By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Vladimir Micov scored the buzzer-beating 3-pointer in overtime to give Olimpia Milano the 83 – 81 win over Valencia on the road. It was a basket, and victory, of major importance for Milano since the “Red Shoes” were coming off five straight losses with seven games left for the completion of the regular season.
Quino Colom went 0/2 from the free-throw line with six seconds remaining before Micov’s game-winner. It was his first trip to the line.
Thanks to this win, Milano caught up with Valencia at 12 – 16. The two teams are on a five-way tie at the eighth spot in the standings.
Vladimir Micov scores possibly the most important basket of the season so far for Milano pic.twitter.com/aD88QGHaF6
— Antonis Stroggylakis (@AStroggylakis) March 5, 2020
Valencia was up 76 – 71 with 1:27 left in overtime after a pair of free throws by Bojan Dubljevic (19 points, five assists) and then 78 – 73 after a tough layup by the team’s top scorer, Alberto Abalde (21 points, six rebounds).
Milano bounced back quickly with Sergio Rodriguez (team-high 16 points, nine assists) scoring back to back baskets to make the score 80 – 78 and then the free throws that put his team at a one-point distance after Abalde went 1/2 from the line. Following Colom’s 0/2, Micov completed Milano’s comeback at the buzzer.
Abalde was the one to force the overtime after a floater by Micov. Rodriguez missed in his game-winning attempt before more than making up with his big-time plays in the crunch time of the extra period.
Micov finished the game with 13 points and seven rebounds. Luis Scola and Michael Roll dropped 11 points apiece.
The match was held behind closed doors due to coronavirus concerns.
A reason to smile
Olimpia Milano snapped a five-game skid in Valencia and coach Ettore Messina was pleased to see his players celebrating at the end of a EuroLeague match after quite some time.
“I am so happy for my players, because they work very, very hard every day,” Messina said. “There were some games that we lost in the end, in the fourth quarter. Even today, we had the lead with one minute left and for some reason, we paid for our lack of experience in a couple of defensive plays. I am so happy for them because they deserve a little bit of joy and now, we move on. But I am very happy. We were patient and didn’t give up. I give credit to them and of course, I repeat, I am happy for them because they deserved it. This is, of course, an important win because it keeps us alive and gives us a 2-0 record with Valencia, so we still have a little hope to pursue our dreams.”