Arantia Larochette edged Racing Luxembourg 65-62 at Tramsschapp after a tense finish, riding late free throws to close a game Racing had briefly turned on its head.
Arantia imposed itself early, winning the first period 18-8 and stretching the gap to 37-27 at halftime, their largest lead of 10. Racing clawed back in the third (40-46), then opened the fourth with a 7-0 burst to seize their first lead at 47-46. From there it swung repeatedly: tied at 56-56, Arantia surged to 60-56, Racing replied to 62-61 through Timothée Lahure, before discipline decided the outcome. A sequence of whistles including two quick fouls on Angelo Caruso and, inside the last minute, a bench technical on coach Uros Niksic sent Arantia to the stripe. Edson Rafael De Sousa Silva (18, 1.88m, PRT), Lee Brosius and Alan Genoud converted the final four points from the line for 62-65.
De Sousa Silva (Season PPG: 20.4) led Arantia with 20, mixing three long-range hits with calm late free throws. Noé Tibold (1.98m, 19) added 14 and Oleksandr Senchenko 14, including a big triple early in the fourth and multiple fourth-quarter free throws. Brosius (ARA) chipped in 8 and hit two clutch free throws.
Lahure (Season PPG: 13.8) erupted for 27 12 in the fourth scoring in bunches to fuel Racing's rally despite finishing with four fouls. Aleksandar Babic (Season PPG: 13.0) had 13 with timely threes, while Louis Cocard (16, 1.89m) added 6 on two triples. Caruso (Season PPG: 19.8) was limited to 5 and picked up three fouls in quick succession early in the last quarter, which slowed Racing's momentum.
Under coach Karolis Abramavicius, Arantia's balanced scoring and composure at the line proved decisive in a one-possession game. In the standings, Racing remain first at 4-2, while Arantia climb to third at 4-1.
(AI generated)