Arantia Larochette, now 5th in the Phase finale table (+1), controlled a highly streaky home game against Basket Esch, who dropped to 6th (-1), with an 80-48 win.
The first quarter decided much of the tone. Arantia opened with a remarkable 29-0 run, getting points from Clara Walter, Sarah Nunes Birchen, Nora Hansen, Mara Ronkar and especially 17-year-old Portuguese scorer Suellen Santos Cruz. Esch reacted late in the period, but only through Emma Wallenborn, who scored 10 points in a row to bring it back to 29-10.
The second quarter briefly changed the rhythm. Basket Esch started with 12 unanswered points, moving from 29-10 to 29-22 behind Alma Maria Eudier and Marcia Cristina Rocha Fernandes. Larochette answered calmly with an 8-0 finish for a 37-22 halftime lead. Rocha Fernandes also had an important early constraint, committing four fouls in a row in the opening quarter.
After the break, coach Joao Pedro Osorio Silva's team produced the key separation. Arantia went on a 22-0 run from 37-22 to 59-22. Santos Cruz was on a roll in that stretch and finished with 29 points (Season PPG: 12.21), matching her season high. Esch again showed a reaction with 13 straight points to close the third quarter at 59-35, mainly through Wallenborn and Eudier.
Any remaining suspense disappeared in the fourth. Arantia opened with another 21-0 run for the game's highest lead, 80-35, before Basket Esch scored the last 13 points.
For Arantia, Nunes Birchen added 17 points (Season PPG: 9.21) and Hansen 12 (Season PPG: 8.77). For Esch, 16-year-old guard Emma Wallenborn (1.68m) scored 22 (Season PPG: 10.43), also her season best, while Eudier had 10 (Season PPG: 4.00) and Rocha Fernandes 9 (Season PPG: 5.30). Larochette stopped a four-game losing streak and confirmed a second win over Basket Esch this season after the 56-53 game in Phase 1.
(AI generated)