Flamengo and Limeira took to the court at Ginásio Vô Lucato for the second leg of the Novo Basquete Brasil 7 (NBB) semifinals. After a thrilling first match, where the Pride of the Nation emerged victorious, the two teams certainly expected nothing less than another hard-fought match. But what likely surprised the São Paulo team was the excellent first quarter, which culminated in another impressive 92-73 victory for FlaBasquete.

With the victory, José Neto's team takes a two-nil lead to Rio de Janeiro in the playoffs, meaning they only need to win one more match to reach the championship finals. The next match between Flamengo and Limeira will once again be broadcast live on SporTV and will take place on Thursday (May 14.05) at the Tijuca Tênis Clube. If you haven't yet secured your ticket to fill the Pride of the Nation's home and push the team towards another victory, buy now. Tickets are already on sale on the website. Guicheweb e member-fan has a 50% discount. If you are not yet a member of Red-Black Nation, click here and help Flamengo to become stronger and stronger.

Monday's match began as the first semifinal clash between Limeira and Flamengo ended. Flamengo dominated. Driven by the outstanding performances of Nicolas Laprovittola, Marquinhos, and Olivinha, the Pride of the Nation opened the scoring and quickly pulled away from the home team, who hadn't even scored for more than three minutes. With lightning-fast counterattacks, Flamengo eventually opened up a 13-point lead. Even though the São Paulo fans pressed, Flamengo's good form made the home fans cheer louder, and the defending champions closed the first quarter 27-15.

The second half arrived, and as expected, Limeira found itself forced to react. The São Paulo team began attacking more and managed to reduce the deficit. Although Marcelinho and, again, Marquinhos and Laprovittola showed well, the São Paulo team's fightback was enough to close the quarter at 21-16, dropping the red-and-black advantage from 12 to seven points. 

With both teams determined to win, the second half saw an even tighter game, with grit playing a key role in both teams. Without Laprovittola, who was rested after committing three fouls, José Neto opted to slightly alter the red-and-black team's play. The introductions of Gegê and Herrmann brought even more dynamism to FlaBasquete's attack, which didn't slow down. On the other hand, Limeira was making a lot of mistakes and losing defensive and offensive rebounds. Capitalizing on these errors, the Pride of the Nation once again opened up an 11-point lead, closing the period 17-13.

The first-quarter score was crucial for the red-and-black team to reach the final stage with some confidence. With Flamengo's main differentiator in these playoffs—its own squad—the Pride of the Nation simply had to manage the score. Returning to the players who started the match, the reigning champions showcased their true basketball skills and, once again, with a strong performance from the duo of Marquinhos and Laprovittola, closed the game with an incredible 92-73.

1st Quarter: 27 to 15

2st Quarter: 16 to 21

3st Quarter: 17 to 13

4st Quarter: 32 to 24

Total score: 92 to 73

Basket: Marquinhos (25)

Rebounds: Marquinhos (5)

Assists: Laprovittola (6)