The Machado Brothers shone, and Flamengo secured another victory over Franca on Saturday night at the HSBC Arena. With 23 points from Marcelinho and 17 from Duda, Flamengo did their homework, beating their rival 80-73 and taking the lead in the best-of-five semifinal series. The team now heads to São Paulo with a 2-1 lead, and if they win the game at their opponent's home stadium on Tuesday, they'll secure a spot in another Novo Basquete Brasil final.

But the victory didn't come easily. The first quarter was a tight, thrilling affair, worthy of a classic between Flamengo and Franca. Unlike the first two matches of the series, the red-and-black team couldn't gain a lead, which ended tied at 22-22 after the first 10 minutes. But in the second quarter, Paulo Chupeta's team asserted its home-court advantage, playing like two-time Brazilian champions, and crushing their rivals: 30-9 in the quarter and 52-31 overall.

The gap was closed again in the third quarter. With a strong performance from point guard Helinho, Franca dominated the action during this period. While Flamengo led 30-9 in the second quarter, the São Paulo team won the third quarter 25-12 and got back into the game. However, the red-and-blacks were determined to confirm their home-court advantage.

With four players scoring in double figures (Jefferson and Teichmann with 10, Duda with 17, and Marcelinho with 21), the team managed the result, maintained its lead, and won the match by seven points: 80 to 73, with the fans cheering. Eventually, the atmosphere heated up, and the Franca players even complained about the red-and-black team's ball handling, but the victory was already assured, and the celebration was complete at the Arena.

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"From the first game, our plan was to take the ball away from Helinho, and it ended up working. We neutralized Franca's attack. They struggled and only managed to improve their performance in the third quarter, largely because our team relaxed a bit with the advantage. But in the end, we played a strong defense and secured a very important victory," analyzed coach Paulo Chupeta.

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Flamengo: Marcelinho (23), Helio (5), Dedé (0), Wagner (2), Fred (8), Duda (17), Vitor (0), Jefferson (10), Ian (0), Teichmann (10), Coloneze (0), Alírio (5).
France: Cauê (0), Tony (7), Cauê Borges (0), Ricardo (15), Helinho (19), Turcão (2), André (0), Rogério (7), Márcio (15), Taddei (0) and Williams (8).