The Italian forward tied club rebounding record and posted career-high in PIR as Virtus claims 80-72 victory in Dubai
Saliou Niang makes history as Virtus drops Dubai on the road
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 22 of 38
Regular Season
Dubai BasketballDUB
7280
Virtus BolognaVIR
Overview
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The lights were bright, the stakes even brighter at Coca-Cola Arena on Thursday night as Dubai Basketball and Virtus Bologna clashed in a high-pressure showdown between two teams locked in the standings. Virtus showed grit and composure to snatch a 72-80 road win – its third away victory of the season – and move to 11-11.
For three quarters, it was a tug-of-war. Both sides traded blows, momentum swung like a pendulum, and the crowd roared with every Dubai surge. But when crunch time arrived, Carsen Edwards stepped up with clutch buckets, and Virtus’s defense slammed the door shut. Dubai’s late rally fizzled under the weight of costly turnovers, leaving the visitors to celebrate a statement win.
The night belonged to Saliou Niang, who etched his name into Virtus history with a jaw-dropping performance. The 21-year-old forward hauled in 17 rebounds to tie the club’s single-game record, while adding 17 points, 3 assists, and 1 block for a career-high PIR of 36. It was a coming-of-age display that powered Virtus past one of the EuroLeague’s toughest home teams.
“Very happy,” Niang said after the game. “I’m proud of this team, we did a very good job from the start to the end. Coach told us to stay focused, keep fighting and stay together.”
Of course, he couldn’t do it alone. Edwards added a much-needed scoring punch with 21 points plus 4 dishes. Derrick Alston Jr. contributed 12 points of his own. Virtus controlled the rebounding game, finishing with 10 more than the hosts and earning control over the pace of play. As coach Dusko Ivanovic mentioned after the game, defensive adjustments also played a major role.
“I think we knew how to play tonight, especially on defense,” stated Ivanovic. “Dubai played very, very good, with intensity and focus, which is the key to victory. But we closed the zone and controlled rebounds, which was very important.”
His counterpart did not disagree with the sentiment. Dubai coach Jurica Golemac held his hands up after the game, claiming that the better team on the day came out victorious.
“We didn’t play good today,” Golemac bemoaned. “We didn’t focus. They wanted more than us to win the game, with more energy, with more speed, with more physicality. If you play just 7-8 minutes in EuroLeague, it’s not enough. So, we have to congratulate Virtus.”
Aleksa Avramovic led Dubai in scoring with 17 points and kept his team in the contest during important moments. However, it wasn’t to be and Golemac’s men will be forced to regroup, having suffered just their second home loss of the season to slide to 10-12 for the campaign.
