For Flamengo, this could be their most dangerous match yet. The opponent is new, from a different school, and has the added spice of the Brazil-Argentina rivalry. There's no better way to start a semifinal. And it's in this scenario that FlaBasquete will take to the Jeunesse Arena court for its first challenge in the quest for a spot in the 2018 South American League final.

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With games today, tomorrow, and Thursday, there's little downtime, and the menu offers three classics in a row. After the Argentines, it's the Brazilians Minas and Bauru's turn. It's a promising week. Learn more about Tuesday's opponent below. 

CENTRAL CÓRDOBA ATHLETIC INSTITUTE

The Instituto Atlético Central de Córdoba is one of Argentina's oldest teams. Founded on August 08, 1918, for soccer, it has never won the top division of the country's most traditional sport. In basketball, it is in its third season in the Argentine League, where it has also never won a title. In the current edition, the team fell in the round of 20 of the Super 07, losing the best-of-three series to Comunicaciones. The last game was on the XNUMXth, also the team's last match, and they have only trained since then. 

In the South American League

To qualify for the semifinals, Instituto faced a group featuring Chile's Leones de Quilpue, Uruguay's Aguada, and Brazil's Franca. They recorded two wins and one loss. The team was defeated only by Franca, in a very tight 82-80 victory. Against the Chileans and Uruguayans, they achieved two relatively comfortable victories (75-68 and 76-70). 

The team's standout is forward Luciano González. At 1.87m tall, he averages 18 points per game and is the team's top scorer in the competition, with 54 total. His three-point shooting percentage is 45%, lower than his perimeter shooting percentage (50%). Also worthy of note is center Facundo Piñero. With excellent rebounding numbers (15 total, averaging five per game), the 2.01m tall player averages 15 points per game, shooting 46% from three. 

Games

02/10/2018 - Córdoba Institute 75-68 Aguada

03/10/2018 - Leones de Quilpes 70-76 Córdoba Institute

04/10/2018 - Franca 82-80 Instituto de Córdoba

The coach's word

The team's coach, Facundo Miller, spoke about his expectations for the competition and said he came to Rio to secure a spot in the final. He also praised Flamengo, their first opponent in the round. 

"Since we left the playoffs, we've had a few days to rest and prepare for the South American League. It will be a very demanding championship, and to qualify, we'll have to play our best basketball. We'll be facing the strongest team right away, and at their home ground. I believe any result is possible, and we can qualify, which would be another step forward in our history."  

Franco Balbi, about the opponent. 

Familiar with Argentine teams, Flamengo point guard Franco Balbi spoke about the opponent and expects a very tough match, where Flamengo will need to impose its rhythm on the court first. "Their team is very good. It's one of the best teams in Argentina. They have very good foreign players. It will be a tight game, with a lot of fighting, and we have to stop them from playing on the court to do our job."

Cast

shipowners

Lucas Reyes

Gaston Whelan

Santiago Scala

Shooting guards

Luciano Gonzalez

Leandro Morales

Wing:

Paul Spinoza

Power forwards

Facundo Piñero

Enzo Rupcic

Pivots

Samuel Clancy

Cristian Amicucci

upcoming appointments

Instituto de Córdoba has been eliminated from the Super 20 in Argentina. After the competition, if they don't qualify for the final, the team will only resume activities in 2019. 

Social networks:

Website: http://www.institutoacc.com.ar/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/InstitutoACC

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InstitutoACC/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvv_C1t_9MO0i2uFnQUdRKQ

The basketball teams of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo receive funding from their sponsors – thinkseg, AmBev, Rede D'or, IRB Brasil RE, CSN, Brasil Plural, and EY – via the Federal Incentive Law/Ministry of Sports (IR) and the State Incentive Law/Rio de Janeiro State Secretariat of Sports, Recreation, and Youth (Seelje), in addition to support from the Brazilian Club Committee (CBC) resulting from the decentralization of resources generated by the Pelé Law. The Anjo da Guarda Rubro-Negro Project, a personal tax transfer, benefits all Olympic sports of the Most Beloved.