US Heffingen won a close opening game at home, beating BBC East Side Pirates B 49-41, and moved up to 3rd place in M-U14 Division 4: Phase 1 (+2). BEPB are 4th (+2).
Heffingen had the better start and led 12-6 in the first quarter before the Pirates cut it to 12-10. The game changed in the second period. BEPB took that quarter 15-4 and built the biggest lead of the night at 25-16. Demir Eco (BEPB) was on a real roll in that stretch, scoring 9 points in the quarter and giving coach Gilles Poos' team strong momentum.
The key moment came in the third quarter. After BEPB went up 33-25, Heffingen answered with a 10-0 run to turn the score to 35-33. Mex Steinmetz (HEF) scored 6 points during that run, with Leonardo Truffo (HEF) and Pierre Schlammes (HEF) also contributing. That sequence completely shifted the game.
At the start of the fourth, Eco tied it at 35-35, but Heffingen reacted immediately. Steinmetz hit the only three-pointer of the game for 38-35, and coach José Alberto Pais Costa's team kept control from there. Heffingen later stretched the margin to 47-37, their highest lead, before BEPB reduced it to 47-41.
Steinmetz (HEF), the 12-year-old captain, was the clear game-winner with 35 points, including 8 free throws, despite 4 personal fouls. Schlammes added 6 points and Truffo 4. For BEPB, Eco finished with 23 points and carried much of the offense, while Ben Pol Mike Szymczak (BEPB) scored 6, and Gil Scheid (BEPB) plus Olivier Feltz Elcheroth (BEPB) added 4 each.
(AI generated)