Cajasol Seville booked the very first ticket to the Final Four in Milan next May (15-18) as they won the Citta Di Roma event as the Nike International Junior Tournament returned for another year.

The Spanish side defeated the tournament hosts Stellazzurra Basketball Academy Rome 67-53 to claim the title in Italy as the first of four mini competitions tipped off. The other three tournaments will be held in L’Hospitalet in Spain, Kaunas and Belgrade. The winner of each of those will join Seville in Milan for the NIJT Final Four which runs alongside the Euroleague’s main event.

Center Maxim Salash got a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Seville to a 3-1 record and the Citta Di Roma title, he also secured the tournament’s MVP award.

Federico Mussini had 14 points and 5 steals in vain for the Italian hosts.

The next NIJT is the L’Hospitalet tournament in Spain, which runs from January 3-5.

Interview with Citta Di Roma tournament MVP Maxim Salash

{youtube}4MPOzgY9mpI{/youtube}