Varese: heart over mistakes: Della Valle seals victory in a gruelling battle against Trieste
There are victories that are worth far more than the two points earned in the league table. Openjobmetis Varese’s win against Trieste is one of them. An 85–84 win that came just when it seemed everything was heading for a bitter end, but which was turned into a celebration thanks to the cool-headedness of Amedeo Della Valle, the standout performer on the day of his season debut.
Masnago endured a rollercoaster ride lasting forty minutes. Varese showed flashes of excellent basketball, finding a rhythm and offensive solutions capable of causing their opponents problems, but they also highlighted the weaknesses that continue to plague Ioannis Kastritis’s team as they develop.
After a closely contested first half, which ended 40–38, the Biancorossi stepped up a gear in the third quarter, building a thirteen-point lead at 58–45. It was a lead that looked set to seal the match once and for all, before Trieste found the energy to mount a comeback, capitalising on Varese’s lapses in concentration.
The finale was a real nail-biter. Jones’s three-pointer, with nine seconds left on the clock, levelled the score at 84–84. Then came the final play: a foul on Della Valle as he attempted a three-pointer, resulting in three free throws awarded by the referees.
The first one hits the rim, the second one goes in. The third is deliberately missed to run down the last seven-tenths of a second. It’s the 85–84 that sends the Itelyum Arena into raptures.
Della Valle’s return could not have gone any more thrillingly. Eleven points and five assists in twenty-two minutes speak volumes about the impact of a player capable of stepping up in the decisive moments. Alongside him, Hunter Hale contributed 16 points and David Duke Jr. added 15, whilst on the other side, former player Colbey Ross proved once again to be the star of the show with 25 points and 8 assists.
Behind the excitement of the victory, however, there are still areas that need work. The eighteen turnovers and the difficulty in managing a substantial lead show that this Openjobmetis side still needs to find consistency and maturity in handling the most critical moments.
Kastritis can, however, take heart from one certainty: the team managed to fight back and win a match that was in danger of slipping from their grasp. There is no shortage of individual talent, but it will be the ability to channel that into collective cohesion that will determine the rest of the season.
Varese win, struggle and only really impress in spells. But this time, unlike on other occasions, the final whistle goes the Biancorossi’s way. And perhaps it is precisely from a victory as hard-fought as this that the development of a team still searching for its identity can begin.
Editorial team – AiSportNews
Written by Fabio Averna
Article produced by the AiSportNews newsroom with the support of artificial intelligence tools.