First defeat as head coach for Poeta: Milan pays for the many turnovers against coach Galbiati’s team (Spagnolo 18). Sixth home success out of six VuNere games (Edwards 23)
Two-faced evening for the Italians in the fourteenth round of the Euroleague. Milan’s performance was gloomy, falling for the seventh time in the season, suffering the high pace of Baskonia, who won at home 88-78. The former Luwawu-Cabarrot (21 points) and the Italian Matteo Spagnolo (18) were decisive. This brings Paolo Galbiati’s men their fifth European victory, while Poeta’s boys pay for the 17 turnovers. Bologna, on the other hand, is smiling, maintaining its internal unbeaten record in the Euroleague in the season opener at the Virtus Arena: Edwards leads his team against Dubai, but it is Vildoza who decides the match with two feats in the final seconds. It ends 79-78, and Ivanovic’s team joins Olimpia in eleventh place in the standings with a record of 7-7.
BASKONIA-MILAN 88-78
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The start of the Buesa Arena provides a first key to understanding the match. Both teams are more dangerous when they go into transition and struggle with defense deployed. Milan shoots with good percentages in the first half (12/20 from 2, 4/11 from 3), but pays for the many turnovers (17 in total) and suffers the reactivity of Galbiati’s men in rebounds (17 in the 20th minute, of which 6 offensive). The Basques enjoyed the excellent first half with 13 points from Spagnolo, capable of scoring from 3 and stopping and shooting. The blue also tries to launch the home team’s escape with a triple (32-25). EA7 resists thanks to the penetrations of Brooks and Bolmaro and the internal play of Booker and Nebo (42-38 at 17′). Between the end of the first half and the beginning of the second, Baskonia posted a 9-0 run, produced above all by triples from Nowell and Simmons (55-42). Olimpia pays for the Basque physicality and makes many defensive errors. Shields tries to keep his team up and scores 7 points in a row (55-49 at 26′). The Dane’s outburst isn’t enough, Milan suffers another 10-1 break, the result of triples in transition from an excellent Luwawu-Cabarrot and the usual Spagnolo (67-49 in the 28th minute). Galbiati’s men continue to manage the match even in the last 10′ and win the seventh match in a row between the championship and the Euroleague at home. Baskonia: Luwawu-Cabarrot 21, Spagnolo 18, Simmons 11 Milan: Bolmaro, Brooks 16, Booker 13, Shields 10
VIRTUS BOLOGNA-DUBAI 79-78
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For now, there is no passing in Bologna: Dubai also discovers this, surrendering at the end at the end of a hard-fought and physical match in every possession, which the Italian champions bring home despite a more aggressive attack than usual. After some initial difficulties, in fact, Virtus broke free with Alston, who scored 8 points in a row. With 4 steals in the first 10′, Bologna flies on the counterattack and takes advantage of the combinations between Edwards, Alston and Diouf to escape to 26-13 after 8′, with a run of 24-6. From that moment, however, the match changes: Kamenjac and Anderson come on from the bench, Dubai increases its physicality and Virtus doesn’t score for 6 minutes. The result was a run of 0-16, with Golemac’s men dominating in offensive rebounding (7 in the 2nd quarter alone) and gaining points on the line. Edwards is the only one to respond, and keeps his team alive by scoring 10 of Virtus’ 13 points in the second period: at halftime it’s 39-44. The game remains balanced, with physical defenses and attacks in difficulty (both teams shoot 21% from the field), and we enter the 4th period at 54-56. It is here that Virtus finds some fluidity in attack, Edwards finds support in Diouf and Vildoza to counter the blows of Anderson and Wright. Thus we enter the final minute with Dubai up 76-78, and Vildoza puts on his superhero cape: he scores the overtaking triple 28” from the siren after a super offensive rebound from Diouf, then steals the ball from Petrusev in the last action of the match, causing the Virtus Arena to explode. Virtus: Edwards 23, Alston 11, Vildoza 11
Dubai: Anderson 16, Avramovic 13, Kamenjas 13
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