After two hard-fought games, Flamengo secured a comfortable victory over Paulistano (84-64) and secured a spot in the semifinals of the Novo Basquete Brasil. The Tijuca Tênis Clube gymnasium hosted this Saturday's match (May 04.05th), which concluded the playoff series between the two clubs. Center Olivinha was the star of the night, scoring 22 points and grabbing 13 rebounds.

"Now it's all about the semifinals. All the teams that made it this far have merit and come with high morale. Our defense improved significantly in this game, but we still have a lot of work ahead of us. We are, step by step, achieving our previously set goals," said José Neto, coach of the Rubro-Negro.

As the first club to advance to the semifinals, Flamengo still doesn't know who it will face in the fight for a spot in the NBB final. The only certainty is that the Mais Querido will play its home games at the local HSBC Arena, which can hold up to 18 people.

"I want to see the Flamengo fans packing the HSBC Arena for the next few games," said point guard Benite after the third victory over Paulistano. José Neto also hopes Flamengo fans will turn out in force for Flamengo's next game in Rio de Janeiro. The coach took the opportunity to make a request to the fans.

"The HSBC Arena is much bigger than the Tijuca gymnasium. So, I'm going to issue a challenge here. Will the fans fill the stadium there too? Our team hopes so. We want to count on your support once again," said José Neto.