Antwerp players De Laet, Stengs and Janssen see Giants take the measure of Bergen: Elite Gold almost certain
© Goyvaerts/GMax Agency
Sixth in addition to victory for Telenet Giants Antwerp in the next game in the Lotto Arena and against Mons. With 9 out of 13, the Giants immediately sparkle in second place and are almost certain of a place in the top-5 after the Belgian phase and thus in the Elite Gold. And that under the approving eye of three players from Royal Antwerp FC.
Patrick Ceulemans
On Friday and next Wednesday, the Sinjoren will compete against Liège for a place in the final of the Belgian Cup. “After a bad first half we luckily played against a strong Bergen in the second half. Elite gold? We’ll see, all focus is now on the Cup”, winked coach Ivica Skelin van de Sinjoren.
Telenet Giants Antwerp received support from, among others, a trio of R. Antwerp FC players: Ritchie De Laet, Vincent Janssen and Calvin Stengs. However, that did not turn out to be a brilliant start for the Giants. The Sinjoren acted uninspired in the initial phase and quickly faced a 2-9 and 4-15 deficit. With an 11-0 intermediate sprint, signed by Thijs De Ridder, Jean-Marc Mwema and Brandon Anderson, the connection to 15-15 was a fact. Bergen started the second slide with a 15-17 advanced and the Giants did not score for five minutes in the first five minutes of that second quarter. The Henegouwers therefore proliferated to a 15-25 bonus. Struggling but collectively, the Giants increased again to a 27-27 standings. Charlie Moore three-pointed Bergen at the buzzer of the first half to make it deserved 29-35.
© GOYVAERTS/GMAX AGENCY
© GOYVAERTS/GMAX AGENCY
© GOYVAERTS/GMAX AGENCY
Telenet Giants Antwerp came out of the locker room sharp and met Brandon Anderson as guard in the base five. Anderson thanked for the trust and inspired the Giants’ 11-0 intermediate sprint: 40-35. The Metropool team emerged and pressed with bombs from the energetic Spencer Butterfield and after 46-41 through to a 57-50 bonus. Coach Ivica Skelin’s team won the third quarter by a score of 28-15. Bergen doesn’t get much done in the last slide. The defense of Telenet Giants Antwerp was there again, the sloppiness was omitted and via Roby Rogiers, Spencer Butterfield and Thijs De Ridder it quickly went to a decisive Antwerp destruction in the final quarter: 63-52 and 68-55. Ivan Marinkovic, just in his twenties (77-57) and the second Antwerp win was immediately in a final fold.
Telenet Giants Antwerp-Bergen 79-62
Quartz: 15-17, 14-18, 28-15, 22-12
Telenet Giants Antwerp: Anderson 15, Smout 0, Bradford 7, D’Espallier 0, De Ridder 9, Marinkovic 10, Rogiers 10, Butterfield 15, Mwema 6, Upshaw 7
To put away: Moore 11, Neri 0, Harris 0, Vrabac 15, Mintogo 11, Mortant 3, Braxton 4, Gavrilovic 5, Zubac 13
