Virtus vs Milano: Analysis and Prediction – Virtus will host Milano in the Serie A finals game 2 on Saturday.
Virtus vs Milano Odds
Virtus Team News
In the previous game, Virtus lost to Milano on the home court 86:75, in a match in which Tornike Shengelia was the most effective with 16 points and Marco Belinelli and Isaia Cordinier with 14 points each. Now they face the next duel in which they will have to outplay their rival, if they want to return to the series.
Virtus played a great part of the last game. First of all, it refers to the first half in which they limited Milano to 25 points. Ettore Messina’s powerful offensive side did not look their best, while the Bologna squad was very solid in defence. In the first 20 minutes, the rival’s best player, Shavon Shields, missed all six of his field goals, and it seemed that everything was going to Virtus to win. However, in the second half, the situation changed drastically, so Luca Banchi’s team lost control and allowed as many as 29 points in the third quarter. Virtus had a three-point lead at the very end, but even so, Milano won overtime and won convincingly with 18:7 in the additional five minutes. Virtus’ biggest problem is the lack of offensive talent. As effective as Tornike Shengelia is, he is not consistent in that, scoring points is very difficult and is not a pure scorer, unlike Marco Belinelli, who is getting older. Virtus relied heavily on Isaiah Cordinier, which was wrong. When you take into account that defense is his primary task, it is clear how little ideas existed on the other side of the court.
In the next match, they will have to fix those things and be more creative offensively, because that’s the only way they can harm Milano, who are now in a comfortable situation and have completely transferred the pressure to their rivals. If Virtus loses the next duel as well, they will be in a very difficult position.
Milano Team News
Milano defeated Virtus in the previous game and thus took a big step towards the title in Serie A. The most effective players in that match were Shavon Shields with 25 points and Shabazz Napier with 21 points. If they win in the next match, they will be very close to finishing the season successfully.
Milano entered the first meeting with Virtus very weak. They couldn’t find a way to the well-defended opponent’s basket and had big problems. All the best players were shut down and it didn’t seem like the match was going their way. Then in the second half, Shavon Shields woke up. He made as many as six three-pointers after the start of the third quarter, and with the support of Shabazz Napier, he was most deserving of the overtime. Napier hit a three-pointer to equalize in the very end, and could have given Milano the win in 40 minutes, but the referees failed to call a foul in the last possession. However, that only delayed win for Ettore Messina’s side, who again powered by Shavon Shields were dominant in the final five minutes. And as important as the said tandem was for this team, the defense played a big part of the work. Milano did a very good job blocking all the shooting movements of Marco Belinelli and allowed Virtus to score points with individual solutions, which is not their strong point.
The lack of offensive talent of Virtus is a big problem for the team from Bologna. In the upcoming meeting, Milano will try to do everything to direct the rival towards individual creation and reduce team play. If they succeeds again, they will have a great chance to lead 2-0.
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Virtus vs Milano H2H
They have played five times this season and Milano have won three times. The same team leads 1-0 in the series.
Absences and Injuries
Jordan Mickey and Devontae Cacok will not be available for the home team. Alex Poythress and Maodo Lo will not play for the visitors.
Virtus vs Milano Prediction
Virtus showed that they are an extremely tough team, but Milano showed that they can handle and respond to such a way of playing. Now the reaction of the team from Bologna is expected and the fact that before the previous game Luca Banchi’s team was better in the last six clashes in front of their fans, speaks of how important that support is. Although Virtus is in a bad moment, our prediction is that he will not lose again.
Tip-off Time: Saturday, 08.06.2024, 20:30 CET
Prediction: Virtus to win
Odds: 1.73
Sportsbook: 22Bet
*Odds are active at the time the article is published
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