Merritt Hempe, Veronicka Vorackova in the second half and a fearless Candela Cuevas were the most positive notes in a game whose main purpose was to serve as a more intense training session ahead of the start of the competition. From now on, there will be no margin for error in a real competitive test that begins this coming weekend with the Super Cup.
THE GAME
With the welcome news of Nadia Fingall's return—although she was not dressed to play, she was present at the Torres de Berrellén sports hall—the red-clad club approached its final preseason friendly with its eyes on the start of the Super Cup this coming Saturday. Cantero therefore opted to start with a lineup consisting of Laia Flores, Aisha Sheppard, Yarden Garzon, Kristine Vitola and Merritt Hempe.
Precisely after the opening tip, the Macedonian center emerged as Casademont's first standout player of the game. Hempe scored seven of Casademont's first nine points in an intense opening period in which both teams also shot very accurately, trading basket after basket. However, midway through the first quarter, the shots began to hit the rim and the scoreboard stopped moving. Azul Marino took advantage of the situation with a series of three-pointers to close the opening period on a 0-6 run (15-21).
Fingall was in attendance at the sports hall. Photo: Casademont Zaragoza
When play resumed, the problems on offense persisted for both teams, with Casademont struggling especially to score from outside. As a result, over four minutes of the quarter, Casademont and Azul Marino managed just one basket apiece. The drought ended with a succession of baskets, including a huge three-pointer from fearless Candela Cuevas, who, as throughout the rest of the preseason, helped round out the Aragonese roster. The exchange therefore slightly favored Carlos Cantero's team, which continued to rely on Hempe as its biggest weapon (28-31).
COLLAPSED OFFENSE
After halftime, Casademont's defense prevented Azul Marino from pulling away, while the Aragonese team's offensive collapse returned at the other end of the court. Cantero's players could manage only one basket in almost five minutes of the quarter and were finding it very difficult to score, unable to make the most of static offensive possessions and, above all, shooting very poorly from three-point range. Azul Marino consequently opened up a lead against a Casademont side surviving thanks to Vorackova and Hempe (38-47).
The Czech forward, who scored eight points in the opening stages of the final quarter, was precisely the only red-clad player able to convert against an Azul Marino team led in the fourth period by an inspired Klara Holm. A hot-shooting Vorackova helped Cantero's team find its rhythm on offense and put together a 7-0 run to close the gap. Even so, the Balearic side managed to halt the comeback, and Casademont ended preseason with a defeat in Torres de Berrellén (60-68).
