1972–73 Serie A (basketball)

1971–72 1973–74 Serie A #0079B9 white 1972–73 Ignis Varese 6th title Simmenthal Milano Gorena Padova Gamma Varese 14 26 24 October 1972 – 25 April 1973 USA 20px Bob Morse 29.8 S. Milano 118–106 N. Bologna (31 December 1972) 19 gamesSimmenthal Milano 7 gamesGamma Varese The 1972–73 Serie A basketball championship was the 50th season of the Serie A, the highest professional basketball league in Italy. The regular season ran from 22 October 1972 to 22 April 1973, an expanded league saw fourteen teams play 26 games each. As Ignis Varese and Simmenthal Milano ended joint first with an equal head-to-head record, a single playoff game decided the title for the third year running. Varese won the game, played in Bologna, to reclaim the title from Milano, earning their sixth overall title (and a spot in the European Champions Cup). Preseason Perennial powerhouses Simmenthal Milano and Ignis Varese were seen as even-matched overwhelming favourites to fight for the title, which Milano had won the previous season following a title playoff game against Ignis. Aspiring team Forst Cantù, on the back of a good season that had seen them beat Ignis away, were touted as a possible third powerhouse that could join the title fight.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,11/articleid,1514_02_1972_0232_0011_21190455/ Tre care nemiche Tavarozzi Antonio 20 October 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 1 August 2016 Italian Three dear enemies At the other end of the spectrum, promoted sides Gamma Varese and Brill Cagliari were the favourites to go back down, with Gorena Padova and Partenope Napoli to possibly join them in the relegation fight.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,19/articleid,0145_01_1972_0230_0019_5225649/ La nuova era dei canestri Tavarozzi Antonio 19 October 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 1 August 2016 Italian The new hoops era The most important squad change saw American Bob Morse replace star Mexican Manuel Raga as Ignis' sole foreigner in the league (they were both allowed to play in European competition) with his adaptation or lack of crucial to their title chances.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,17/articleid,0145_01_1972_0231_0017_4707578/ Basket: L'Ignis Varese con un nuovo straniero Tavarozzi Antonio 19 October 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 1 August 2016 Italian Basketball: Ignis Varese with a new foreigner Though they had lost substitute Tony Gennari to Splügen Venezia,http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=/archivio/uni_1972_10/19721019_0010.pdf&query=Jura Ignis e Simmenthal sempre le più forti Madella Gian Maria 19 October 1972 ArchivoStoricoUnita.it 3 August 2016 Italian Ignis and Simmenthal still the strongest 16 September 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160916152312/http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=%2Farchivio%2Funi_1972_10%2F19721019_0010.pdf&query=Jura dead the Nikolić coached team had otherwise kept their major Italians such as Dino Meneghin. Simmenthal, coached by Cesare Rubini, trusted their all-action American Art Kenney and their young Italians such as Giulio Iellini and Renzo Bariviera, whilst the form of an ageing Massimo Masini could prove important. The upstarts from Cantù meanwhile, counted on the combination of American center Bob Lienhard with promising Italians Pierluigi Marzorati and Carlo Recalcati, whilst Mobilquattro Milano made an important signing in Chuck Jura. League regulations called for all clubs to play in arenas holding at least 3,500 spectators but four clubs (Cantù, Padova, Venezia and Saclà Asti) were given exemptions for the season though their arenas fell short of requirements (Asti's arena hosting only 700 for example).http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,21/articleid,0145_01_1972_0206_0021_4831067/ Torino ancora una volta perde il grande basket Tavarozzi Antonio 21 September 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Turin once again loses out on elite basketball Regular season The three favourites initially comfortably raced into a shared lead, this changed with Simmenthal's upset in the fifth round to mid-table Splügen Venezia led by American Steve Hawes and Gennari.