Sparta Bertrange edged T71 Dudelange B 84-78 after a strong late surge in a lively U16 friendly at grimler/central. T71 flew out 10-0 and stretched the gap to 21-6 in the first quarter, powered by early twos from Luka Babovic and Daris Adrovic plus threes by Elia Marco Ceresi, Lou Gonner and Phanuel Magoum. The hosts led 34-22 after 10 minutes and 51-40 at halftime, with Babovic (15, FRA) closing the second period by scoring T71's last six points.
Sparta steadied after the break. Alexander Moller (13, SWE) and Petar Kulisic chipped away, and Rafael Ferreira authored a personal 6-0 in the third, trimming the deficit to 59-57. Early in the fourth, T71 briefly rebuilt a 65-59 cushion through Gonner, but the game turned on consecutive plays: Moller tied it at 65-65, Kulisic drew contact and hit two free throws for 69-67, and after Jim Resl levelled at 69-69, Sparta delivered the decisive 8-0 run (William Vasdo-Jensen layup, then two Kulisic finishes) to 69-75. Ferreira and Moller pushed it to 71-80, and Sparta managed the lead to the horn.
Kulisic (team captain, 13) was the game winner with 29 points, including five straight free throws in the first quarter and two more in crunch time. Ferreira added 19, Moller 15, and Filip Schumacher 11 (one three). For T71, Babovic led with 21, while Adrovic (14, MNE) and Magoum (15, FRA) added 15 each; Gonner had 9 and Ceresi 5 with an early triple.
No player fouled out. Coach Yann Ewert's group won the final quarter 27-17, overturning T71's highest lead of 15 points. Coach Sandro Ceresi's side showed early firepower but could not halt Sparta's late runs.
(AI generated)