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A tight game ends in heartbreak for Gladiators in their final EuroCup game. In a must win game for Neptunas, both teams fought to the end in a 3-point game, but it was ultimately Neptunas that walked away with the win. The final score was 64 – 67 with the game going to the wire.
Foreshadowing the rest of the game, the first quarter was tight from the tip. Both teams showed heart from the jump and with only 1 point between them. With the crowd behind them the Gladiators showed their fighting spirit with their strong, full court defence powering them to a 21-point first quarter. A strong showing the first quarter with multiple Gladiators contributing in the first 10 minutes, with Hannah Robb leading Gladiator scoring with 5 points and Mathilde Domenger leading with 3 assists. Both teams were evenly matched, and the excitement felt at Playsport continued into the second quarter. The score at the end of the first quarter was 21-22 to Neptunas.
The second quarter saw both teams struggle to score, with the quarter score being 10 – 12 to Neptunas. Strong defense and trips to the free throw line saw the teams continue to stay even throughout the first half. Despite the score remaining close, the Gladiators were unable to take the lead entering the half-time break. The score at the end of the first half was 31-34, with the game open for either team to take the win.
The second half started the same as the last finished with both teams continuing to show their heart and effort on defence, with the Gladiators continuing their full court pressure with the backing of loud fans behind them. A tied quarter, sitting at 18-18 for the 10 minutes of action, led to the 3-point gap between the two teams remaining with the score at 49-52 entering the 4th quarter in a win or go home game for Neptunas.
The final quarter was full of drama, with the final minutes of action going back and forth. A tense final quarter saw the Gladiators take control of the game becoming even and pushing ahead in the first couple minutes of the game. The game become a back-and-forth fight between the two teams. Despite being down 3 with less than a minute and a half to play, the Gladiators remained calm. A huge 3-pointer from Guard, Hannah Robb, seconds after substituting back into the game, saw the Gladiators tie the score with 57 seconds left. The next 57 seconds felt like a lifetime for both teams. However, going down 2, Gladiators were unable to make a final push to win the game due to Neptunas converting 1 of 2 free throw to make it a 3 point game with 3 seconds left of the game.
Despite playing their hearts out in front of a loud home crowd, Gladiators were unable to come up with a win in their final EuroCup game of the 2024-25 season. Congratulations to Neptunas who will go through to the next round on the back of their victory tonight at Playsport.
Tonight’s MVP was Ae’Rianna Harris with a strong performance.
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