Basket School Messina, away victory that counts for double. Sidoti: “Great match, now we have confidence”
A victory that feels like a turning point. The Basket School Messina achieves its first away success of the season, imposing itself on the pitch of a well-structured Catanzaro team. A match in which the Sicilians, after a difficult start, were able to find the right key, changing gear in the second quarter and managing the lead until the final siren.
At the end of the match, the Pattese coach Pippo Sidoti, visibly satisfied, commented on his team’s performance. When asked what changed mentally in the second period, Sidoti had no doubts: “The first quarter we went behind, they put us in difficulty, we struggled to get fuel, to find the right measures. They made a basket, we made possible mistakes. Then we fixed a couple of messes in defense and then the confidence in attack also arrived. It always happens like this: if you play well in defense, on the other side you express yourself in a certain way. If you play badly in defense, in attack it becomes a problem.”
Asked to give an opinion on Catanzaro, Sidoti recognized the merits of the opponent, defining it as “a good, well-built team, made up of young people and experienced people”. But the attention immediately returned to his boys, with a tone of palpable pride: “Today we played, honestly, a great game. These are boys who apply themselves, who work, who sweat, who assimilate. It’s not easy to have a new team of new players. Last year only Busco remained, who has always been with me, and to see him play like this… I saw a good team, good basketball.” He then underlined the importance of continuing to improve, aware that the championship will be “difficult and long”.
Referring to the new team, Sidoti explained his approach: “I don’t act as a magician in my life. I work with what I have available and try to make the product you have functional.” He added that every year has its own history: “The other two Serie B championships had their own history. We played a certain type of basketball because we were forced to play that type of basketball. Today with this team we play another one.”
Sidoti then highlighted the particular value of this away success: “Today we are happy, we are happy. The first away victory was needed to give these guys some confidence. Winning away is perhaps worth even more. It is difficult to win against a team that is certainly appreciated in this championship”. Looking at the general panorama, the coach from Messina highlighted the competitiveness of a championship where “every week will reserve great surprises”. And regarding the predictions, he did not hesitate to indicate a favourite: “My friend Ponticiello’s Monopoli has all it takes to asphalt everyone. They have a great coach, Ciccio, a great friend of mine, and the possibility of training strong players who in my opinion will reach the end”.
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