Derthona Basket, known for sponsorship reasons as Bertram Derthona Tortona, is an Italian professional basketball team of the city of Tortona, in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont.
The team has achieved the promotion to the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) after the end of the 2020âÂÂ21 season of the Serie A2 Basket.
Derthona Basket was founded in 1955 in Tortona, a small town near Alessandria; however the club was later dissolved in 1962, only four years after obtaining the affiliation with the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). In 1965, Derthona was refounded within the newly formed multisport club of the town.
After decades in the minor leagues, in 2008, Tortona signed the Macedonian point guard, Petar Naumoski. With the Macedonian champion, the team achieved the promotion to Serie C1, ending the season unbeaten. In the 2013âÂÂ14 season, Derthona, led by coach Antonello Arioli, was the protagonist of an extraordinary season, which saw the so-called Lions at the top of the standings from the beginning to end of the season. One of the greatest moments of that year occurred on 19 January 2014 in the historic PalaDozza in Bologna, where Derthona beat Fortitudo Bologna 61-83. The team won the playoffs, defeating Legnano Basket Knights in the finals and reaching the Serie A2.
In the 2015âÂÂ16 season, Derthona arrived third in the West Group, qualifying for the playoffs, where it eliminated 3âÂÂ1 Pallacanestro Trieste in the first round, while in the quarterfinals it lost 3âÂÂ2 against Pallacanestro Brescia. In the 2016âÂÂ17 season, led by coach Demis Cavina, Derthona ended the regular season at the second place in the West Group, qualifying for the playoffs where it ousted 3âÂÂ1 Pallacanestro Mantovana in the first round, but it was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Trieste for 3âÂÂ1.
On 4 March 2018, Derthona won his first official title, the Italian LNP Cup, defeating Basket Ravenna 89âÂÂ57. The team, coached by Lorenzo Pansa, qualyfied for the playoffs, ending the regular season at the fifth place in the West Group. However, the Lions were eliminated in the first round 3-1 by Udine.
On 22 October 2018, after three defeats in the first three games of the season, Derthona sacked Lorenzo Pansa and, on the following day, signed Marco Ramondino as the new head coach of the team. On 29 September 2019, Derthona won its second official title, the LNP Supercup, defeating Basket Torino 81âÂÂ84.
In the 2020âÂÂ21 season, Derthona ended the regular season at the second place. In the playoffs, the Lions defeated 3âÂÂ2 Ravenna in the quarterfinals and 3âÂÂ1 Eurobasket Roma in the semifinals. On 29 June 2021, led by important American players like Jamarr Sanders and Jalen Cannon, as well as the young Italian pointguard Bruno Mascolo, Derthona defeated Torino 3âÂÂ2 in the national finals, reaching the Serie A for the first time in its history.
In the following summer, the entrepreneur Beniamino Gavio, who already sponsored the team in the previous season with his luxury yachts company Bertram Yachts, became the new owner of the club. During the first season in the top league, the team confirmed the backbone of the roster, but signed also good international players like J. P. Macura, Chris Wright, Tyler Cain and Mike Daum, as well as the Italian-Argentine veteran Ariel Filloy. The Lions took part in the 2022 Italian Basketball Cup, defeating Trieste 94âÂÂ82 and Virtus Bologna 94âÂÂ82, reaching the finals, where it lost against Olimpia Milano 78âÂÂ61. Derthona ended the season at the fourth place and, after having defeated Reyer Venezia in the playoffs' quarterfinals by 3âÂÂ1, it lost against Virtus by 3âÂÂ0.
Notable Players