Basket: Italy qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics

I remember well the 2004 Olympics and how the Italian basketball team had exalted all sportsmen, winning even the most difficult matches and reaching the final, unfortunately lost against the very strong Argentina. I remember well the evenings in front of the TV, in the company of my father, my uncle and my cousin, glued to the screen to cheer our team up to the last point. In Italy basketball does not have the same success as football but those evenings all sports lovers cheered the blue team.

Over the years the national team has no longer reached these goals and so part of that great enthusiasm has been lost a little, although over the years the numbers of sports associations, amateur teams, public basketball courts, number of fans have increased incredibly. in the stands. The passion of those weeks remained in the hearts of the fans, inviting the new generations to also focus on alternative sports to football

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After 17 long years, Italy returns to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, defeating the very strong Serbia, in Belgrade, with a score of 102-95. The boys of Meo Sacchetti, in the den of the Balkan wolves, showed off a capital test scoring repeatedly, especially from three points, and fielding a defensive attitude made of great intensity and attention. Serbia, one of the old continent's basketball battleships, appeared nervous, plaintive and imprecise. I remember that Serbia is the strongest team in the world right after the USA, a really tough obstacle to overcome but the players turned the desire for the Olympics into a dream they didn't want to give up and imposed their game on the Balkan team.

After a first quarter of great intensity, ending with a score of 28-22, Italy changes gear in the next two fractions with the gap between the two teams widening even exceeding 20 points. If the second quarter ends at 57-45 and the start of the recovery to sanction the Italian extension that reaches the maximum advantage at 73-51 before closing the third period ahead of 17 points (80-63).

In the last quarter the Belgrade arena becomes a pit. Serbian fans make themselves heard by warming up the environment and asking their heroes to try the comeback. The game becomes physical, the fouls multiply, the pressure on the referee trio grows. But Italy is not intimidated and continues to respond, blow for blow, to the baskets and to the provocations of the opponents. And in the end, after much suffering, the final victory, with over 100 points scored.

The best blue scorer was Nico Mannion, playmaker of the Golden State Warriors in the NBA, with 24 points. But all the players have demonstrated a high accuracy in scoring points even from distance, to which is added a maturity in managing the game and not getting too caught up in emotions, often risking throwing everything in the bin.

An eighty performance from Italy that finally ignites that passion that had died out for me 17 years ago! And now the toughest test awaits us: the Olympics!

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