AX Armani Exchange Milan lost its main two playmakers midway through Game 2 of its playoff series against Anadolu Efes Istanbul on Thursday. It didn't matter, as Shavon Shields stepped up to save the day.
Shields soared when needed for undermanned Milan
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Shields did not have a good start of the game, struggling through the first half. He missed every shot he took in the opening 19 minutes and 57 seconds: twice inside the arc, twice from downtown and even both of his free throw attempts. However, Shields finished the first half with a wild stop-and-pop jumper right at the halftime buzzer, which tied the game 33-33 and seemed to change his fortunes.
Once he found that first basket, Shields couldn’t be stopped. He showcased all of his skills in a second half that Milan fans will be happy to remember a long time. Simply put, he carried Milan on his shoulders until the final buzzer.
Shields buried a three-pointer soon after the break, and soon added consecutive mid-range jumpers for a 42-35 lead. Already without injured stars Luigi Datome and Nicolo Melli, Milan continued to lose players to injury during the game. Malcolm Delaney left the game with 7 minutes left and Sergio Rodriguez, who had scored 17 points, sprained his right ankle a minute later. Then Shane Larkin buried a three-pointer for Efes to take a 64-66 lead in the next-to-last minute.
Everything seemed to go wrong until Shields, now running the Milan offense, assisted Devon Hall for a triple, hit another mid-range jumper and took advantage of Kyle Hines's huge block in the final minute to convert a three-point play at the other end.
All told, Shields scored 19 of his team-high 21 points in the second half on 8-for-9 two-point shooting to power Milan to victory and tie the series 1-1.