T71 Dudelange came from behind to beat Musel Pikes 91-78 in this U22 qualification game, a matchup that stayed close until the break before turning in the third quarter.
Musel, coached by Majdi Anan, had the better start. After an early 2-0 deficit, the home side built a 19-14 first-quarter lead, helped by Jason Hartz (19, 1.74m), Colin Schanen Sar (19, 1.83m) and a strong inside contribution from Luca Monteiro Delgado (19, 1.95m). Early in the second period, MUS stretched the margin to 25-14, their highest lead of the evening.
T71, under Dino Ceman, answered through Daris Honsic (17), who kept the visitors in touch almost by himself for long stretches. Musel still led 40-37 at halftime, with Hartz, David Ferreira Gordo (21, 1.88m, PRT) and Marko Mustafic (21, 1.88m, HRV) carrying much of the scoring.
The decisive swing came after the interval. T71 won the third quarter 27-13 and took the lead for good when Jonas Lies hit from long range for 44-43. From there, Honsic, Len Guedes (19, 1.75m) and Rafael Costa Farinha (19, PRT) pushed the tempo and scoring. T71 moved from 43-40 down to 64-53 up by the end of the quarter.
Musel tried to stay alive in the fourth. Hartz went on a personal roll and finished with 24 points, while Geoffrey Schlammes (18) added 9. The home side cut the gap to 70-75, but T71 answered immediately, with Guedes scoring in a key sequence and Costa Farinha adding late baskets. T71's biggest edge came at the final score.
Top scorers were Honsic with 28, Guedes and Costa Farinha with 17 each for T71; Hartz had 24 for Musel, ahead of Ferreira Gordo's 14 and Mustafic's 11. After the game, Musel stood 2nd and T71 3rd, both with a 1-1 record.
(AI generated)
Musel Pikes