The reigning European champions, the Italy Under-20 team, had a tough start. In their first group game, held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, the Azzurri, coached by Rossi, were soundly defeated by Germany, 85-67. A disastrous second quarter (23-9 for the Germans) and significant rebounding difficulties against the opposing big men proved fatal.
And to think that the first quarter had been balanced, with the quintet led by Stefano Trucchetti of Sassari , who became captain, who closed the match at 24-26. However, the second-quarter break put the match on the back foot for Germany, who won by a surprising margin.
Trucchetti's 11 points and 4 assists, among the best scorers together with Accorsi (15 points) and Lonati (13), were not enough.
Tomorrow at 9 p.m., a tough match against France. Group A concludes with the match against Turkey.