[Basket] At a Coque match

CUP QUARTER-FINALS Who will reach the final four of the competition? Answer this Tuesday evening and Wednesday for the last eight in the running.

The matches keep coming for Luxembourg basketball players. For the Enovos League players, the recovery is particularly violent, since three days after their return to the courts after the international break, they must immediately re-mobilize, to get closer to one of the two objectives of the season: the Cup!

We know that the shortest path to a title is through a victory at the Arena at the end of winter. It is enough, in fact, to win four matches to win one of the two trophies at stake each season. And, if we have a little luck with the draw, we can even find ourselves in the last four without facing an elite team.

But this season, while there are still eight competing in the competition, there is already only one representative of the Nationale 2. It must be said that the formations of the elite anteroom are not didn't really have any luck in the draw, since most of them had to face teams from the upper echelon directly. With logical results upon arrival.

All hopes of seeing the Hull now rest solely on Racing. Authors of a thunderous start to the season, like Etzella in the Enovos League, Adam Radomirovic's men are undefeated. Even if, this weekend, they were very hot on the floor of the Black Frogs of Schieren, where they won by four small points after being 11 behind.

If they began their journey in the Cup with a big victory on the floor of Telstar (76-100), they then had to face a first elite team and emerged victorious in their duel against Mambra (98 -94).

“It will be far from obvious”

And, from this evening, at the Tramsschapp, captain Max Hilger, veteran Antunio Bivins, Louis Soragna and company, welcome a huge piece: the Amicale. Hosting the champion can definitely impress.

But Steinsel does not yet seem to be running at full capacity. And, as Noah Medeot explained a few days ago in our columns: “A match at home, ten points behind, on a weekday evening, will be far from easy.”

Especially since, if Racing fought but won, the Fraisiers, for their part, suffered a setback at home, facing the Conternois who didn't give up until the end.

If successful, Steinsel – who has not reached this stage since 2019 – could return to the last four of the competition without having met an Enovos League team, since Daniel Brandao's players have, for their part, started their journey with a walk in the North, against the Black Star (66-99).

The other three matches of the competition take place tomorrow evening. The ogre of this championship, Etzella, who once again showed that he is very strong by coming back 11 pts behind against T71 on Sunday, will be at home. And, after hitting the jackpot with, precisely, Dudelange in the previous round, Sticky Gutenkauf and company inherited a Sparta in full doubt after a painful recovery at home.

Karl Abou Khalil's players actually lost at home against Heffingen, who temporarily came within one point of Bertrangeois. Temporarily, because Sparta still has a late match to play against the Residence next week.

The Walferdangeois, title holders, are also still in the race. And, after a smooth first round against the modest Bascharageois, the task promises to be much more complicated, since the Residence moves to the Basket Esch field tomorrow. A decimated Eschois, since they have to cope without Jordan Hicks (recently operated) nor Deni Ramos Fonseca, and who have therefore come out of retirement a certain…

Alex Rodenbourg, who made his reappearance on Sunday, against Mondorf: “He’s coming to give us a helping hand. He remained very close to the club, he was even my assistant for two matches. He trained twice and played. But hey, he hadn't played basketball since the lost semi-final last season,” explains Franck Mériguet, the Eschois coach.

The last quarter will pit two teams who remain in defeat this weekend: Arantia, beaten by the Residence, and the Musel Pikes, who lost a match between poorly ranked players, against Mamer.