The Croatian center shined in all departments as the Italian side celebrated only its second win this season
Ante Zizic came up big for Virtus to stop the rot and subdue Maccabi
Article
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 8 of 34
Group Regular Season
w
l
l
w
l
l
w
l
l
l
Virtus Segafredo Bologna gave its long-suffering fans something to cheer about with an industrious 84-77 home win over Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in Round 8 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, improving to 2-6 while the Israeli outfit dropped to 3-5.
The contest was decided by fine margins as Virtus sank 11-of-25 shots from deep to compensate for struggling from the foul line, having made only 9-of-17 free throws. Maccabi nailed 7 of 17 from downtown and a modest 25 of 52 from two-point territory, where Virtus buried 21 of 38.
The home team clearly took better care of the ball on offense as it dished out 23 assists while committing 11 turnovers, whereas Maccabi only had 15 assists against 13 turnovers.
Maccabi won the battle of the boards overall, 32-35, thanks to racking up 3 offensive rebounds more than Virtus (14-17). However, that particular stat does not paint a picture as 7 of those offensive boards for Virtus came from player of the game Ante Zizic, who converted most of them into second-chance points which made all the difference in the end.
The Croatian big man was elated after a superb individual performance, in which he amassed 14 points, 9 boards and a career-high 4 steals, facilitating a lifeline win for the Italian team and their first at home in the competition this season.
“It’s a very big and very important win for us,” Zizic said in his post-game comments. “I just tried to get every ball on the rim and tonight was the night as I caught 7 offensive rebounds, but the most important thing is that the team did a great job. We held them [in check] defensively, we controlled most of the game and found our shots.
“It’s crucial to protect the home court and tonight we did it thanks to our fans. We had a bad start in the EuroLeague, but they keep getting behind us and pushing us.”
The outcome was a huge relief for Virtus head coach Luca Banchi, who came under pressure after a series of tough losses as the Italian side’s only previous win in the competition this season came on the road against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Round 5.
“We were pretty solid and produced a better shot selection in the second half, while we also did an excellent job with the offensive rebounds,” said Banchi. “Everybody stepped up to finally get this first home win in the EuroLeague.”
Toko Shengelia produced another rock-solid performance for Virtus, dropping a team-high 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor to go with 5 rebounds and 2 assists. The Georgian forward heaped praise on the fervent home fans who roared on their team relentlessly from start to finish.
“At this point we needed to win, and I feel like the whole team should be standing here because everyone did an amazing job,” Shengelia said in the interview area. “Zizic’s presence was crucial today and the fans’ support was unbelievable. We know a tough schedule is coming up so we have to start preparing for it as of tomorrow.”
Virtus could not have asked for a more challenging double round next week, as the Italian side visits Real Madrid before taking on reigning champion Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens at home.
Maccabi’s timetable is just as demanding, with the Israeli travelling to take on Panathinaikos before entertaining the other Greek powerhouse, Olympiacos Piraeus.