Home EuroLeague Armani Milan survived Olympiacos’ pressure to secure another home win

Armani Milan survived Olympiacos’ pressure to secure another home win

Armani Milan survived Olympiacos' pressure after an exciting match and continued their winning streak at home.

Sergio Rodriguez Armani Milan
Photo: Euroleague Basketball

After an exciting game with Olympiacos Piraeus attempting a comeback twice, Armani Milan was too hard to die, securing a tough home win, 90-79 on Tuesday night (26/1). With Kevin Punter putting on a show against his former club setting a new career high in Euroleague and Malcolm Delaney hitting game changing triple in the fourth quarter, Armani continues their winning streak.

Kevin Punter was the top scorer for the hosts with 27 points staying perfect from inside (4/4) while firing 4/8 triples. Malcolm Delaney was also a crucial player for Milan scoring 16 points. For Olympiacos, Sasha Vezenkov’s double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds was not enough, while Kostas Sloukas had 17 points.

It’s all in the details

Despite Armani getting a short lead early in the first quarter, Olympiacos stayed closed to the score, tying the game several times. With Rodriguez stepping on the court, Armani found their missing energy and hustle while the experienced guard made some tough shots, scorng 6 points of the bench to give his team a four-point lead (21-17). Datome came off the bench with a solution and a tough three pointer to end the first quarter giving his team a 5-point lead (24-19).

Dominant in the second quarter

Armani Milan was too concentrated to lose their lead in the second half. They played tough defense with Datome and Rodriguez making the shots the team needed to secure a double digit lead. McKissic brought some energy on the court for Olympiacos but the teams was struggling to find the necessary answers to the way Armani was playing. Olympiacos was down by 18 points, 2 minutes before the end of the first half, but after an impressive run, they took the score down to 10 points to end the second half (44-24).

Photo: Euroleague Basketball

Found their fluency coming back from the locker rooms.

Olympiacos found their fluency early in the third quarter, taking the lead down to 5 points after moving the ball properly and playing as a team. They took advantage of Milan’s turnovers, they stole the ball and scored. On the other hand, Armani was too hard to die with Gigi Datome leading the Italians to extend their lead to double digits (58-48). Olympiacos committed consecutive turnovers which is not something that a coach would like to see with his team attempting a comeback. Olympiacos took it down again to 3 points with Kostas Sloukas with three minutes until the end of the quarter remaining (60-57). The Greeks levelled the score at 60 points with Hassan Martin making the match interesting to watch. Rodriguez was the one who had the solution for Armani ending the third quarter with a three point lead (65-62).

Comeback? No problem!

With Olympiacos coming back tying the game and staying close, Armani Milan found the answer to Olympiacos’ run. The Italians managed to keep a short lead and extend it a bit later, playing great defense and scoring from all over the court. Olympiacos was trapped but was not ready to give up on the game. 7-point lead for Armani with every possession and every ball matter. That’s all before Kostas Sloukas and Sasha Vezenkov hit for Olympiacos. The two players made it a two point game with consecutive triples, forcing Ettore Messina to a time out with 2 minutes on the clock. Armani Milan was too hard to die and secured another home win, 90-79.

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