By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Maccabi was tested against the team with the second-best record in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague but didn’t bend.
The Israelis, still playing home games at Belgrade, beat Virtus Segafredo Bologna 95-78, and with a 12-4 record they are part of a three-way tie between the fourth and the sixth position together with Panathinaikos and Fenerbahce.
Wade Baldwin with 22 points and eight assists, John Di Bartolomeo with 15, Bonzi Colson with 14, and Roman Sorkin with 13 led a balanced effort for the winning side.
“It was a battle, we had to match every trick they had, they are well coached with a lot of plays, an MVP candidate in Shengelia and Belinelli is the best shooter I have seen in my life, but we managed to get the win”, said Baldwin after the game.
Virtus, maybe for the first time in the season, didn’t have the gas to go all the way. Marco Belinelli finished the game with 24 points and 7/12 threes, Isaia Cordinier had 13 and no other player scored in double digits.
After this result and the home win of Barcelona over Olympiacos, Virtus is tied with the “Blaugrana” with a 14-6 record.
A good finish for Maccabi
Virtus started the game strong, leading 35-26 after 14 minutes of action behind 13 points and 4/5 threes by Belinelli. However, Maccabi reacted, took the lead back, and at the end of the first half the home team led by one (46-45).
Things changed in the third period with Di Bartolomeo pushing Maccabi’s lead to 10 (70-60) and scoring eight points in the quarter. “I am happy we were able to refocus in the halftime and get some more stops”, Di Bartolomeo admitted after the final buzzer.
The partial score was 24-15, Virtus didn’t have any answers, and that didn’t change in the fourth period.
As coach Oded Kattash said: “Offensively we played the right way, we had the right flow and we were consistent. Defensively the two halves were very different”.
Jasiel Rivero with a goal foul made it an 11-point game (73-62), and the lead went even to 15 points (79-64) after a shot by Lorenzo Brown. There was no coming back after that for Virtus with Baldwin putting the cherry on top after back-to-back threes that made the score 88-69.
Photo credit: EuroLeague