Basket Esch controlled the start and the finish to beat Musel Pikes 79-64 in Esch. The hosts opened 23-17 after 10 minutes behind repeated inside scores from Chahine Bel Mokhtar (15) and steady free throws by Benjamin Muller (17). Musel reacted in the second quarter: after trailing 34-22, they strung together a 10-0 run fueled by Abram Macalou (30) and Geoffrey Schlammes (12) to close to 34-32, taking the period 21-19. Esch steadied to lead 42-38 at halftime.
The third quarter stayed tight (20-19, 62-57). Muller had a personal 5-point burst (a three followed by a two) to push Esch to 57-48, before Macalou kept Pikes in touch from the line. In the fourth, Dejan Pavlovic's team closed decisively with a 14-3 finish from 65-61 to the final buzzer, highlighted by a key three from Noah Kouamedjouo and another from Emmanuel Jesus Frederico (10, 2.00m, CPV). Highest lead came at the end (+15).
Numbers told the story: Esch hit six triples while Pikes made none, offsetting Pikes' 22 made free throws (Macalou converted 18). Esch spread the scoring with Muller, Bel Mokhtar and double-figure support from Olivier Julian Walak (10) and Melvin Pereira Furtado (10). For Musel, Macalou's aggressive drives and Jules Jacquet's 14 kept them afloat. An unsportsmanlike foul (U2) on Jesus Frederico in Q2 briefly shifted momentum, but Esch regrouped under pressure.
In the standings, Basket Esch moves to 2-1 (3rd), while Musel Pikes drop to 1-2 (4th). Recent form: Esch win-loss-win; Pikes loss-win-loss.
(AI generated)