Virtus hosts Real in pivotal Round 29 game

Two of just 14 teams ever to win multiple EuroLeague titles go against each other in Round 29 as Virtus Segafredo Bologna (17-11) hosts Real Madrid (22-6) on Friday. Both teams are battling for big goals this season, which makes this game even better.

History lesson

Real (22-6) can become the first team to qualify for the playoffs by winning in Bologna. Virtus (17-11) is right in the fight to reach the playoffs, too, but faces a tougher path, which means that every home game counts more than ever for the hosts. Earlier this season, Real thrashed Virtus 100-74 in the Spanish capital behind 18 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists and a PIR of 39 from Facu Campazzo. Marco Belinelli had 15 points for Virtus, which had arrived to WiZink Center on a five-game winning streak.

These clubs first faced each other almost 45 years ago, on December 13, 1979. Real beat Virtus 85-94 behind 35 points from Wayne Brabender. Virtus won arguably the most significant game between them, the 1989-90 Cup Winners' Cup final. Michael Ray Richardson led Virtus to a 79-74 win in Florence, Italy, under head coach Ettore Messina, only 30 years old at the time. Virtus has had a 4-3 record against Real since the turn of the millenium. Its last win in the Spanish capital came last season, when Virtus beat Real 91-95 on October 27, 2022 with 18 points from Iffe Lundberg.

Real's current skid

Real is on a rare three-game losing streak. It features consecutive home losses, which had not happened since last season's playoff series against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade. In order to find Real losing three straight regular season games, we have to go back to the 2021-22 campaign, with consecutive losses against Anadolu Efes Istanbul, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens and FC Bayern Munich. Real had almost its entire roster available, only Rudy Fernandez missed some games. What has happened, then?

To begin with, Real stopped scoring fluently. The defending champs are averaging 80.3 points, with 49 assists against 45 turnovers (1.09 assists per turnover), just 51.8% shooting on two-pointers (57 of 110) during this losing streak. These are much lower numbers than during the rest of the season. In the first 25 games, Real averaged 89.6 points on 58.4% two-point shooting, dishing 531 assists against 308 turnovers (1.72 assists per turnover). Real has a lot to improve but running its offense through its centers Walter Tavares and Vincent Poirier should be a turning point for head coach Chus Mateo's team.

Virtus: No place like home

Virtus has been rock-solid at home throughout the season, losing just a couple games: against Zalgiris Kaunas on opening night and against AS Monaco. Virtus managed to win 11 consecutive home games in between those defeats. Meanwhile, Virtus is on a five-game road losing streak, with no wins away from Bologna since January 5, when it downed ALBA Berlin 68-83. Virtus has nine road losses. The only top-10 team with more is Fenerbahce (5-10).

Perhaps no other player shows that two faces better than center Jordan Mickey, who posts way better numbers at home than on the road. Mickey averages 10.6 points on 35 of 64 two-pointers (54.7% 2FG), 4.8 rebounds and a PIR of 12.1 in 10 home games this season. On the road, Mickey averages 7.9 points on 18 of 42 two-pointers (42.9% 2FG), 4.1 rebounds and a PIR of 6.8. It will be a special game for Mickey, one of four players to play for both teams in the EuroLeague since the turn of the millenium, along with Charles Smith, Marko Jaric and Stefano Attruia. Mickey had 8 points against Real in Round 7 but amassed a PIR of -1.

Best Defenders battle at center

It is a very anticipated matchup. Real's Walter Tavares and Virtus's Bryant Dunston, two of the four players that won multiple Best Defender titles in EuroLeague history. Dunston won the award with Olympiacos Piraeus in 2014 and 2015, while Tavares was chosen as the competition's Best Defender with Real in 2019, 2021 and 2023. Dimitris Diamantidis (6 times) and Kyle Hines (3) are the other two players to win the award more than once. All of them are multiple EuroLeague winners, which kind of proves one of the biggest cliches in basketball: at least in the EuroLeague, defense wins titles.