By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Olimpia Milano became the first team to advance to the Italian Cup quarterfinals by beating defending champion Vanoli Cremona 86 – 62 in the tournament’s opener.
Milano stormed into the game 23 – 4 and remained at the driver’s seat for the remainder of the match. Cremona was trying to come back until the “Red Shoes” particularly strong fourth period (28-11) thanks to which they closed the match in a dominant fashion.
Kaleb Tarcewski scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 24 minutes while Vladimir Micov and Amedeo Della Valle added 13 points apiece for the winning squad. Nemanja Nedovic dropped 10 points.
Jordan Matthews (16 points) and Ethan Happ (12 points, 10 rebounds) stood out for Cremona.
Milano will face Reyer Venezia in the first Cup semifinal. Venezia beat Virtus Bologna 82 – 81 in overtime thanks to a jumper by Austin Daye with three seconds left in the extra period.
Daye finished with 15 points while Stefano Tonut had 16 for Venezia. Stefan Markovic scored 18 for Bologna.
Photo: Olimpia Milano