The playoffs are “another tournament” emphasize the protagonists of any league in the world. And they know it very well Atenas and Sportivo Suardiwhich from Saturday, at 8:30 p.m. at the Carlos Cerutti Sports Center, will start the final of the Northern Conference of the Argentine Basketball League.
The two best teams come into the series sharp, improving their qualities in the playoffs.
Atenas, which finished second in the regular phase with 24 wins and six losses, struggled to beat Salta Basket in the quarterfinals and needed five games (wins 94-91, 86-74 and 84-76 and losses 82-92 and 92-90), while in the semifinals they “swept away” Rivadavia Basket with consecutive wins 83-73, 72-61 and 78-72.
Suardi, fourth in the regular phase with 19 wins and 11 losses, was a “sweeper” machine in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 victory over GEPU de San Luis with victories of 71-47, 66-56 and 76-62, and in the semifinals against Barrio Parque, 73-53, 81-58 and 71-65.
Athens, from less to more
Athens struggled with defense at the start of the playoffs. In the series with Salta they received 85 points against, while they scored 87.2 to advance to the next round. After an average of 91 points against in the first three matches with the Salteños (1-2 in the key), he lowered it to 75 and earned his place in the semifinals.
Against the Mendoza team, the team led by Gustavo Peirone set the record from the start, leaving Rivadavia at 68.8 points per game, while scoring 76.6 points to “sweep” the series and reach the final.
Suardi, a defensive machine
Sportivo Suardi showed defensive virtues in the regular phase and deepened them in the playoffs. The team led by Andrés Poi is a scoring machine, allowing just 56 points to the rivals in both series.
Against GEPU, in the quarterfinals, the Santa Fe team scored an average of 71 points and conceded 55. Against Barrio Parque, Suardi scored 75 points and scored 58.6 points.
Individual numbers in playoffs
Lucas Arn maintained the scoring pace in the playoffs, but he had luxury companions. The power forward and captain, who scored 15.3 points in the regular phase, raised his scoring contribution to 23.2 points in the tough series with Salta Basket. Additionally, he added 7.6 rebounds.
José Montero supported him in the series with an average of 17 points, plus 5.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
The absence of Juan Cruz Oberto in the first four games of the key (due to dengue) and of Nicolás Zurschmitten in the first, led to improvements in the contributions and other members, such as Chris Ware, with 11.8 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Zurschmitten, despite coming back from a knee injury, contributed 10.2 points, 4.2 assists and 3.3 rebounds against the Santeños.
The semifinal series against Rivadavia was dominated by Oberto. The Las Varillas pivot was lord and master of the painted area with averages of 16.3 points and 15.3 rebounds in the three games.
Arn was the luxury complement near the rim, with 15.3 points plus 6 rebounds. Montero, always key, contributed 13.6 points and Carlos Buemo, very effective in triples, contributed 12.6 points.
Center Pablo Martínez was Sportivo Suardi’s best scorer in the regular phase, with 12.4 points, in a team that distributed a lot of scoring, but lowered its contribution in the quarterfinals. The intern from Santiago del Estero scored 4.6 points against GEPU, but rose in the series with Barrio Parque, with an average of 13.5 points. Key in rebounding, Martínez dropped 7.6 in the quarterfinals and 15.3 in the semifinals.
Luciano Lizarraga stood out against GEPU with 12 goals, while the experienced Víctor Cajal (this year he turns 44) seconded him with 10.6. In addition, the point guard from Santiago added 4.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
Against Barrio Parque, behind Martínez, Lizarraga contributed 10.3 points and Cajal 7.3.
The moment of truth will begin on Saturday and will extend to the best of five games. From Atenas and Suardi will come the representative of the Northern Conference who will seek promotion to the National League with the winner of the Southern Conference.
