SCM U Craiova won the first medal in history, after a spectacular comeback on Dinamo Bucharest's field
Article by David Istrate – Published on Monday, 01 June 2026 22:52 / Updated on Monday, 01 June 2026 23:01
The basketball team of SCM U Craiova obtained the first medal in history, managing to win the bronze after a spectacular victory over CS Dinamo Bucharest, score 105-101. Olteni came back from -19 and prevailed away from home, after overtime.
SCM U Craiova and CS Dinamo Bucharest were, without a doubt, the revelations of the 2025-2026 season of the National Men's Basketball League. The two teams were defeated by U-BT Cluj-Napoca and CSM CSU Oradea in the semifinals of the championship, but ended up fighting for the bronze medal.
SCM U Craiova, victory after extra time in the decisive match of the small final
The team from the Capital won their first game in overtime, score 102-94and defended its home field advantage. In the second match, SCM U Craiova was dominant, won by 39 points (101-62) and sent the series into a “decisive”.
Dinamo started the 3rd game very well and won the opening quarter 31-17. In the second sequence, the advantage increased even more and reached 19 points, at which point the students of Zydrunas Urbonas seemed to have no way of losing the bronze medals.
But the guests fought until the end, they did not give up and, led by Sam Sessoms, the best scorer of the National League, they reduced the deficit on the table more and more. 22 seconds before the end of regulation time, SCM U Craiova equalized through Ishmael Leggett, and the hosts failed to score in the last phase: 86-86.
The Blue and White dominated the extra half, one in which Sessoms scored no fewer than 14 points. As a result, Tudor Costescu's students won 105-101 and won the first bronze medal in the history of Craiova.
Sam Sessoms collected 32 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals, DeAndre Dishman accounted for 23 points and 12 rebounds, Ishmael Leggett collected 15 points, and Vlad Nistor stood out with 14 points.
On the other side, the leaders of Dinamo Bucharest were Marcus Lewis (22 points), Vyacheslav Bobrov (16 points, 6 rebounds), Jonathan Stark (15 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists), Ousmane Drame (13 points, 10 rebounds) and Radu Vîrnă (11 points).
Tudor Costescu: “It's the crowning of a good season, we wouldn't have got here without consistency”
“The boys deserve the accolades for the way they battled. It's certainly the crowning glory of a good season, we wouldn't have gotten here without some consistency throughout the regular season and the playoffs as well. Despite some less happy moments, we showed, I think, at least intensity and desire to perform and I think that was also seen in this match“, said Tudor Costescu, the coach of SCM U Craiova, in the FRB TV studio.
“In the last minutes, what happens in basketball happened. We have to respect our opponent. Sessoms made an incredible shot from a distance. It doesn't matter win or lose, I think we did good things this season, we had good energy and we fought. I was unlucky on the last shot in the 4th quarter, but that's ok, that's life. Two semi-finals… I, as a coach, think I didn't get the maximum, I didn't do enough,” said Zydrunas Urbonas, the technician of Dinamo Bucharest.
Therefore, SCM U Craiova finished the 2025-2026 season in 3rd place, and CS Dinamo Bucharest ranked 4th. In the final of the National League, the score is 2-1 for U-BT Cluj-Napoca. Match 4 will take place on Wednesday, June 3, at 19:00, in BTarena.
