Basket Esch edged Musel Pikes, 70-71, in a game that swung several times and was decided on the final possession. Esch jumped out 10-19 in the first quarter and led by as many as 11 (10-21) early in the second, but Musel replied 24-12 in Q2 to take a 34-31 halftime lead. Behind a blistering stretch from Konan Boglin Oth (33, 1.90m, MKD), Musel controlled the third (20-15) and moved up by 12 at 58-46 early in the fourth after an unsportsmanlike on Esch's Emmanuel Jesus Frederico (17, 2.00m, CPV).
Coach Dejan Pavlovic's team then flipped the game with a 19-2 run to 60-65: Matt Jaeger (19, 1.85m) drilled a three, and Edi Sabotic hit back-to-back triples. Jaeger also committed two quick personals in that stretch, but Esch's momentum held. Coach Adrien Jacquet's side answered through Oth and a Marko Mustafic (Season PPG: 14.0) three to tie at 65-65. A crucial unsportsmanlike on Musel captain Enzo Sanna (Season PPG: 10.25) at 67-67 yielded two free throws for Edi Sabotic (to 67-69). Oth pushed Musel back ahead 70-69 at the line, before Jesus Frederico netted the decisive basket for 70-71.
Top performers:
- Musel: Oth poured in 33 (10 twos, 10 free throws, 1 three). Jason Hartz (Season PPG: 18.5) added 12 with two threes; Mustafic had 6 from deep.
- Esch: Luka Stankovic (18, 1.90m) scored 16, Deni Sabotic (Season PPG: 19.17) 12, Edi Sabotic (Season PPG: 9.71) 15 including two late threes, Fabien Vandler (Season PPG: 18.0) 11, and Jesus Frederico 4 with the game-winner.
No player fouled out, but unsportsmanlike fouls impacted momentum at key junctures. In the standings, Musel Pikes sit first (5-3, +2 places), while Basket Esch move to fifth (3-4, +1) and extend their winning streak to four.
(AI generated)