Cividale Eagles claimed an 86-83 victory over Ruvo di Puglia in Serie A2 on Sunday, a result that keeps them firmly in the top half while leaving the hosts rooted near the bottom of the table. The away side's lead held up despite a spirited finish from Ruvo, who had nothing to play for but pride in their final home game of the campaign. To be fair, the visitors have the deeper squad and showed it in those closing minutes.
Ruvo di Puglia sit 17th with 11 wins and 25 losses from 36 games, a record that tells its own story of a season running out of steam. Cividale, meanwhile, occupy fifth place with 23 victories and 13 defeats, a position that puts them within reach of a playoff spot. And here's the thing — the gap between them isn't as wide as the table suggests, not when you look at how these two performed recently.
My forecast called for the away win with 58 per cent confidence, and by then it had played out exactly as I expected. Ruvo had battered Roseto 94-70 in one of their last outings, but that was an outlier in a string of heavy defeats. Cividale's form had been steadier, even if their loss to Fortitudo Bologna 85-68 showed they could still be exposed against quality opposition.
The final scoreline masks how close this was for long stretches. Ruvo kept pushing, found answers when Cividale went ahead, and forced a finish that could have gone either way. Things came to a head in the last few minutes, and Cividale's experience in tight games made the difference. The visitors ground out the win when it mattered most.
This result leaves Ruvo with no real incentive beyond finishing strongly, while Cividale will be watching the teams above them closely. The fifth spot isn't guaranteed, but they've given themselves a chance. And here's the thing — matches like this decide more than just points on the board.
