By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Despite not having Nikola Mirotic and Maodo Lo on board, EA7 Emporio Armani Milano got a huge 90-86 victory in Catalunya over FC Barcelona, running away early and never losing the lead against Roger Grimau’s team. With this win, the Italians are 5-9 in the EuroLeague, while the hosts are now tied with Virtus Bologna at 10-4.
Devon Hall had the biggest scoring contribution for his team, putting up 21 points (6/7 from two, 2/3 from three, and 3/3 at the line).
“We were able to move the ball and defend at a high level. When you combine both things, it opens up opportunities to win games”, he commented after the away win. Shavon Shields added 18 points (5/11 from three), being crucial in the first half’s offensive push.
The red-and-white captain Nicolò Melli also contributed with 16 points and 6 rebounds. During the game in Palau Blaugrana, Kyle Hines reached another outstanding milestone becoming the second-best rebounder in EuroLeague history, overtaking Felipe Reyes (1.799). “We had a very good start, Flaccadori was really really clever. My players completely deserve this win, in the few wins we had we beat very good teams”, Ettore Messina commented after getting the win on the road.
On the losing end, Nicolas Laprovittola had another leading night with 16 points and 5 assists, followed by Jan Vesely’s 14-point night with 6/6 at the free throw line. Both Willy Hernangomez and Nikola Kalinic ended the game with 10 points but weren’t enough for the Catalan team’s win.
After the defeat, Roger Grimau showed his disappointment. “Obviously, we were not good. We paid a lot for our bad first half. From then, it’s very difficult to come back”, the head coach said about the first home loss of this year’s EuroLeague Regular Season. During the encounter, Oscar da Silva wore a bodycam for the first time in the EuroLeague.
Milano got the biggest lead (19-10) of the first quarter thus far with a short-roll two-pointer by Nick Melli at 5:14, forcing Roger Grimau’s first timeout. The Catalan side didn’t bounce back and Johannes Voigtmann extended the lead to 15 points (27-12) with a three-pointer off the good ball movement at 2:37 minutes on the clock.
Despite Barcelona’s comeback attempt, at 7:21 to go in the second quarter, Nicolò Melli banked in a 2+1 play. Shavon Shields followed with a clutch bucket in traffic and a thunderous block on Nicolas Laprovittola for the 12-point lead (38-26). The American forward continued his amazing night pushing his team to 51-36 in the later moments before halftime.
Putting more pressure on defense and improving shooting percentages, Roger Grimau’s team reduced the deficit all the way to four points (63-59) with 1:52 minutes left, but Diego Flaccadori – the only point guard available on Ettore Messina’s team after Kevin Pangos was put out and Maodo Lo will stay out for injury for at least three weeks – banked in a long-two at the buzzer.
In the fourth and last quarter, Milano managed to stay ahead until the very end, as Roger Grimau’s team only had the opportunity to reduce the Italian’s lead to six points on two different occasions, and to four points only at the end. Keeping its nerves solid, Ettore Messina’s team went to the final buzzer without losing confidence and, therefore, the encounter.
In next week’s double-game action, Ettore Messina’s team will play both games at home, first against ASVEL (December 20 at 20:30 CET) and then hosting Panathinaikos (December 22 at 20:30 CET). On the other hand, FC Barcelona will travel first to Berlin (December 19 at 20:00 CET) and then to Kaunas (December 22 at 19:00 CET).
PHOTO CREDIT: EA7 Emporio Armani Milano