Italy: Basile Inspires Fortitudo

27.02.2004

Italian international Gianluca Basile showed his class to guide Fortitudo Bologna to an 86-54 win over Pompea Napoli and set up a semi-final date with Scavolini Pesaro.

Their opponents on Friday will be Scavolini after Alphonso Ford and company ran out 85-77 winners against Lottomatica Roma on Thursday.

In the other semi-final, Benetton Treviso face Oregon Cantu, upset winners over Montepaschi Siena.

Basile, 29, a player who battled injuries last summer to help the Azzurri win a bronze medal at the European Championships and qualify for the Olympics, kept the shackles on Pompea star Mike Penberthy in the first half.

Basile also finished as his team's leading scorer with 18 points.

Fortitudo dominated this game early. Inspired by Basile and Belgian center Tomas van den Spiegel, the Bologna side built a 20-point advantage by half-time.

Penberthy scored five consecutive three pointers in less than five minutes to set Pompea on the comeback trail and near the end of the third quarter, Fortitudo's lead was just 50-45.

But the Emilians kept their cool in defence and were able to extend their advantage once more.
"We had to begin like this, to get a good break right from the start," said Basile.

"Even if they made several three-pointers they still weren't able to get close."

One of the main talking points in the Scavolini game was that Montepaschi Siena's interest in Carlton Myers, the Lottomatica Roma star.

Siena executives, whose team had been eliminated from the competition the previous day, were in the stands evaluating Myers, mulling over whether to buy a player who is thought to be unhappy in Rome.

Roma have confirmed they have been in talks with Montepaschi about Myers.

The 32-year-old Myers didn't do his chances of a move any harm because he poured in a game-high 28 points.

Myers had 15 points in the last quarter to help Lottomatica remain in the game and with the clock tickng down they trailed by just two points, 78-76 but ultimately Roma lost.