Third-placed Racing Luxembourg B climbed one position with an 85-69 road win at BC Mess B, while Mess B, despite the defeat, still moved up two places to 8th. For MESB, it was a fourth straight loss. Racing bounced back well after its previous defeat. The two meetings between these teams in this championship finish split 1-1.
Mess B controlled the first half. The home side led 21-15 after the opening quarter and created its best margin at 32-23 in the second. Pedrito Kemevuako (18, 1.80m, AGO) set the tone with 26 points, and Alexandre Caurla (Season PPG: 16.88) added 16. At that stage, Mess B looked comfortable, but Racing reduced the gap to 39-35 by halftime.
The game changed in the third quarter, won 28-15 by Racing. Wander Silvestre Marquez (Season PPG: 10.81) tied it at 42-42, then Joé Mathieu hit from long range for 47-47, and Jorge Montero Gonzalez (26, ESP) pushed Racing in front 50-47. Xavier Engel (Season PPG: 16.83) followed with two major threes as Racing built a 63-54 lead entering the last period.
Mess B still produced one last surge. From 54-65, Kemevuako scored 11 straight points and brought the game back to 65-65, helped by an unsportsmanlike foul on François Aulner. That was the crucial moment, because Racing answered immediately with a 20-4 closing run. Engel finished with 20 points, Yann Fux (Season PPG: 6.31) had 18, and Silvestre Marquez led Racing with 29 points, including four three-pointers. For Mess B, Nikola Sarkovic added 8 and François Villain 7.
(AI generated)