Manresa-Unahotels ends 96-90: Reggio loses but saves the difference in baskets

Reggio Emilia, March 18, 2025 – Mission almost accomplished. Unahotels falls on the parquet of Baxi Manresa, but saves the basket difference and becomes the master of her destiny in terms of qualifying for the Fiba Champions League Quarter Finals.

Priftis's troops play a very solid matchà, finding several protagonists, some even unexpected, but above all managing not to disjoin in the most complex moment of the confrontation, when Baxi touches +11, has the inertia of the game in its hands and seems to enjoy the energy necessary to give the final push. In that moment instead Reggio closes ranks, fights with fury, and finds the right plays, in attack and defense, to get out of the ropes and, at the end of the day, leave the Catalan field with their heads held high and with a deficit of only six points, against the +15 of the first leg.

To Captain Vitali, author of a great performance, and his teammates, it will be enough to beat the Turkish team Petkimspor next Tuesday, at home at PalaBigi, to get a pass to the playoffs of the continental competition. The stars of the red and whites were Barford in the first quarter, Vitali in the second, a very precise Cheatham in the third and, as mentioned, the entire team in the last quarter. At the start of the match, Pallacanestro Reggiana suffered a lot under the boards, something unusual for them.

The Baxi captures something like 12 offensive rebounds, and if it were not for an unstoppable Barford, it would risk sinking right away, also because the Iberians often have second, and even third, opportunities to conclude. The baskets of the American tightrope walker instead allow the Emilians to end the fraction in a draw.

In the second quarter, driven by a sumptuous Alston (three consecutive “triples”) Baxi tries to take off, even reaching +9. But despite an evanescent Winston, when a very precise Vitali takes the stage the Emilians get back in touch, containing the margin at the long interval.

The third period lives in the sign of Cheatham, who scores four “bombs” on as many attempts, becoming a nightmare for the home team’s defense, and allowing Unahotels to even take the lead on a couple of occasions. However, it is Ocampo’s team, carried along by a truly passionate crowd, that arrives at the final quarter ahead by four points. One man alone in command: Kwan Cheatham.

The Reggio winger scores a peremptory 4/4 from long range, annihilating the Iberian defense and also allowing his team to get ahead on a couple of occasions. In the meantime, Manresa tries everything to overturn the -15 of the first leg, even getting to -4 from reaching the goal, but with Winston and Faried out for fouls, the red and whites rely on a solid Faye, who had been below par until that moment, and on the intensity of the team, responding blow for blow. The clock then plays against Manresa, who gets carried away by the frenzy and is no longer able to hit with the previous incisiveness. Reggio eventually loses, but it is a bitter defeat only up to a certain point. Because plan B, that is, saving the direct clash, is preserved.

The little table

BAXI: Bishops 3, Jou 1, Reyes 15, Massa 12, Steibergs, Saint-Supery 9, Alston 29, Hunt 2, Obasohan 17, Perez, Cate 8. Ne: Sagnia. All.: Kastritis. UNAHOTELS: Barford 17, Winston 6, Faye 9, Gombauld 5, Smith 5, Uglietti 5, Vitali 19, Faried 8, Grant, Cheatham 16. Ne: Gallo and Chillo Coach: Priftis. Referees: Gatis Salins (Let), Georgios Poursanidis (Gre), Gintaras Maciulis (Lit) Partials: 23-23, 49-45, 75-71 Notes: 3-pointers: Baxi 10/27, Unahotels 14/29; free throws: Manresa 22/30, Reggio Emilia 20/28. Rebounds: Manresa 43, Reggio Emilia 32. Out with 5 fouls: Winston, Faried and Alston