Lucas Cauê hails historic mark and Corinthians' NBB quarter-final spot | OneFootball

Corinthians secured a place in the Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB) quarterfinals last Wednesday (30) after defeating Unifacisa 81-71 at Ginásio Wlamir Marques and closing out the series 3-1. After the game, center Lucas Cauê highlighted the team’s performance throughout the matchup and praised the progress in the competition.

Timão opened the series with an 88-78 win, saw the opponent level things in the second game (79-69), regained the lead with a 76-73 victory, and sealed qualification in the fourth matchup.

Photo: Beto Miller / Agência Corinthians

“We knew how difficult it would be to play against Unifacisa, especially there in Paraíba. They were a very strong, very gritty team. It was tough. They were at home, and we had two away games. Even though we had the advantage, they still weren’t two home games, and in the second game we felt the impact of their arena a little. But we managed to stay focused and keep our heads in the right place to win the third game and bring the decider home. At home, it’s a different story. We have fans who push us forward, who help us throughout the entire game, and it’s also where we’re most comfortable,” he said.

“So I think a lot of it comes from the work we’ve been doing. This year has been a lot about moving the ball well and understanding the moment of each game. I think we handled that very well throughout the series, and I hope we can do even better in the next one,” he added.

In addition to qualifying, Lucas Cauê reached an impressive milestone in the black-and-white jersey. The center surpassed 200 games for the club and now has 201 appearances, with 112 wins and 89 losses.

“Gratitude, a lot of gratitude for this club, for this being my home no matter what. I’ve said it several times already, but I’m very thankful. At one point in my life, things were not going very well for me in basketball, and the club brought me back onto the national stage. I’m grateful with all my heart; for me, this club is a second home,” he emphasized.

Now, Corinthians will face KTO Minas in the NBB quarterfinals. The dates and times of the matchups have yet to be set by the competition organizers.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.