Euroleague: Virtus, a 20-point Belinelli is not enough against Olympiacos

Nothing to do for Virtus, who are unable to repeat their success against Baskonia and fall at Olympiacos: it is the first European defeat under Ivanovic’s management, the thirteenth in sixteen Euroleague matches. After a crazy comeback in the first half in which they were 18 points down, Bologna collapsed in the second half under the blows of Vezenkov and Fournier (47 points between them). The absence of Shengelia and the inferiority in offensive rebounding are very difficult for the Vu-Nere. A 20-point Belinelli and Morgan’s excellent contribution weren’t enough: it ended 87-77 in Piraeus.

how beautiful

—

From an infernal start to an incredible comeback. This is how the first half of Virtus can be summed up, as they soon find themselves down 25-7 in Piraeus: a literally unstoppable Vezenkov leads Olympiacos with 14 points in the first quarter, while Walkup cages Clyburn and Virtus never finds the basket. The situation changes with Ivanovic’s first rotations: Akele and Diouf bring their physicality into play, and despite the foul problems the Vu-Nere begin to close the gap. The comeback in the second quarter, however, was signed by the timeless talent of Marco Belinelli: the Bolognese captain made five consecutive baskets, responding to Peters’ triples, while the defense forced the Greeks to take more contested shots. And at the end of the first half, Virtus even found their first advantage: after a draw of 43 with Morgan’s triple, it was Clyburn who shot from far away at the end, sending the teams to the locker rooms at 43-46.

too oily

—

After the blaze of the second quarter, Virtus squandered what they had built with a third period of enormous difficulty: 3/13 from the field and 1/6 from three, with just ten points scored. On the other hand, after a relatively quiet start, Evan Fournier is starting to get going. The former Magic player reaches 13 points and 5 assists, while Vezenkov reaches 20 and Olympiacos regains the double-digit lead. One of the crucial moments of the match is the Frenchman’s triple at the beginning of the fourth quarter after two extra possessions: once again, in fact, Virtus concedes too much in offensive rebounds (13-3). Despite a few baskets from Matt Morgan, Ivanovic’s team totally loses fluidity in attack by relying too much on isolations, while Bartzokas’ star duo continues to score. Vezenkov’s support on the counterattack following an assist from Fournier gives the Greeks +15 with 1’20” to go, effectively ending the virtuous hopes. Olympiacos: Vezenkov 27, Fournier 20, Peters 12 Virtus: Belinelli 20, Morgan 15, Clyburn 9