By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Dusko Ivanovic returned to Vitoria as the coach of Virtus Segafredo Bologna and Will Clyburn created a miracle for him.
With four seconds left and the score 81-78 in favor of the hosts, Virtus had four seconds to tie the score.
Will Clyburn managed not only to make a three, but Chima Moneke fouled him in the act of shooting, and Clyburn with a four-point play won the game. In total, he had 23 points and stole the show.
“Everybody knows our struggles this year and a win like this means everything”, said Clyburn after the final buzzer.
The Italians got their third win of the season (3-12) while Baskonia dropped to 6-9 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague standings.
Toko Shengelia added 16 points for the winners. On the other side, Nikos Rogkavopoulos had 19 points for Baskonia in his best EuroLeague game yet, which was not enough for a win.
A miracle win
The first half was more than balanced in Vitoria with the two teams tied at 38 and no bigger lead than five points.
Nothing changed in the third period with Baskonia having a one-point advantage (57-56) as the hosts didn’t have yet any scorer in double digits, while Shengelia had 14 and Clyburn 11 for the guests.
The dogfight continued in the fourth quarter and with Markus Howard making just his second three out of 13 attempts, Baskonia got a five-point lead (64-59).
Clyburn reacted immediately with a three-pointer (64-62) but Baskonia continued to have a small lead and with Rogkavopoulos making another three, the hosts managed to get a six-point cushion (70-64) entering the last five minutes.
Virtus tied the score at 70, but Rogkavopoulos once again took over with five crucial points (75-72) to keep the distance.
A dunk by Dante Hall followed (77-72) and with one minute left, Virtus had to steal the game and they did just that thanks to Will Clyburn and Moneke’s blunder.
Photo credit: EuroLeague