North Fox edged Nitia Bettembourg 65-64 in Reuler, a second onepoint win between these teams this season after 51-50 in Phase 1. The game swung repeatedly: FOX led 12-9 after the first quarter, but NIT flipped it with a 25-15 second period to take a 34-27 halftime lead. FOX clawed back in the third (18-13) to trail 45-47.
Early in the fourth, NIT seemed to have it under control. David Goncalves Maricato strung together five points in a row (two plus a three) to push the gap to 49-60, and after another basket NIT reached its largest lead at 50-62. From there FOX authored the decisive response: an 11-0 run built at the line and in transition brought it to 61-62, with Yannis Ludes and captain Mattis Rob cool from the stripe. After a brief 61-63 and 63-64 exchange, Nick Schmitz drove in the goahead basket in the final minute for 65-64, sealing the winners in a thriller.
Top performers FOX:
- Mattis Rob (Season PPG: 20.57) poured in 24 and set the tone before fouling out late in the fourth.
- Nick Schmitz (Season PPG: 9.86) added 23 and hit the game-winner.
- Yannis Ludes (Season PPG: 9.57) chipped in 14, including key fourthquarter free throws.
Top performers NIT:
- Mathis Brochier (Season PPG: 7.86) led with 17 and hit important free throws down the stretch.
- Halil Settar Yalcin (13, DEU) scored 15 and powered the interior in the second and fourth quarters.
- Gabriel Berteloot (15, FRA) contributed 13 with three timely triples.
A notable subplot was foul trouble: FOX's Rob fouled out after a strong night; NIT's Goncalves Maricato (9) also exited in the fourth, shortly after his personal 5-0 burst had created the biggest cushion. Coaches Nermin Civic (FOX) and Qassim Sahraoui (NIT) traded timeouts in the last minutes as momentum flipped.
With this win, FOX halt a threegame skid and climb to 2nd in the Phase 2 standings. NIT remain 5th and are still seeking their first victory despite extended stretches of control in this game.
(AI generated)