Sparta Bertrange controlled Telstar Hesperange 61-50 at atert/central in M-U18 Division 2 (Phase 1), overturning an early deficit with two decisive middle-period surges. Telstar started sharper and led 13-11 after the first quarter behind Samuel Rehak and a Shay Matthew Colgan three, but the game's first major swing arrived in the second: Ata Tastekin (16, 1.91m, TUR) poured in eight points in a row to flip 11-17 into 19-17, sending Sparta to the half up 26-23.
Telstar briefly reclaimed the lead early in the third (26-28) through Raffaele Santi and Jules Cochet free throws before coach Elton Jorge Ferreira's timeout. The response was immediate: an 8-0 Sparta blast via a Diego Maestro Varillas triple and five quick points from Tian Kuharic. Tho Mc Leod (17, 1.79m, FRA) added a three and drives to push the margin to 45-35, with Rehak trimming it to 45-38 on a late three to end the period.
Sparta opened the fourth with a 6-0 run and reached the night's largest lead at +15 (55-40) after back-to-back finishes by Kuharic. Telstar answered through Rehak and a Ceylian Lortilloir three, but Mc Leod kept Sparta comfortably ahead down the stretch. Tastekin, pivotal in the second-quarter turnaround, later fouled out after managing early foul trouble (two quick personals in Q1).
Top performers
- Sparta: Tho Mc Leod 21, Tian Kuharic 16, Ata Tastekin 12 (including eight straight in Q2), Diego Maestro Varillas 7 with a key third-quarter three, Nikolaos Papanikolaou 5.
- Telstar: Samuel Rehak 16, Jules Cochet 8, Raffaele Santi 7, Noah Dion-Yl Kambire 5, Shay Matthew Colgan 5.
Sparta halt a two-game losing run; Telstar's two-game winning sequence ends. In the updated table, Telstar remain first and Sparta sit fourth. Coach Uchenna Agada's timeouts steadied Telstar at phases, but Sparta's third- and early fourth-quarter runs decided the rhythm and the score.
(AI generated)
Sparta Bertrange 
Telstar Hesperange 
