Bologna –
The first phase of the Next Gen Cup 2025 was held this weekend in Varese, which Virtus EmilBanca Bologna finished in first place in its group, co-habiting with Pistoia, Tortona and Cremona. The Bianconeri team will therefore go into the next phase, scheduled to be held in Rimini at the beginning of 2025, on the strength of first place in the standings thanks to the basket difference.
Coach Mattia Largo’s team ended the weekend with 3 wins out of 4 games played, being able to count on the same group of boys who play in the under-19 championship, made up of some 2006 class players but especially many 2007 and 2008 players, with the latter finishing with an average of almost 20 minutes on the court in the Varese weekend. Win with Trento in Thursday’s opener, where Virtus even touched +24 against the Trentino team that is definitely one of the teams to beat this year. Accorsi and his teammates, despite Trento’s comeback attempt, answered blow by blow, closing out the game in the final minutes. Victory also on the second day, this time against Varese: a game always in control for Virtus EmilBanca Bologna, which in the last quarter, with a 24-9 partial, dug the final furrow. Saturday then came the victory against Cremona, with a 58-point scoring first half, which then allowed Virtus team to control the pace of the game in the second 20 minutes. On the last day of Next Gen came the first defeat, on the wire, against Tortona: a game characterized by the physiological tiredness of both teams, after 4 games in 4 days. In the final, Aprile’s triple gave the victory to the Piedmontese team. Despite this defeat, Coach Largo’s team still finished in first place in the round, thanks to the basket difference with teams that, like Virtus, greeted Varese with 3 wins out of 4 games.Now the next appointment will be in Rimini, January 2-4, where Virtus EmilBanca Bologna will have the chance to consolidate the good results of the weekend that just ended and qualify for the Final Eight scheduled for next February.