Sparta Bertrange overpowered Basket Esch 80-51 in M-U16 Division 1 (Phase 1), building a decisive lead from the tip. Coach Wulff's team opened with a 12-0 surge from 3-6 to 3-18 behind Thandizo Jon Zulu (21 pts, 15, SVN) and Alexandre Olinger (18), taking the first quarter 26-9. Esch's early timeout did little to stem the tide as Aaron Torresani and Maximilaan Flechtner (10) kept the pressure on. Sparta maintained pace in Q2 with steady scoring at the line and a triple from Flechtner, and a layup by Tristan Kalman Mosonyi pushed the gap; halftime read 52-24.
Coach Feller's side answered after the break with an 8-0 run to 32-52 sparked by Euricky Semedo Da Veiga and Mael Gevrey (LAL, 10), briefly restoring competitiveness. Isamu-Vincent Boisclair (11) stopped the momentum with free throws, and Zulu plus Olinger reasserted control. In Q4, Olinger added a string of inside baskets as Sparta's highest lead reached +40 at 75-35 before late scores by Alexandre Kremer (LAL, 10) and Edmilson Vieira Miguel (LAL, 9; 14, FRA) trimmed the final margin. Faisal Abdirizak Mohamed (LAL, 8) added second-half points.
A key swing came when Semedo Da Veiga (Season PPG: 11.25) fouled out in the fourth quarter, limiting Esch's options. Esch's three-game winning run ends, while Sparta strings back-to-back wins after two losses. In the standings, Esch climbs to 2nd (+1, 3-1), Sparta to 4th (+1, 2-2).
(AI generated)