Just one Alex Nikolov was not enough for more than a set for Lube in their away game against champion Trentino in Trento. The Bulgarian national player played an exceptional match and practically single-handedly secured the only set for "the Chefs", but the lack of sufficient support from his teammates decisively tipped the scales in favor of the hosts.

Lube lost 1:3 (22:25, 20:25, 25:21, 22:25), with Gianpaolo Medei's team only managing to dictate the pace in the third set. In the other parts, Trentino controlled the game with better organization in attack and more stable blocking. Thus, Lube recorded their second consecutive away loss, following their elimination in the quarterfinals of the Italian Cup by Perugia.
After this sixth loss, Lube remains in sixth position in the standings with 25 points and could be overtaken by Milano if the latter manage to defeat Perugia away tomorrow.

Aleksandar Nikolov's Statistics

Aleksandar Nikolov finished the match with24 pointsand a coefficient of+13, being once again the most productive player on the court. The Bulgarian scored3 aces, and in reception recorded33% positiveand17% perfect reception, taking on the main burden of the opponent's serve. In attack, Nikolov finished the match with48% efficiency, being Lube's primary offensive option in all sets.

Top Scorers

Trentino:

• Alessandro Michieletto – 17 points

• Ramon - 15 points

• Faure - 15 points

Lube:

• Aleksandar Nikolov - 24 points

• Mattia Bottolo - 15 points

• Giovanni Maria Gargiulo - 10 points

Score:
Itas Trentino - Cucine Lube Civitanova3:1
(25:22, 25:20, 21:25, 25:22)

Despite the individual performance by Alex Nikolov, the class and depth in the squad of the champions from Trento once again had their say.