In a match held this Friday (14), Flamengo beat Vasco da Gama 93 to 85 in the Rio de Janeiro Basketball Championship. The red-black team needed to win by five points or more to guarantee the top of the table in the first phase of the competition, and managed to impose the result with leftovers over the Cruzmaltino team in a great collective performance by coach José Neto's team.

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The standout performer of the match, Olivinha scored 24 points, making three of five three-pointers. In addition to his scoring, the number 16 also contributed to the team's collective performance with seven rebounds and five assists. JP Batista also had a stellar performance in the classic, scoring 23 points and grabbing four rebounds. Ronald Ramon, who hit two three-pointers in the final seconds of both quarters in the first half, finished with 13 points, as did point guard Fischer and forward Marquinhos.

At the end of the match, Olivinha analyzed the match: "In preparing for a game like this, we needed more focus than usual. We knew it would be a very difficult game, that Vasco fans would show up, as they did. We trained hard during the week for this game, and we knew that if we kept our heads in the game and focused for the entire forty minutes, we would be able to leave here with a great victory."

One of the most popular players among the Vasco fans at the Tijuca Tennis Club, the power forward also commented on the boos he received during the match: "It's not the first time this has happened to me. I'm an experienced player and it's something that has happened elsewhere, too. I take this as a huge motivation. Without a doubt, I really enjoy playing this type of match. Fortunately, everything went well today."

Point guard Ricardo Fischer commented on the game and is already looking ahead to the first match against Botafogo in the competition's semifinals: "It's a classic, we always expect this type of game. I think we started very poorly, but we managed to impose our rhythm. Flamengo is growing as a team and now it's time to think about Botafogo."

The first match against the black and white team will be played next Monday (17), with Mais Querido playing at home.