First defeat of the season for Napoli Basketball. Coach Repesa’s team lose against Olimpia Milano after a tough, hard-fought game, losing 98-82.
Azzurri got off to a flying start, putting together a 7–0 run led by Tarcszewski and Seljaas. Milano got on the scoreboard with a three-pointer from Mathews, followed by an exchange between Diop and Caruso. Faggian’s basket made it 12–7. The game was played at a fast pace, with Brown and Petrucelli scoring for Napoli and Tonut responding from the corner. Towards the end of the quarter, Napoli stepped up the pace to take an 18–25 lead, with a three-pointer from Seljaas, at the end of first quarter. Olimpia started the second period better, with three-pointers from Ricci, Bolmaro and Thompson bringing the score level at 27–27 after four minutes. Defences tightened during this phase and shooting percentages dropped. Milano began to pull away through Cole, while Ramsey scored for Napoli. Cole’s basket brought the second quarter to an end with Milano leading 42–38.
The third quarter opened with both teams trading three-pointers. Seljaas and Petrucelli scored for Napoli, while Wright and Mathews replied for Milano. Dowtin Jr. scored on a drive to the basket, but Milano pulled away again through Cole and Wright to make it 53–47. Mathews and Brown exchanged three-pointers, before Cole scored six consecutive points for Milano to extend the lead to 62–55, prompting a timeout from Repesa. Napoli tried to fight back with a three-pointer from Dowtin Jr., but Diop scored while drawing a foul, leaving Milano ahead 67–61 at the end of the third quarter. Milano made another strong start to the final quarter, putting together a 6–0 run led by Diop. Brown hit a three-pointer, and Ricci responded at the other end. White threw down a dunk to cut the deficit to nine points with six minutes remaining, but Wright restored Milano’s double-digit lead. Cole then hit a three-pointer to put Olimpia 15 points ahead. Brown continued to fight until the end, but the game finished 98-82 in for Olimpia Milano.
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Coach Repesa:
“We are disappointed with the defeat because we received tremendous support from our fans in a sold-out Alcott Arena. We prepared very well for the game, as shown by our excellent start.
Unfortunately, we lost our lucidity in the second quarter and allowed them to take the lead too easily. You need to be patient in games like these; you have to build things step by step.
We made too many mistakes to beat a strong opponent like Milano. These things happen, and we move on.
We hope to see our wonderful fans back in the stands on Wednesday evening. This team deserves to win again and is determined to get back to winning ways as soon as possible.”
The Azzurri will return to action on Wednesday, 21 October, at 8:00 p.m. at the Alcott Arena, where they will face Tofas Bursa in the fourth round of the EuroCup.