The Italian side sank 10 three-pointers in the opening two quarters before maintaining cruise control in the second half
Virtus makes light of Maccabi as hosts shoot the first half lights out
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 12 of 38
Regular Season
Virtus BolognaVIR
9989
Maccabi Rapyd Tel AvivMTA
Overview
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Virtus Bologna ground out an ultimately comfortable 99-89 win over the visiting Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv in what was the Italian team’s last game in its temporary home, Paladozza Arena, where it has been playing since the beginning of the current campaign.
Last year's Italian League champion will move back to its refurbished Virtus Arena after the international break, and the hosts bid their makeshift home farewell with a solid performance in which Carsen Edwards stood out as he sank a game-high 26 points, 17 of which came in a rampant first half.
Edwards finished on 8 of 15 from downtown to underline his team’s impressive shooting day, as Virtus sank 17 shots from long range and 10 of them in the opening two quarters, when it carved out a crucial 56-45 lead.
Derrick Alston also shined with 15 points and 7 boards, while Matt Morgan poured 17 points as Virtus dished out 27 assists.
“I am happy for the team as we did a lot of good things but I’ve got to finish the game better since I committed a few turnovers in the end and I’ve got to be better defensively,” Edwards said in his post-game comments. “Trying to get some wins on the road will be important but we’ll just keep chipping away and we’ll see.”
Virtus was in cruise control throughout the opening three quarters but let its foot off the gas in the fourth, as Maccabi closed the gap to just 6 points (90-84) before the hosts made sure there was to be no final twist.
Virtus head coach Dusko Ivanovic stressed there was never any room for complacency in basketball, adding that his team now needs to prove its credentials on the road if it is to feature as postseason contenders.
“We now have to demonstrate that we are a serious team by playing good away as well as at home,” the Montenegrin tactician said, heaping some praise on Alston. “He played well tonight, just like he did in the las Italian championship game. I think we controlled tonight’s game all the time except in the last quarter, when we had four turnovers and made the situation complicated. Basketball is beautiful because you need to keep your focus for the entire 40 minutes,” he added.
Maccabi won the battle of the boards 39-35 after collecting a whopping 21 offensive rebounds but the Israeli outfit was unable to capitalize on its domination in the paint, having conceded a barrage of long-range baskets while shooting a modest 12-of-40 from downtown.
Marcio Santos led Maccabi on 19 points while Roman Sorkin and John DiBartolomeo netted 11 each, but Maccabi sorely missed Lonnie Walker and the ill Jaylen Hoard, neither of whom got off the bench.
“The things we’ve been suffering from since the beginning of the season came back again today,” said the visiting team’s Oded Kattash. “We need to be more consistent and it wasn’t our best shooting day. Virtus is a tough home team and you have to perform better to get the W. It was a high-tempo game and we failed to slow them down as they shared the ball extremely well.”
