BC Mess overpowered Nitia Bettembourg 109-66 in Mondercange, completing a clear sweep after the 94-50 win in the first meeting. Mess opened with a 10-0 burst sparked by Cobie Barnes and controlled the rhythm from 26-14 after Q1 to 51-31 at the break. Nitia briefly rallied behind a personal flurry from Mathieu Ercolani (he strung together points on several straight possessions early in the third), but Mess answered with back-to-back triples by Barnes and steady execution to reach 80-50 after three. The hosts stretched the gap to a game-high +52 at 109-57 before Nitia closed with a 9-0 cosmetic run.
Shooting told the story: Mess were excellent inside (23/32, 72% 2P) and good from three (17/46, 37%), while Nitia struggled (17/40, 43% 2P; 6/26, 23% 3P). Both teams shot 67% at the line. Mess shared the ball (24 assists) and forced mistakes (19 steals).
Barnes (25, 1.95m, USA) was unstoppable with 48 points on excellent splits (8/10 2P, 10/18 3P). Deanthony McCallum (Season PPG: 24.93, RPG: 4.79, AssPG: 5.47) added 26 points, 10 assists and 9 steals one shy of a triple-double before late foul trouble; he picked up an unsportsmanlike and a technical in the fourth and fouled out. Among the locals, Mika Cambiotti contributed 8 points, while Bernardo Matos Pinto hit timely threes (9). Coach Stéphane Frentzel's side imposed its physicality and pace throughout.
For Nitia, the homegrown core led: Ercolani scored 17, Chris Leclerc added 15 with perimeter bursts, and Jérôme Bous hit late triples (6). Among their non-domestic players, Badara Seck Faye had 10. Coach Bradley Gene Melton's team, coming off their first win after a long losing streak, couldn't sustain offense against Mess's pressure.
Context matters at this level: Mess fielded two professionals, Nitia none, a gap reflected on the scoreboard.
(AI generated)