North Fox took a 73-66 road win in Mondercange after a game with several momentum swings. Coach Nermin Civic's team came in on a three-game winning run and kept that rhythm, especially through a decisive third quarter.
BC Mess started well with Luke Davis (Season PPG: 21.50, RPG: 22.09, AssPG: 2.09) scoring the first 4 points, but Fox answered with 8 straight to move from 0-4 to 8-4. Charel Linden (Season PPG: 22.00, RPG: 6.88, AssPG: 3.50) and Amiri Darrell Stewart (24, 1.93m, USA) set that tone, and Fox led 22-18 after one quarter.
The second period turned with a strong Mess run. Fox went up 26-18, then Stéphane Frentzel's side answered with a 10-0 burst to lead 35-30. Davis, Keishon Lamont Porter (Season PPG: 24.88, RPG: 6.36, AssPG: 2.73) and Mika Cambiotti (Season PPG: 6.63, RPG: 4.27, AssPG: 2.27) drove that stretch. Still, Linden hit from outside to bring Fox level at 38-38 at halftime.
The game broke in the third. From 44-46, Fox produced 10 unanswered points to reach 59-46, with Linden and Sébastien Schmitz (Season PPG: 4.29, RPG: 4.63, AssPG: 0.63) striking from deep and Stewart adding inside scoring. Fox won that quarter 21-11.
Mess cut the gap from 59-49 to 59-54 early in the fourth, but Fox answered again and stretched the margin to its highest point, 73-58. A late 8-0 finish by Mess made the score tighter.
Stewart led Fox with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 3 steals. Linden added 25 points, going an excellent 4/4 on free throws and 5/10 from three. Schmitz gave 10 points and 8 rebounds.
For Mess, Davis was the game's biggest individual force and MVP with 25 points and an outstanding 32 rebounds, while shooting a good 10/17 on 2-pointers. Porter had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks. Cambiotti scored 11 and shot an excellent 3/5 from three. Fox overcame a heavy 57-40 rebounding deficit with better perimeter production, 10 threes to 6.
(AI generated)