Kordall Steelers beat Gréngewald Hueschtert 61-51 in Rodange, taking over first place in the M-U14 Division 4 Phase finale (4-0, +1 in the table) and handing GRE its first loss in this round (3-1, -1). It was also a response to the earlier 49-75 defeat in Phase 2.
Game evolution
GRE opened 4-8 on the strength of Paul Dortschy's early inside scoring before KDS steadied through Jayson Otiu and Arthur Bonbled. Liam Alexander Jovanovic poured in five straight late in the first to push KDS ahead 19-16. The second quarter began with a 6-0 KDS burst (Jovanovic, Adham Asfarelouldidi) to 25-16, and the hosts reached halftime up 31-23. After the break, GRE produced a 6-0 run (Arnas Pakasius, Rasmus Praestegaard, Matteo De Castro) to 31-29, but Ryan Wakam's corner three and an Asfarelouldidi triple rebuilt a 37-31 cushion. Early in the fourth, a 9-2 surge capped at 50-38 fueled by seven points from the 12-year-old French guard Asfarelouldidi created the night's largest gap (12). GRE fought through Jake Rajniak and the 14-year-old German scorer Dortschy, but Jovanovic's late three and two free throws closed it.
Top performers
KDS: Adham Asfarelouldidi (20; Season PPG: 12.23) drove the decisive fourth-quarter stretch; Liam Alexander Jovanovic (18; Season PPG: 18.36) added two threes and the clinching free throws; Jayson Otiu (8; Season PPG: 13.31) and Ryan Wakam (5, a timely third-quarter three) supported well. Neves (KDS) also chipped in a key basket in Q2.
GRE: Paul Dortschy (21; Season PPG: 15.33) carried the offense throughout, with Pakasius (9; Season PPG: 10.92) and Rajniak (6; Season PPG: 15.27) adding spurts; De Castro and Henry Ian Hind had 4 apiece.
Discipline and moments
No player fouled out, but GRE's Dortschy and Pakasius finished on four fouls, with Pakasius whistled for two personals in a row late. Jovanovic committed two shooting fouls in quick succession in the fourth. Under coach Arnaud Stéphane Sirjean, KDS has now won four straight, while coach Nicolas Saquan Parrish's GRE remains in the chase, one game back.
(AI generated)