The Virtus duo led Italy past Georgia in a key showdown
EuroBasket 2025: Niang, Akele lead Italy to first win
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5 Min lectura
In what was a critical game for both teams, Saliou Niang and his Virtus Bologna teammate Momo Diouf provided answers when Italy needed them most, leading their team to a convincing 78-62 victory over Georgia. Georgia was riding high after a historic win against Spain and was well on its way to a second Group C triumph. Italy had started play with a loss against Greece and could ill-afford to fall to 0-2.
It was harder than it looked. Georgia led for the better part of the game and used a 0-7 run to take a 37-41 edge midway through the third quarter. It didn't last long, however, as Nicolo Melli of Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and Darius Thompson of Valencia Basket fueled an 11-0 blitz that put Italy ahead for good. Diouf and an unstoppable Niang joined forces to boost the Italian lead to 66-47 with over 6 minutes remaining, more than enough for their team to keep full control of the game until the final buzzer.
Niang led the winners with 15 points in 17 minutes. Diouf was rock-solid at the starting center spot, getting 13 points and 5 rebounds in 25 minutes. Italy had five other players scoring five points or more in a great team effort. Italy also managed to keep FC Barcelona forward Toko Shengelia and two-time EuroLeague champion Giorgi Shermadini scoreless. Former EuroLeague Rising Star Goda Bitadze led Georgia with 22 points.
Virtus fans have good reasons to look to a brighter future, as two of the squad's youngest players have a significant role on the national team. Niang is 21 years old and set to make his EuroLeague debut with Virtus after two BKT EuroCup campaigns with Dolomiti Energia Trento. At the age of 23, Diouf concluded a promising EuroLeague season with Virtus, averaging 6.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and a PIR of 7.9 in 31 games. Italy comes off a character win before two critical games against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Sunday and against Spain on Tuesday.