The Press — The shock of this 8th day of the return phase of the championship, played in Nabeul, turned in favor of the Potters who showed more realism than their opponents of the day, the Radès Sports Star (ESR) — a direct competitor for 3rd place in the qualifying pool B for the play-off — to sign their 6th success of the regular season with a narrow score of 56-53.
The Nabeulian public witnessed a full and passionate match until the end, which could have tipped in either direction, even if the Radèsians lacked precision in the final gesture. The proteges of Portuguese coach Vasco Curado had a good start to the match, finishing the first quarter with a 13-point lead (19-6) over the southern suburbs team. Under the impetus of their helmsman and offensive leader, Ahmed Dhif (11 points, 3 decisive passes, and 3 rebounds), and their pivot Mohamed Selmi in a state of grace (best player of the match with 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 blocks), the Nabeulians stifled their opponents with lightning-fast counter-attacks and opportunism in the game, taking advantage of ESR's defensive weakness (10 points from lost balls and 13 points from second chances throughout the match) to finish the first half with a comfortable 17-point lead (40-23). Back from the locker rooms, the ESR players sounded the revolt with an excellent Mourad Mabrouk — the top scorer of the match with 15 units, including a flawless free throw (9 out of 9) — and an Alphousseyni Diedhiou who dominated the air with 13 rebounds to inflict a 20-2 (including a scathing 19-0) on their hosts and finish the 3rd quarter with a slender one-point advantage (42-43). The SN Reacts But the reaction of the Stade Nabeulien did not wait. Guided by their young international winger Mohamed Aziz Mghirbi and the address of their pointer Mohamed Amine Bouaouina, the Potters managed to turn the tide. The end of the match was highly contested, and the two teams exchanged blows, alternating precipitation and maladdress in shots behind the 6.75m line. It took a masterful rebound from the indefatigable Mohamed Amine Magherbi and two successful free throws from the latter to kill the hopes of the Radèsians. By scoring his only two points of the match, the experience of number 11 and former Tunisian international not only got the better of the fervor of Khalil Rouissi (8 points), Skander Zaghouani (7 points), and Mehdi Oueslati (7 points), but also definitively tipped the match in favor of the locals, who have been very sharp since the beginning of the season. This victory of the SN therefore definitively validates the participation of Captain Nizar Knioua's teammates in the play-off: a more than brilliant feat for this bastion of Tunisian basketball back in business.