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,14/articleid,0146_02_1972_0258_0014_4910470/ Forst e Ignis restano sole 20 November 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 2 August 2016 Italian Forst and Ignis remain alone The Milanese would recover however, decisively downing Cantù 87-76 in the first clash between the three top sides on 10 December, using the same starting five (Kenney, Iellini, Masini, Bariviera and Giuseppe Brumatti) for 40 minutes to stifle their opponents' scoring.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,14/articleid,0146_02_1972_0276_0014_5826545/ Classe e grinta del Simmenthal, ridimensionano la Forst (87-76) Tavarozzi Antonio 11 December 1972 ArchivoLaStampa.it 2 August 2016 Italian Class and guts from Simmenthal, they cut Forst down to size After Ignis also downed Cantù, the title chase reverted to the usual two-horse race between them and Simmenthal, with a clash in Milan on 14 January 1973. The home-side eked out a close 76-72 to go level on points with Ignis. In a game of two halves – with an entertaining first half (42-40) and a scrappy second one – Simmenthal won the game on the back of good performances both in attack and defense from Barivera (23 points), Masini and a diminished Kenney (both 14 points). Ignis, meanwhile, relied too heavily on the selfish Morse – leading the league in scoring – who scored 29 points (on 14 for 23 shooting) but played his teammates ouf of the game.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,15/articleid,0147_02_1973_0012_0015_4911781/ I campioni vincono allo sprint. L'Ignis cede per quattro punti Tavarozzi Antonio 15 January 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian The champions win the dash. Ignis yields by four points The next rounds saw the status quo remain, with the most notable event being an Ignis' 25-point victory over Simmenthal, though this time in the European Champions Cup first semi-final in early March. Ignis played modest Brill Cagliari (before last in the league) in between the two semi-finals, with fatigue and lack of focus certainly playing a part in the surprising 75-76 defeat to the Sardinians that saw Simmenthal overtake them and move into first place by two points.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,16/articleid,0148_02_1973_0054_0016_5781362/ Sorpresa nel basket: Ignis k.o. a Cagliari per un punto 5 March 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Surprise in basketball: Ignis K.O. at Cagliari by a point After both beat Cantù anew, the title was to be decided once again by the return match between the powerhouses on 18 April, this time in Varese, with the home-team – unbeaten against Simmenthal at home for nearly eight years – confident of winning. That prediction proved to be correct as the newly crowned European Champions took the game 90-79, helped by two scoring performances by Ivan Bisson (34 points) and Morse (30 points). Simmenthal and Varese traded blows equally during the first two quarters, before Kenney struck Meneghin whilst they were fighting for a ball, leaving him with a bloodied nose that took him off the court for the game. Tensions flared after this incident, with the public raging after both the referees (who left the American unpunished) and Kenney, who dominated Meneghin's replacement Ottorino Flaborea to grab offensive rebounds and push Milano in front. However the same Kenney's departure from the court seven minutes into the second half for five fouls, followed three minutes later by Masini for the same reasons, decisively changed the flow of the game in Varese's favour, they soon took a ten-point lead they would not relinquish.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,21/articleid,0148_01_1973_0093_0021_5618474/ L'Ignis agguanta il Simmenthal Tavarozzi Antonio 19 April 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Ignis catches Simmenthal The last round unsurprisingly saw both win their games to finish on the same points and head-to-head record, once again creating the need for a one-off play-off game to crown the champion (the third such occurrence in as many years). Standings Italy black Serie A 1972–73 – Club Locations right 300 Italy 45.46 9.19 bottom Milano Italy 45.81 8.83 left Varese Italy 45.73 9.13 right Cantù Italy 40.83 14.25 left Napoli Italy 43.91 12.9 right Pesaro Italy 46.06 13.23 top Udine Italy 44.50 11.35 bottom Bologna Italy 45.43 12.33 right Venezia Italy 45.42 11.86 bottom Padova Italy 44.9 8.2 bottom Asti Italy 39.25 9.05 right Cagliari Pos Position Teams P Played W Won L Lost PF Points for PA Points against Champion or relegation1 #C3BB70 c Ignis Varese 26 24 2 2411 1761Title playoff (see below) 2 #C3BB70 c Simmenthal Milano 26 24 2 2413 1986 3Forst Cantù 26 