By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Virtus seemed capable of beating Paris but the French side demonstrated their character.
Despite trailing by 12 points in the fourth quarter, the hosts got the 83-77 win over the Italians.
Nadir Hifi with 23 points and TJ Shorts with 16 led the winning effort in a game decided in the closing seconds.
“We had a tough talk at halftime. We said we need to look in the mirror and have some pride in ourselves. These teams are here to compete; every game matters. We had to show pride in the second half, and we did,” Shorts said after the game.
Toko Shengelia had 17 points for the losing side, Isaia Cordinier added 15 and Rajon Tucker had 14.
The point is that Paris with a 15-10 record remains in the 7th spot of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague standings having played one game less, while Virtus dropped to 7-19.
A real thriller
Virtus at home started the game strong, leading 25-17 after the first period and by 11 (36-35) at halftime, thanks to a buzzer-beating three by Marco Belinelli.
The veteran sharpshooter had eight points in less than four minutes of action, while Toko Shengelia finished the first half with 14.
Paris shot more threes than two-pointers (16 vs 11), however, they made only five threes and also had 10 turnovers against the vicious Italian defense.
However, the French side turned the tables in the second half, trimming the lead to six (64-58) at the end of the third.
Virtus created again distance, getting a 12-point advantage (72-60), but Paris’ answered with a 13-0 run, getting the 73-72 lead.
Entering the last minute, Mikael Jantunen stole the ball, and Shorts scored to create a crucial three-point cushion (77-74) for Paris.
Cordinier made it a one-point game (77-76) for Virtus, Bandja Sy scored again for Paris (79-76), and Cordinier made one of two free throws (79-77) with 27 seconds left after being fouled. That was the last time the home team scored.
Nadir Hifi was also fouled and made two free throws (81-77), Cordinier and Justin Holiday missed and the game was over with Hifi adding two more points at the end (83-77).
“The players were more confident. We turned over the ball just twice in the second half, compared to 10 times in the first. Even if we didn’t have a good shooting night, we were strong on defense. Players from the bench stepped up,” Paris’ head coach, Tiago Splitter, said after the match.
Photo credit: Turkish Airlines EuroLeague