T71 Dudelange edged Basket Esch 60-57 under FIBA rules in a tight MU18 Division 1 contest at grimler/terrain2. The game swung through distinct phases. T71, guided by coach Tom Schumacher, blasted out of the blocks with a 130 run after trailing 02, closing the first quarter 188 and holding a 3121 lead at halftime. The margin peaked at +19 (4930) in the third quarter, built on the inside dominance of Charel Brettner (17, 1.93m), who piled up 20 points with nine made 2s.
Esch, coached by Dejan PavloviÄ , absorbed an unsportsmanlike foul to captain Chahine Bel Mokhtar early in Q3, yet kept coming. Emmanuel Jesus Frederico (16, 2.00m, CPV) sparked the visitors with three triples and 21 points overall, while Benjamin Muller (17) added 18, repeatedly finding gaps in transition and half-court. Kevin Nnganyadi chipped in 11, including a timely third-quarter three.
The fourth quarter was all about Esch's late push (817), trimming 5240 to 5757 after Olivier Walak's free throw. T71 had to navigate the finish without Brettner, who fouled out in the fourth, and leaned on their guards. Justin Lux (17) delivered a clutch five-point burst: a goahead three for 5756 and a late 2 for 5957. Moments later, Jonas Lies (9 pts) split free throws to set the final margin. Kevin Fernandes Vaz (16, CPV) was a steady second scorer for T71 with 16, scoring across all quarters.
Notable sequences:
- T71's 130 run early in Q1 flipped 02 to 132 and set the tone.
- Esch's fourth-quarter surge featured consecutive scores from Muller and Jesus Frederico, capped by the 5757 tie with 1' left.
In the standings context of Phase 1, T71 move to 20 and climb to 2nd place (ranking gain +2), while Esch sit 11 in 3rd. T71 are on a twogame winning streak.
(AI generated)