21 5 2364 2009 4 #C3BB70 c Mobilquattro Milano 26 12 14 2048 21505 #C3BB70 c Snaidero Udine 26 12 14 2046 2115 6 #C3BB70 c Norda Bologna 26 12 14 2152 21837 #C3BB70 c Saclà Asti 26 11 15 1989 2044 8 #C3BB70 c Splügen Venezia 26 11 15 2031 20689 #C3BB70 c Partenope Napoli 26 11 15 1999 2227 10 #C3BB70 c Alco Bologna 26 10 16 1816 198511 #C3BB70 c Maxmobili Pesaro 26 10 16 1925 203012 #C3BB70 c Brill Cagliari 26 10 16 2003 215313 Gorena Padova 26 9 17 1829 2003Relegation to Serie B14Gamma Varese 26 5 21 1872 2184 Source: Lega Basket #C3BB70 c Ranking by head-to-head record then points differential in case of tie (see record). Individual scoring table RankNameTeamPointsPPG Points Per Game1.USA Bob Morse Ignis Varese 819 31.52.USA Don Holcomb Brill Cagliari 709 28.43.USA Chuck Jura Mobilquattro Milano 628 24.14.USA Steve Hawes Splügen Venezia 603 23.25.ITA Paolo Gurini Maxmobili Pesaro 566 21.86.USA Gary Schull Alco Bologna 561 21.67.USA John Fultz Norda Bologna 561 25.58.USA Carl Johnson Gorena Padova 527 21.19.ITA Pierluigi Marzorati Forst Cantù 508 19.510.USA David Hall Snaidero Udine 476 20.7 Source: unofficial statistics compiled by the Giganti del Basket magazine (official statistics started from the 1975–76 season).http://195.56.77.208/other/PDF/Stagione%2072-73%20classifiche.pdf Serie A 1972-73 - classifica marcatori e spareggi LegaBasket.it 4 August 2016 Italian 1972–73 Serie A – scorers table and playoffs Postseason Title playoff The title-deciding playoff game was played in Bologna's Palazzo dello Sport on 25 April 1973 in front of 7,000 people. Simmenthal first took a 10-6 lead on the back of Bariviera's efficient marking of Morse, staying ahead for nearly all the first half before Marino Zanatta put Ignis in front 16 minutes in (30-29). The same Zanatta picked up his fourth foul soon after and his absence in defense saw Simmenthal push in front, taking a 63-54 lead 33 minutes in. However, a minute later Kenney departed after committing his fifth foul, followed two minutes later by Bariviera with the score (68-63) still favouring the Milanese though the loss of two of their forwards put them on the back foot. Ignis took advantage of the height differential and their forwards, Meneghin (playing with a face mask to protect his nose), Morse (top-scorer with 31 points) and Bisson (marked by a 12 cm smaller Brumatti) scored seemingly at will, equalising (68-68) two minutes from the end before racing home to a 74-70 win to claim the title back from Simmenthal.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,18/articleid,0148_01_1973_0099_0018_4758420/ L'Ignis con uno sprint finale (74-70) strappa lo scudetto al Simmenthal Tavarozzi Antonio 26 April 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Ignis, with a final dash (74-70), snatches the championship from Milan #eee 25 April 21:00 Palazzo dello Sport, Bologna Ignis Varese 74 Simmenthal Milano 70 Boxscore Bob Morse 31 Renzo Bariviera 16 Dino Meneghin 15 Renzo Bariviera 8 Ivan Bisson 1 Giulio Iellini 2 7,000 Italian Cup Holders Simmenthal were surprisingly sent crashing out at the quarterfinal stage by Saclà who were joined in the Brescia-based final four by another promoted side, Cagliari, with the other semi-final pitting Varese against Cantù.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,19/articleid,0149_01_1973_0110_0019_4762102/ L'Ignis per un altro trionfo. Il Saclà pensando al futuro Tavarozzi Antonio 10 May 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Ignis for another triumph. Saclà thinking ahead Saclà and Ignis made it to the final, which was easily won 94-65 by the Italian champions, who added the cup to their domestic, European and Intercontinental titles. As they were already qualified for the 1973–74 European Champions Cup, Asti took their place in the European Cup Winners' Cup.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,19/articleid,0149_01_1973_0112_0019_4763411/ Anche il Saclà ha un grande record Tavarozzi Antonio 12 May 1973 ArchivoLaStampa.it 3 August 2016 Italian Saclà also has a great record Championship-winning squad Ignis Varese 1972–73 Serie A champions ITA 4 Edoardo Rusconi ITA 5 Ottorino Flaborea ITA 6 Franco Bartolucci ITA 7 Giorgio Chiarini ITA 8 Marino Zanatta USA 9 Bob Morse ITA 10 Aldo Ossola ITA 11 Dino Meneghin ITA 12 Paolo Polzot ITA 13 Massimo Lucarelli ITA 14 Ivan Bisson Coach: YUG Aca Nikolić Source: Lega Basket References 30em External links Game-by-game stats at Pearlbasket Retrieved 3 August 2016 Category:Lega Basket Serie A seasons 1 Italy