THIAGO BARROS

SPORTS JOURNAL

Rio de Janeiro - A sunny Sunday, after a Friday game and a grueling week of travel, training, and matches. The perfect day for a break. But the Flamengo basketball team isn't even thinking about that. This Sunday, at 11 a.m., the Rubro-Negro hosts Bauru at the Tijuca Tênis Clube Gymnasium for their third home game in the Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB). Flamengo, with their best record in the competition, with only one loss in seven matches, is coming off a walkover against Lajeado on Friday night. Even on a lackluster night for star player Marcelinho Machado, who still led the way with 24 points, Flamengo crushed the Southern team 110-69. It was a good opportunity for coach Paulo Chupeta to get his reserves back into the swing of things. "We have a strong group, and it's always good to give opportunities to players who don't play much. Today I rotated the team a lot, getting them into rhythm and playing condition, and we still scored 110 points," says the coach. Soon, Flamengo will play its third game in six days in Rio de Janeiro. An average of one game every two days leaves any team exhausted. The players admit to being tired, but assure that it won't affect their performance on the court. Even more so with the support the group has been receiving from the stands. "Of course, we're feeling the effects of the travels a bit, we're playing a lot, but that's normal. We'll give our best regardless and always fight for victories. We're at home, with the support of our fans, and we can't relax. The team is doing well, winning, and that's the most important thing," says center Rafael Araújo, known as Baby, who scored 16 points in the last match. Today's match against Bauru is one of the Rubro-Negro games that was postponed due to the Rio de Janeiro team's participation in the South American League. As a result, Paulo Chupeta's team is only third in the standings, with 13 points. Duda is back\ Winger/point guard Duda, one of the club's key weapons, missed the match against Lajeado due to a back strain. \ He felt the injury during the South American League last week, but forced the problem in Wednesday's game against Joinville and was rested by the coaching staff. Today, however, he is expected to return to the club.\