Arantia Larochette controlled Telstar Hesperange 87-71 in the opening game of the M-U16 Division 4 championship round in Larochette, built on a decisive second quarter that broke the contest open.
After a balanced first period (23-21), Telstar briefly surged early in Q2 with a 6-0 run to 28-27 following scores by Mathis Adehm and Gabriel Marques dos Ramos (15, PRT). Coach Uchenna Agada called time early in the quarter, but Arantia answered emphatically: a 23-3 blast to 51-30 punctuated by a Charles Wilhelm triple and steady production from Jim Spaus and Philippe Volvert set the tone. The hosts reached halftime up 53-32, their highest lead at +21.
Telstar rallied after the break. Batu Polad and Marques hit in succession, and Axel Hosten strung together back-to-back baskets to open the fourth (6 points in a row) to cut it to 69-57. Arantia steadied through Coach Joao Pedro Osorio Silva's timeout stretches, trading scores the rest of the way and closing through Spaus' late five-point burst, including a final three.
Top performers
- Arantia: Jim Spaus (25) and Philippe Volvert (21; Season PPG: 20.89) led the scoring, with captain Charles Wilhelm (15; Season PPG: 15.25) adding a key three during the second-quarter run. Noé Bissen (8; Season PPG: 10.69) and Léo Rock (6; two threes) provided complementary points, while Fabio Valerius (6) was perfect at the line when it mattered.
- Telstar: Mathis Adehm (21; Season PPG: 11.18) and captain Gabriel Marques dos Ramos (18; Season PPG: 21.82) carried the attack, with Polad (12; 14, TUR) and Hosten (8; Season PPG: 7.22) contributing in the middle quarters.
Arantia are now on a two-game winning run and top the phase finale standings (rank 1, +3), while Telstar sit second after another defeat in a prolonged slide. The game's crucial stretch remained Arantia's 23-3 second-quarter run that flipped a one-point edge into a commanding cushion Telstar never fully recovered from.
(AI generated)