Arantia Larochette punched their ticket to the M-Coupe des Jeunes final with a commanding 86-58 win over Black Star Mersch in Mersch, built on a 12-28 opening quarter and a decisive closing stretch.
Karolis Abramavicius' side set the tone immediately. Mathis DIETERLEN (17, 1.83m, FRA) scored Arantia's next 10 points in the first quarter a flurry of free throws and finishes that flipped early balance into a double-digit cushion. With Lee BROSIUS (17, 1.92m) steady in the mid-range and Lars BOSDIJK (16, 1.98m) sealing inside, ARA controlled the paint and tempo to lead 29-43 at halftime.
Jérôme Hansen's Black Star briefly stirred after the break: Trey Sean BOAYUE (16) opened the third with back-to-back baskets and kept scoring at the stripe, while Sam TIBOLD (17) added a three to trim the gap. The momentum stalled, however, when BOAYUE was whistled for an unsportsmanlike foul in the third, and Arantia answered through BOSDIJK's consistent post scoring and a DIETERLEN triple. Tom FABER (16) absorbed three quick fouls in that period for Arantia and later fouled out, but the visitors' depth held.
The fourth quarter began with a 6-0 Arantia burst (BROSIUS, BOSDIJK, DIETERLEN) to stretch the lead beyond 20, and the visitors never looked back. DIETERLEN (25) fouled out late after doing the heavy lifting; BOSDIJK (23) and BROSIUS (20) completed a dominant trio worth 68 of ARA's 86 points. Maximilien NUSS (16, 1.83m, FRA) added 8, with Jim SPAUS (16) and Vincent DIDERRICH (16) chipping in.
For Black Star, BOAYUE led with 23, TIBOLD had 18, and Raphael SOLOMON (17, PHL) scored 10. Leandro DA SILVA NUNES (16) fouled out in the fourth. Black Star's best spell came early in the third, but Arantia's composure and repeated inside conversions sealed a 28-point semifinal win and a place in the Coupe des Jeunes final.
(AI generated)