Benfica claims Portuguese championship
Benfica has reclaimed the Portugal LPB title after a finals series blowout against rival Porto in Game 3 of the run. The win was significant for several reasons. Firstly, it allowed Benfica to exact revenge a year after Porto took the title in the 2016 finals series. More important, the win brought the club its 27th league title, extending its record (by some distance, Porto is second with 12) as the winningest Portuguese club.
Interestingly, Benfica has won seven of the last nine, showing that the club is back as the dominant force in Portugal after going 14 years without the league before 2009.
The club has looked formidable during the finals series and this was evident on Friday evening as Benfica surged to an 87-57 demolition of Porto. The first quarter set the tone as the home team claimed a 22-12 frame for a 10-point advantage … Benfica would now lead for the remainder of the contest. Scoring cooled in the second quarter, but the home team used a 12-11 period to lead 34-23 through the long break.
Porto struggled and the defending champs slipped to a 21-15 losing third act that all but ended the contest. Through thirty minutes, the scoreboard read 55-37. Any thoughts of a fight back were quickly quashed by Benfica as the team put the icing on the cake with a 32-19 blitz in the fourth quarter.
Carlos Morais topped the win with 17 points, while Damian Hollis claimed 15 points. Nuno Olveira added 12 points, and Raven Barber registered a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds.
Sasa Borovnjak drained 17 points in the losing effort. Nick Washburn was also in double-double form as he dropped 11 points and pulled in 10 boards.