Arantia Larochette edged Etzella Ettelbruck 80-73 at deichwisen/central, leaning on a dominant second quarter and late shot-making to protect a slim cushion in a game that stayed competitive into the final minutes.
Etzella started sharper. With Lou Clees (Season PPG: 15.33) and José Miguel Domingos Sanches (Season PPG: 11.0) scoring early, the hosts led 22-19 after 10 minutes. The game flipped in the second quarter: Oleksandr Senchenko (Season PPG: 25.0; 21 years, UKR) strung together a trio of long-range and mid-range scores, and Arantia closed the half on a 19-9 stretch to lead 47-38. Coach Karolis Abramavicius' side poured in 28 points in that period.
Etzella reacted after the break. Sam Schaaf (Season PPG: 14.8) produced five straight points and Marvin Delgado dos Santos (Season PPG: 19.38) drilled two threes to trim it to 58-64 after three. Early in the fourth, Delgado's triple made it 61-67, but Alan Genoud (Season PPG: 9.63) took over: a personal 5-0 burst pushed the margin to 77-66, Arantia's largest lead (11). Etzella kept coming Clees and the lively Noah Wolter (17, 1.80m) answered but captain Noé Tibold (Season PPG: 22.75; 1.98m) added key late points and free throws to close it out.
Top performers
- Arantia: Tibold 27, Senchenko 19, Genoud 16, with Mathis Dieterlen (17, 1.83m, FRA) adding timely buckets. Lee Brosius had 9 and a late technical in the fourth.
- Etzella: Clees 24, Delgado 18, Schaaf 13, Domingos Sanches 9. Wolter chipped in 7.
Foul management mattered late: Tibold and Genoud played through four fouls; Clees and Schaaf also reached four but stayed on the floor. Coach Gavin Alexander Love's time-outs steadied Etzella during Arantia's surges, yet the visitors' second-quarter punch and Genoud's fourth-quarter run were decisive.
In the standings, Arantia move to the top (7-1) and extend their winning streak to four. Etzella sit 8th at 2-6, now on a five-game slide.
(AI generated)