BC Mess overpowered Nitia Bettembourg 109-66 in Mondercange, completing a clean head-to-head (94-50 away earlier). Coach Stéphane Frentzel's team opened 10-0 and never looked back, taking the quarters 26-14, 25-17, 29-19 and 29-16, with the gap peaking at +52 (109-57) late in the fourth. Mess shot with authority: 72% on 2-pointers (excellent) and 36% from three (good), while Nitia struggled at 40% inside and 23% from deep.
Cobie Barnes (25, 1.95m, USA) was unstoppable: 48 points and MVP of the game (47 ranking), knocking down 50% from three and finishing 9/10 on 2s. Deanthony Kendrick McCallum (Season PPG: 25.75, RPG: 5.29, AssPG: 4.82) added 26 points with strong efficiency (7/9 2P, 3/6 3P), 10 assists and 9 steals, flirting with a triple-double before fouling out late after an unsportsmanlike and a technical in a heated sequence that also saw Badara Faye assessed a technical. Bernardo Matos Pinto hit three triples (9 pts), and the domestic core contributed steadily, with Mika Cambiotti (Season PPG: 3.22, RPG: 1.64, AssPG: 0.73) on 8 points. Mess also dominated the possession game: 23 assists and 18 steals to Nitia's 8 and 10.
Nitia's best spell came early in the third when Mathieu Ercolani (Season PPG: 6.18, RPG: 2.67, AssPG: 0.78) poured in 11 consecutive team points, finishing with 17. Chris Leclerc (Season PPG: 7.88, RPG: 2.00, AssPG: 1.06) added 15, and Faye 10. Coach Bradley Gene Melton's side never closed the gap, hampered by shooting percentages and 19 turnovers.
Context matters in N2: Mess fielded two professionals while Nitia had none, a gap that showed across four quarters. In the standings, Mess climbs to 4th (+2) at 7-5; Nitia remains 10th at 0-12, their losing streak extended to 12.
(AI generated)