Bologna –
With the regret of what has been left on the road but with the awareness of being able to recover the lost ground, Segafredo goes up to Taliercio for an Italian Eurocup derby that will tell a lot about the next future in the competition. Because, with a full roster, the team can guarantee a strong identity, stinging for the competition. In front of them, they’ll find a Venice whose European cruising speed is increasing: three victories in a row against Ulma, Buducnost and Gran Canaria have given them back their morale and ranking (fourth with a 7-5 record).
The match then blossoms at the right time. Offense and defense, defense and offense, this time the whole catalog will be leafed through, reserving the right to understand if it will be the stuttering Reyer of the championship (still coming back from two successes in a row) or the rediscovered one of the cup that looks for the basket from long distance (27.7 attempts, fourth), precise in shooting (55.5% from two, sixth), smart in recoveries (8.8 third). Among the doubts Stefano Tonut, returned from the National team with a bruised right thigh, Michele Vitali (ankle) and Martynas Echodas (flu), all absent at the Allianz Dome last Sunday. Among the certainties, Jeff Brooks (6.6 points in just 21.3 minutes with 40% from distance and 4.4 rebounds), a key player in the balance of the game. Among the newcomers, the American with a North-Macedonian passport, Jordan Theodore, 182 centimeters playmaker who inaugurated the lagoon experience in Eurocup as leader in points (14), assists (4) and minutes (29.5). In Trieste, the ex-Kazan and Milan player scored 25 points and 8 rebounds, his best Italian performance ever. Coach de Raffaele, who in Trieste renounced Jordan Morgan in the area, preferring the flexibility of Julyan Stone, has a good score, able to squeeze, among the true rotations, 6 players over 21′ and none under 10. 9 come from the quintet, 27.9 from the bench, while at the back only 74.1 points are conceded (second Eurocup defense): not even for the Segafredo with 86.1 points (third offense in the competition) will finding the goal in Mestre be the classic obligatory exercise.
