Nike International Junior Tournament recap
The Euroleague Final Four is about to descend on Milan, but it is not the only Basketball festival in the city this weekend as the Nike International Junior Tournament (NJIT) is also taking place. The extravaganza brings together some of the very best young players in European Basketball from some of the biggest clubs.
Split into two groups, the Nike International Junior Tournament is underway and the games have been typically exciting. Playing in the competition this year is Real Madrid, Armani Junior Milan, Zalgiris Kaunas, Fenerbahce, Cajasol Seville, Joventut Badalona, Crvena Zvezda Belgrade, and invited participants Team Brazil.
The event is being held at Milan’s Mediolanum Forum and Tensostruttura Lida, admission for the games is free.
Group A
Crvena Zvezda Telekom Belgrade has taken the lead in Group A with back to back wins. The Serbian powerhouse defeated Seville 78-63 in Game 1 and then followed that success with a narrow 69-67 victory over Joventut in Game 2 to go two for two in the table.
As for reigning champs Joventut, the Catalonian club sits in second with a 1-1 record after defeating Team Brazil comfortably in Game 1. The Spanish team recorded an easy 69-43 win to open its account at the Nike International Junior Tournament this year. A 19-3 run in the third quarter paced Joventut, although Lucas de Souza (image) shone for Team Brazil with a game high 15 points.
Seville recovered from a loss to Crvena Zvezda in Game 1 to defeat Team Brazil 66-54 in Game 2 to claim a 1-1 record in Group A. The players and have coaches have however expressed the joy of being able to play at the tournament and see it as a key event for development.
Team Brazil has found the going tough so far, losing both of its games to Seville and Joventut to prop up the table with a losing 0-2 record.
Group B
Group B is arguably the harder of the two pools as it features Real Madrid, Zalgiris Kaunas, Fenerbahce and Milan.
Armani Junior Milan opened as the tournament home team and claimed a Game 1 victory over Zalgiris. The tight 62-59 success over the Lithuanian giant came from an inspired final frame where the Italian team poured in 22 points to snatch the victory. In Game 2 Milan faced a classy Real Madrid outfit and lost 42-71 to sit on a record of 1-1.
Real Madrid looks the team to beat at this year’s Nike International Junior Tournament. In Game 1, a confident Los Blancos strode to a comfortable win over Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahce by a 75-51 score. The margin was 26 points at half time and Madrid never lost a quarter on the way to the victory. In Game 2 the Spanish club breezed past Milan to top Group B with a 2-0 record.
Fenerbahce and Zalgiris Kaunas will be looking to grab their first wins when the two clubs clash in their Game 2 contest today.