Aris-Letcambeles 69-60: “Bite” in defense and remains on the way to qualifying

Aris defeated Letcambelis after a very long battle with a score of 69-60.

Having drops in his energy tank, o Mars He prevailed over her letcambellis In the Nick Gales Hall with 69-60remained on track to qualify for play in to com. euroup But he also failed to achieve the +11 goal that would have given him the advantage in the event of a draw.

the Ronnie Harrell He was Ares’ main player with them Tuliopoulos, D’Souza It was a victory that “Zero” needed and achieved in front of approximately 4,500 of their friends. Giannis Kastritis’ team also favored this +11 against the Lithuanians, but the way the game developed and with little energy, they got what they wanted and maintained control of the situation regarding their qualification to the next stage.

Race

The first quarter was balanced, with Aris gaining points through long shots (3/6), mainly through Roberto Gallinat, while Letcambelis had the possibility of launching second attacks through offensive rebounds. The quarter ended with a score of 18-16, as Aris improved his defensive behavior in the last three minutes, but his offensive partnerships did not succeed.

Based on the defense and the key player on both sides of the court, Ronnie Harrell (9 points, 3 steals), Aris controlled the game in the second half (24-16, 13) and the truth is that they could have achieved it. Got a bigger difference by the end of it. He lagged behind in the details, in two or three phases in which he did not have a clear mind, for example in the last 2:30 minutes of the quarter, where a competitive lift by Vassilis Toliopoulos (30-20) gave him points. He didn’t find an easy basket in the upset despite forcing the Lithuanians into 11 turnovers, as well as a few moments of sloppy transition game management. The half ended with a score of 35-24.

In the first four minutes of the second half, Aris did not maintain what was hard won (37-34), as defensive adjustments were lost and his mind was disturbed in attack. Harrell’s attack created a short lead (4-0) but Letkampellis came back (41-40, 27). Nothing changed until the end of the period, as Aris led (47-44), but after 24 points limited to Letakambilis in one half, he conceded 20 points in the third quarter.

Silvio D’Souza woke up in the final minutes of the third quarter and continued his tally with four consecutive points (51-44). There the Lithuanians found two long shots while Aris continued… breaking baskets outside the 6.75 zone. In the middle of the second half, Letkampellis took the lead for the first time (53-54). Aris entered the final three minutes with a narrow three-point lead (60-57) following Harel’s basket, strengthening the Greek team’s superiority.

Tuliopoulos’ error allowed the Lithuanians to find a basket in the open court (62-59, 38). There Aris took out a defense followed by two precise shots from Toliopoulos and +5 (64-59, 39). That was the end of the game and +11 came into the equation (to get the advantage in the event of a draw) regardless of the fact that up until that point this couldn’t have been a goal. He didn’t make it, but he got the win that kept him on track to qualify for Play Ins.

Where the match was referenced: It’s clear the way the last five minutes were handled. Aris played defense, gave up 3-pointers, went to the contact game and at the line of scrimmage and went 16-6 individually in that span.

The best ever: Ronnie Harrell had an amazing game on both ends of the floor.

Rivals in victory: Toliopoulos and D’Souza provided solutions at critical moments.

They did it wrong: Servindis is having a great year and he has confirmed that once again.

There could be more: Lilivicios committed the foul of the match by outsetting Toliopoulos 62-59. Aurelique “killed” Aris from long range but made six fouls.

Match statistics: Letakambilis’ 23 fouls and 10/35 three-pointers for Aris, who had 6/14 in the first half.

Their next duty: Aris will face Turk Telekom next Tuesday (12/19) in Ankara and Letkambilis will host Ulm.

Quarters: 18-16, 35-24, 47-44, 69-60