Stronger than anything and anyone (we’ll see why later). The University of Bologna has won the European University Men’s Basketball Championship for the fifth time in its history. Nine years after the triumph in Miskolc, Hungary (Pippo Ricci was there too), the Alma Mater Studiorum has once again proved itself the strongest, following last year’s silver medal, on home soil. The match against the University of Zagreb ended 91–87 after a gruelling battle. The Croatians led 21–23 and then 35–43 at half-time. Then came a championship-winning third quarter from Bologna, who regained the lead at 63–61, setting up a nail-biting finale. It’s never pleasant to talk about referees. We won’t do so on this occasion either. Four technical fouls are not enough to raise doubts. But they do leave some cause for concern.
Matteo Lolli, the highly successful coach, is a fiery manager and has suffered a few technical fouls himself during his career. The fact that half the team was in foul trouble, as if only the red-and-white half of the court was thinking about defence… There’s no point getting bogged down in trivial discussions. CUS Bologna are European champions, and they’ve earned it in full.
Coach Matteo Lolli is delighted, having received calls and messages even from people he hasn’t spoken to in ages. “I’d say this gold is just as wonderful as the first one,” the coach emphasises. “We were the underdogs. We put our hearts, guts – everything – into it. And in the end, we brought it home. It’s brilliant.”
Riccardo Ghedini can’t hide his joy. “I’m absolutely delighted. Especially after last year, when we didn’t manage to win at home. There’s an incredible culture here. We just have to thank everyone – the coaches, the management, the fans and the friends – who’ve brought us this far and spurred us on to victory.”
Francesco Buscaroli echoes his team-mate’s sentiments. “We knew it would be a battle, and a battle it was. As captain, I want to congratulate every single person: the team, the staff, everyone close to us. Each of us gave our all at every turn. Everyone played their part. I’m happy and I can say that this title is truly well-deserved.”
The scorers: Vittorio Zedda 11, Mattia Ferdeghini, Alessandro Grotti 3, Riccardo Galletti 3, Riccardo Ghedini 16, Giulio Martini 10, Alfonso Zampogna 16, Alessandro Scarponi 15, Francesco Buscaroli 7, Manuele Solaroli 8, Matteo Dias 2, Giacomo Bianchini.
Matteo Lolli, head coach; Giorgio Broglia, assistant coach; Gabriele Fin, team manager; Alex Ranuzzi and Daniele Gasparri, officials; Alessandro Tirozzi, referee.
Press office - CUS Bologna ASD
