Paulistano secures place in Paulista basketball final with win over Franca

Author: Dhruv Patil

Paulistano beat Franca in a thrilling semi-final clash on Monday night to clinch a place in the final of the Paulista Basketball Championship. The game took place at the Felipe Karam gymnasium in Rio Claro (SP) and Paulistano secured a hard-fought 84-77 victory.

Despite the defeat, it was Franca’s shooting guard David Jackson who stood out as the game’s top scorer with an impressive 23 points. On the other side, Paulistano’s Kevin Crescenzi led his team in scoring with 19 points.

Paulistano’s conquest has set up an exciting final clash against Corinthians, scheduled for this Wednesday at 8pm. Corinthians advanced to the final by beating São Paulo 87-78 in the other semi-final. In addition, Franca will face the Tricolor in the third-place play-off, also on Wednesday, starting at 17:30. All these games will be played in Rio Claro.

The Game

Paulistano got off to a strong start in the first quarter, using their three-point shots efficiently and distributing the points evenly among their players. In contrast, Franca struggled with mistakes and poor free-throw shooting. Paulistano took advantage of these opportunities and opened up a ten-point lead, 18-8, with three minutes remaining in the quarter, prompting Franca coach Helinho Garcia to call a time-out. After the break, Franca improved its defensive organization and offensive performance, but still saw Paulistano lead 22-14 at the end of the period.

In the second quarter, Franca managed to recover in the first few minutes, closing Paulistano’s lead to just two points when it reached 24. However, coach Demétrius called a timeout to regroup his team, effectively slowing down Franca’s momentum. A good performance from David Jackson helped Franca win the quarter 24-19, reducing the deficit to three points as Paulistano went into halftime with a 41-38 lead.

After the break, Paulistano’s American wing Kevin Crescenzi made three individual plays, extending the lead to seven points in the first three minutes of the third quarter. Despite a period marked by mistakes from both sides, Paulistano maintained their lead, increasing the gap to 11 points, while Franca struggled collectively. The third quarter ended 14-6 in favor of Paulistano, with a partial score of 55-44.

In the final period, Paulistano showed more cohesion and energy, going on an 8-0 run in just over three minutes, extending their lead to 19 points. From then on, they managed the game efficiently, controlling possession and the score. Franca made an effort at the end, narrowing the gap to four points, but were unable to secure a place in the final. Although Franca won the fourth by 33-29, Paulistano emerged victorious with a final score of 84-77.