There’s plenty of history in this matchup.
High-flying Virtus takes on Maccabi in an enthralling contest
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5 Min lectura
In a game full of great storylines, Virtus Segafredo Bologna (14-5) will attempt to defend its spot in second place of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague standings when it visits Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (11-8) in Belgrade, Serbia in Round 20 on Wednesday night.
A history lesson
Maccabi and Virtus first faced each other at the top European level in 1976, splitting home wins in the 1976-77 European Cup. Undeniably, their biggest showdown until now was the 1981 European Cup Championship Game. Maccabi edged Virtus 80-79 to claim its second continental crown behind 21 points from club icon Mickey Berkowitz. Marco Bonamico led Virtus that night with 26 points. It would take Virtus 17 years to get another shot at the top continental title, as downed AEK Athens 58-44 to win the 1998 European Cup Championship Game.
European basketball had two top-level competitions in 2000-01. Virtus won the EuroLeague title in a five-game playoff series against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, while Maccabi won the SuproLeague, downing Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens in the final. Virtus and Maccabi made it to the 2002 Final Four but both teams did not cross paths, losing against the same opponent, Panathinaikos. Maccabi beat Virtus twice in the 2002-03 EuroLeague Top 16, however both teams would not face each other again until last season, when they split home wins. Earlier this season, Virtus downed Maccabi 100-90 behind 27 points from Toko Shengelia and 22 from Marco Belinelli.
Zizic enhances frontcourt battle
Wednesday night’s encounter should be a very special game for new Virtus center Ante Zizic, who comes up against one of his former team. He is just one of three players to wear both teams’ jersey in EuroLeague history, along with Vonteego Cummings and Alan Anderson. Moreover, his brother Andrija Zizic won his only EuroLeague title with Maccabi in 2013-14. Zizic has not played against Maccabi this season and struggled against the Israeli side when playing for Anadolu Efes Istanbul in the 2022-23 campaign, averaging 2.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and a PIR of 4.0, way below his season averages (7.7 ppg., 3.7 rpg., 10.0 PIR).
Virtus is without big men Jordan Mickey and Devontae Cacok, which makes Zizic's role even more important in this game. He will surely see playing time against Josh Nebo, who had a double-digit PIR in his nine EuroLeague games. In that stretch, Nebo has averaged 12.2 points on 37 of 52 two-pointers (71.2% 2FG), 6.8 rebounds and a PIR of 17.7. Both of them will not battle alone in the paint, however. Virtus can lean on two-time EuroLeague Best Defender Bryant Dunston, who often plays solid against Nebo. Maccabi has a lot of versatility at the “five” spot, too, with Jasiel Rivero and Jake Cohen ready to contribute. Whoever comes out on top in the paint is likely to be one of the biggest keys to this game.
Baldwin and Brown: Virtus's main problem
Maccabi has consistently run its offense through its star guard duo of Wade Baldwin and Lorenzo Brown. What’s more, both of them have done well against Virtus since the Italian powerhouse returned to the competition last season. In Round 13, Virtus came out on top against Maccabi, but both Baldwin and Brown played well. Brown had 26 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists for a PIR of 32, whereas Baldwin posted 20 points and a PIR of 17. Last season, Maccabi topped Virtus 111-80, as Baldwin and Brown combined for 28 points, 15 assists and a PIR of 46. Maccabi was without Baldwin in a 78-73 road defeat against Virtus in December 2022, yet Brown played well again, getting 18 points, 6 assists and a PIR of 20.
Virtus has a few reasons to be more optimistic this time around, as it comes into this game with three backcourt players that were not there in Round 13: Awudu Abass, Rihards Lomazs, Alessandro Pajola. Abass is a big, physical swingman who can cause problems for Baldwin, and Pajola's on-ball defense is likely to be crucial against Brown. Virtus scored 100 points against Maccabi this season, and Oded Kattash’s squad is coming off a 109-74 road loss against Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul last week, so defense must have been the word of the week for the Israeli tactician and his assistants.
This game is the complete package: tradition, great players and a lot of interesting matchups, both inside and outside the paint. Expect a great game at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in the Serbian capital on Wednesday at 21:00 CET.