Last night, the Universities of Rome Championship BK3 Finals took place at Palatorrino. An important event that saw JCU finishing off the Season in 3rd place behind the University of Foro Italico (UFI) and the American University of Rome (AUR), who conquered respectively the 1st and 2nd place. JCU was followed, then, by Tor Vergata University (TVG) who ranked 5th despite the team didn’t show up for the last phase, and UniCusano University (CUS) who obtained the 6th place.

It really wasn’t the game we were expecting from our Gladiators who didn’t start off the final challenge at their best. Unfortunately, JCU committed too many mistakes at the beginning who cost them the first three games.

In the first game against UFI, JCU didn’t really set up an organized game. Our Gladiators couldn’t find the right solutions to move the ball around and finalize with a score. UFI won 18-10.

The second game was against CUS. JCU reacted and was able to make some good scores thanks to a few excellent dribblings and Luke Morrisroe‘s perfect three-pointers.

“This is also a limit for us because as soon as the opponents intesify their defense on Luke, we are not able to turn the remaining openings into opportunities to score” coach Serraino pointed out.

After a good start against CUS, indeed, the opposing team understood JCU play and was able to tie the result and then won 13-11 at the extra time.

The game against AUR was similar to the previous one on a tactical level. JCU suffered a little bit AUR one-vs-one type of game, and this allowed our American rivals to take home the victory, 15-12.

BK3 Finals was all a crescendo, though, for our Gladiators, who despite a not-so good start, were able to pull the strings and began to play seriously and with more concentration.

JCU played the second-round game against UFI with more intellingence and without the usual rush to score. Thanks to a few stroke of luck and a good defense, JCU defeated UFI, 7-6.

Second round against CUS also saw our Gladiators taking home another win by only one point, 9-8. JCU played a very smart game both on a technical and tactical level that allowed them to win.

Before the last second-round game began, JCU and AUR had the same exact points in the ranking. However, it was AUR who gained the upper hand in the face-off match, winning 9-5 and stealing the silver medal to our Gladiators.

JCU lost again the determination and focus that they showed in the two previous games. A lit of bit of tiredness came in, but JCU committed several mistakes that eventually compromised the evolution of the match since the first minutes.

“Despite the result, it was still a good experience for us,” coach Serraino commented. “The BK3 is always a fun and dynamic. We come back home with an ok 3rd place, but we are aware that our potential goes way beyond than what we showed last night.”

Then he concluded, “Tonight, we have another game against Amaldi team for the UISP tournament, and I hope to see some significant plays like I know we can do when we have the right focus and determination.”

It’s true that you can do way better, and we all know your skills and abilities when you are on the field. Unfortunately, it didn’t go as planned last night, but we still want to congratulate with you for your 3rd place! You still got to the podium, so good job!

Congrats, Gladiators!