Bologna. May 27, 2022 – Victory with the thrill for the Italian champions of Virtus Segafredo Bologna who, after being at a disadvantage for large sections of the match, place the winning paw bending 77-73 a tough Bertram Tortona to say the least and scoring the 1-0 point in the semi-final championship. A success that unquestionably bears the signature of a possessed person Marco Belinelli that in the fourth quarter the bianconeri took charge, scoring 19 of his 25 total points and weakening the resistance of the Piedmontese. In double figures among the bianconeri, who managed to impose themselves despite the bad evening shooting from outside (7/25 from three overall), also Mouhammadou Jaiteh (13 points), the returning Toko Shengelia (11 points) and Milos Teodosic who has nearly double the double with 10 points and 9 assists. On the front of the Piedmontese, who in the final missed a +8 which perhaps would have been quite heavy for the final economy of the match, the performances of Sanders (16 points), Severini and Mascolo were good, while they did not manage to affect as in others bargains Mike Daum and JP Macura.
The race
Virtus started with their foot on the accelerator (12-3), but Tortona – despite a few too many losses and a 1/4 from three in the opening 10 ‘- managed to adjust the shot and limit the damage in the fourth quarter. (21-16). Prelude to the blaze that broke out at the dawn of the second fraction when Bertram put her head forward with a 7-0 (21-23), then managed to resist a subsequent Bolognese counterbreak and respond in the final stages of the first half with Severini and Macura for the 35-38 outside mid-match. The balance then remained intact for most of an offensively miserly third quarter, but in the final the guests still had another start and, thanks to Sanders ‘bombs, they managed to secure two possessions of advantage with 10’ from the end ( 43-49). A buffer of advantage that the Piedmontese have tried to defend tooth and nail, clinging to the plays of Mascolo Severini and Cannon. Macura’s counterattack error on +6 outside with 3 ‘from the end, however, kept Virtus alive that relied on a Belinelli tarantolato to place the leg of the overtaking from the arc on 75-73 and then put the win on the ice in the line.
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