Ciclista tastes Argentine TNA glory

The Argentine TNA has been decided as Ciclista Juninense claimed the title after a 62-65 win over Instituto Cordoba in Game 4 of the final series. The Junin based club swept the series by travelling to Cordoba and taking a road win to clinch the title and promotion to the top flight Liga A.

Ciclista built a foundation of scoring from the charity strip, nailing 22 out of 24 free throws in the game to put pressure on an Instituto outfit that committed 25 personal fouls. As for the Cordoba club, the players will rue the fact that they picked up a 21-4 advantage in offensive rebounds but could not make the extra possession count with baskets. In fact, the hosts were better off the board at both ends, out rebounding Ciclista by 45 to 27 overall.

There was no separating the teams in the first quarter as both rosters traded baskets in the opening quarter, with the score reading 15-15 at the first break. A low scoring second period saw Cordoba restricted to just 10 points while Ciclista could only manage 12, but that was enough for the visitors to hold a narrow 25-27 lead at half-time. The third quarter followed in the same vein as the second, with neither club able to find scoring consistency. The hosts narrowly stole the frame by 13 points to 12 to leave the scoreboard reading 38-39 with just Q4 to come. The final stanza proved as tight and nervy as the rest of the game, but Ciclista overcame the rising tension as the teams finally opened up to win the 10 minutes 24-26 and claim the title.

Luciano Massarelli grabbed 22 points for the champions, while Jamaal Douglas logged 12 points and 5 rebounds.

Kenny Jones almost had a double-double for Instituto with 19 points and 9 rebounds.