutes: every possession is fiercely contested, but there are plenty of mistakes. With 1:30 left, Green hits a basket to make it +4 (85–81), but two dunks by Olejniczak tie the game again. Green has three free throws, makes two, and Olejniczak strikes again! 87–87 with 10 seconds left. Green tries a three-pointer but misses: overtime.
Overtime: Hubb opens it up from the free-throw line, and Maddox hits a three-pointer to make it a 5-point lead. The Piedmontese team pulls away (10-0 run) with three-pointers from Maddox and Hubb. Cantù needed a miracle that never came. Tortona wins 106-92.
