By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Carsen Edwards has been medically cleared following an ankle injury, joining Virtus Bologna’s preparations for the next double-game week on the 2025-26 EuroLeague Regular Season schedule.
Before sitting out the Round 19 fixture opposite fellow Italian side EA7 Emporio Armani Milan in Virtus Arena on Friday, the 27-year-old guard started across all 18 previous team outings, averaging a team-high 17.7 points per contest, alongside 2.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game.
Besides Edwards, another former NBA player, Alen Smailagic, is also available for head coach Dusko Ivanovic after a spell on the injury list. In contrast, Mouhamet Diouf (knee) and Aliou Diarra (ankle) have been officially ruled out for the Round 20 fixture versus Zalgiris in Virtus Arena on Tuesday evening.
Alla Virtus Arena arriva lo Zalgiris: il pre partita di coach Ivanovic e Brandon Taylor alla vigilia della sfida 🎙https://t.co/GfGneMdZe4
— Virtus Bologna (@VirtusBo) January 5, 2026
“Zalgiris is a truly serious team to face, especially because they can play equally well at home and away. They’re strong and solid, and they can especially count on guards with three-point range like Francisco, Williams-Goss, and Lo, who are capable of creating and scoring. The game we played there in Kaunas was lacking in energy, so I hope we can play better tomorrow,” 68-year-old Ivanovic previewed the next continental challenge.
Closing the double-game week with Round 21, Virtus travels to Greece to take on Panathinaikos Aktor in Telekom Center Athens on Thursday.
At 9-10, Vu Nere are two games outside the Play-In Showdown zone. In Italy’s LBA UnipolSai, a 12-2 tally ranks first, one game ahead of second-seeded Germani Brescia.