Virtus dumps Promitheas for third straight win
Virtus Segafredo Bologna grabbed its third consecutive win in Group B of the 7DAYS EuroCup by downing Promitheas Patras 91-72 at home on Wednesday. Virtus improved to 5-2 in the standings and a share of the top spot in the group, while Promitheas fell to 2-5. Kyle Weems led the winners with 18 points and Amar Alibegovic added 14 for a balanced Virtus attack. Jerai Grant paced Promitheas with 15 points and Dario Hunt added 14. The game was tied, 43-43, at halftime before Alibegovic, Marco Belinelli and Michele Ruzzier fueled a 22-2 run that broke the game open late in the third quarter. Little changed after that and Virtus sealed the outcome long before the final buzzer.
Weems needed just 4 seconds to get Virtus going with a dunk. Alessandro Pajola soon added a layup for a 4-0 lead. Grant stepped up with a three-point play and Nikolaos Gkikas added a triple to tie it at 6-6. Jaiteh hit a jump hook, igniting a 10-2 run in which Teodosic and Weems each struck from downtown to give the hosts a 16-8 margin. Kendrick Ray made a jumper, Isaiah Miles bettered Alibegovic's layup with a triple and Nikolaos Rogkavopoulos added a three-point play to bring Promitheas within 18-16. Weems and Jaiteh combined for 7 points in a 9-0 run that Jakarr Sampson capped with a dunk for a double-digit Virtus lead 27-16. Agravanis and Giannopoulos brought the guests within 27-23 after 10 minutes.
Amedeo Tessitori dunked early in the second quarter but Dario Hunt got Promitheas even closer, 29-27. Belinelli buried a three-pointer and, after Hunt scored in the paint, Jaiteh answered with a layup for a 35-29 Virtus lead. Gaddy scored in penetration and a red-hot Hunt followed a put-back layup with a dunk to tie it at 35-35. Tessitori kept pushing Virtus. Miles and Teodosic traded three-pointers and Gaddy sank a jumper to get within 41-40. Grant buried a mid-range jumper and Rogkavopoulos tied it again, 43-43, at halftime.
Grant's put-back slam gave Promitheas its first lead, 43-45, right after the break. Alibegovic answered from downtown and Teodosic found Weems for a dunk and a 48-45 Virtus lead. Grant followed a layup with a jump hook and then fed Agravanis for a close basket that made it 48-51. Alibegovic followed a layup with a three-pointer in a 7-0 run that gave the hosts fresh air at 55-51. Gkikas stepped up with a fastbreak layup but Belinelli did better with a triple and Sampson scored twice in the paint for a 62-53 Virtus margin. Belinelli buried a big triple and Ruzzier boosted the margin to 70-53, after a 22-2 run. Ray's triple fixed the score at 70-56 after 30 minutes.
Sampson buried a floater early in the fourth quarter. Grant tried to change things for Promitheas but Ty-Shon Alexander swished a triple that kept Virtus way ahead, 75-58, with 6 minutes remaining. Hunt dunked again and Gkikas added a wild three-point play that gave Promitheas hope at 77-63. Alibegovic banked in a jump hook and Weems added a fast break slam that sealed the outcome, 81-63. Promitheas never gave up, but the Virtus fans in the stands had plenty of time to celebrate a comfortable home victory.
Promitheas big men step up
Promitheas Patras suffered a 91-72 road loss against 7DAYS EuroCup powerhouse Virtus Segafredo Bologna in Round 7. The Greek powerhouse, however, dominated in the paint through its centers, Jerai Grant and Dario Hunt, who were very effective at Virtus Segafredo Arena. Grant finished the game with 15 points on 5-of-7 two-point shooting and 5-of-5 on free throws, plus 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal for a PIR of 24. Hunt was limited by foul trouble but still managed to get 14 points on 7-of-11 two-point shooting plus 4 rebounds in less than 21 minutes.
Alibegovic bounces back in Round 7
After getting 14 points in Round 1, Virtus Segafredo Bologna power forward Amar Alibegovic had struggled in his team's last five games. Over that span, Alibegovic averaged 4.2 points on 5-of-15 two-point shooting (33.3%) and 1.6 rebounds. Alibegovic bounced back in style in his team's Round 7 victory against Promitheas Patras. He finished the game with 14 points, hitting his 4 attempts inside the arc and shooting 2-of-5 from downtown. Alibegovic added 7 rebounds, matching his 7DAYS EuroCup career-high, for a PIR of 17, a new season-high.
Virtus shoots well, shares the ball
Virtus Segafredo Bologna used its trademark fluid ball circulation to defeat Promitheas Patras 91-72 at home in Round 7 of the 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season. Virtus finished the game with 27 assists, its second-best mark so far this season; it previously dished 29 against ratiopharm Ulm in Round 2. Marco Belinelli dished a EuroCup career-high 8 assists and Milos Teodosic added 6. That allowed Virtus to shoot the ball with high percentages, 64.7% inside the arc and 52.0% from three-point range. Promitheas could not keep up and shot the ball poorly (49.0% 2FG, 21.7% 3FG).
Wednesday, December 15, 2021
Eurocupbasketball.com