By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
BOLOGNA, Italy – The 99-90 loss in the first Italian derby of the season, back in October, made things even more difficult for Virtus Bologna, in the middle of a long-time crisis with Luca Banchi on board.
Tonight, the black-and-white historic side had the opportunity of getting a sweet revenge. By beating Ettore Messina’s team, they would have indeed eliminated Milan from post-season contention in the EuroLeague, as they wouldn’t have had enough victories to join the Play-Ins.
Dominating from wire to wire, Dusko Ivanovic’s team prevailed 90-70, improving to a 9-24 record in the EuroLeague standings, getting back-to-back wins for the first time since the end of 2024.
Matt Morgan continued his recent in-form period, leading Virtus Bologna with offensive sparks at 16 points. Will Clyburn, who recently returned from injury, added 13 points and 4 rebounds.
Marco Belinelli delights with a look-away pass😮@VirtusSegafredo #MotorolaMagicMoments I @Moto pic.twitter.com/sGE3DpgKKo
— Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) April 4, 2025
Toko Shengelia was the usual pillar on the court for the black-and-whites at 13 points, while next to him, Ante Zizic (13 points and 3 rebounds) finally had a solid contribution at the rim.
“Complete game, from the beginning until the end. Defense, offense, against a very good team like Milan. Today, they weren’t the same; sometimes it happens,” Dusko Ivanovic commented.
It was a nightmare all throughout the encounter for Milan, which didn’t find enough resources offensively. Zach LeDay (19 points), Stefano Tonut (10 points), and Giampaolo Ricci (10 points) scored in double digits for the red-and-white side.
“It was a very difficult game for us, we started already with some handicap. They started very well. On top of that, we lost [Shavon] Shields. We’ll see in the next games what our future will be,” Ettore Messina stated in the post-game press conference.
Anatomy of a dominant Derby win for Virtus
Virtus seemed dominant from the very beginning despite being already in bonus with 4:14 minutes to play in the first. Marco Belinelli beat the buzzer coming off the screen for the 13-point lead (22-9) to finish the first quarter.
Nico Mannion’s playmaking abilities tried to shake things up for Milan’s offense, which still continued to be pretty stagnant. As time passed by, Milan tried to reduce the gap, but Ettore Messina’s team wasn’t really successful, as Virtus was still up by 15 points (44-29) at halftime.
Milan’s approach to the third quarter was even worse, also because they were without Shavon Shields, who didn’t come back to the court in the second half due to a groin injury.
Ettore Messina’s team’s struggles were evident on a 24-second violation at 7:30 in the third, unable to get to the basket. Immediately afterwards, Nicola Akele (10 points, career-high in the EuroLeague) put Virtus up by 21 points (53-32).
Entering the fourth, the black-and-white side had already dismantled the Italian rivals, who were down by 23 (65-42). Things got heated heavily towards the end of the game between Zach LeDay and Achille Polonara, which resulted in an emotional confrontation between them with six minutes to play.
Milan stayed stuck in 11th place in the EuroLeague standings, at a 16-17 record. Regardless of the result in next week’s final game of the season against Baskonia, they missed the chance to compete in the postseason.
PHOTO CREDIT: Virtus Segafredo Bologna