Only twice since the start of the season has Olimpia won a game scoring fewer than 75 points. Game 1 was the third time. Olimpia shot 45.5 percent from two in Trento, finished shooting 5 for 23 from three and closed the game missing one free throw out of two four times over five trips, with four different players. But they managed to win because this time the defense held up especially in a very physical and nervous second half. Trento hit 10 threes but on 31 attempts and above all was held to 38.5 percent from two. This is the number that made the difference in the end. With a few more free throws made, the game would have been won with a little less tension, but it was still a significant victory. The other crucial number is the turnovers, eight over the entire game, three of which within the 0-16 first quarter run. The third key to the win was the second unit impact: Trento, which normally gets 25 points from the Ford-Zukauskas duo alone, had 16 in total from the bench against Olimpia’s 38. Although this last figure is influenced by Zach LeDay (however, he played for just 20 minutes due to foul trouble in the second half), Fabien Causer (+10), Diego Flaccadori (+14), Pippo Ricci (+11) and Armoni Brooks (+8) all had a significant plus-minus. It was essentially a playoff game straight out of the 80s and 90s: Olimpia won by scoring 27 points in the second half, only nine in the third quarter, shooting 1 from 9 on threes with Brooks and Shields, two of the top ten regular season long-distance shooter, 2 of 14 adding Nikola Mirotic. The team practiced at midday in Trento: obviously after the adductor injury suffered in the fourth quarter, Josh Nebo will not be available in Game 2 and will be re-examined in Milan upon return.

The series schedule

Game 1	Saturday 17 May	18:00	70-73
Game 2	Monday 19 May	20:00	Trento
Game 3	Thursday 22 May	20:45	Milano
Game 4*	Saturday 24 May	TBD	Milano
Game 5*	Tuesday 27 May	TBD	Trento

Game 1 Keys

• Defense: Trento was held to 38.5 percent two-point shooting
• Second unit: Oliampi’s bench provided 38 points; all the players who came off the bench had a positive plus/minus
• Taking care of the ball: Olimpia had three turnovers in the early minutes, five furing the rest of the night.

COACH ETTORE MESSINA – “It was a tough, physical Game 1, a classic playoff game. We had two negative moments, at the beginning of the game and early in the second half, when we didn’t move the ball enough and in general we played badly. For the rest we played a great first half, but in the second half the game became very nervous, there were a lot of isolation plays because we both used defensive switches. We won because we had the the clarity to score a couple of baskets, to grab a couple of offensive rebounds and then this time the defense won it for us. Against a team we struggled against in previous games this time we did better. There were no particular adjustments. We just did the basic things better, we were more aggressive on their shooters, we allowed shorter spaces to operate, in short there was great application by everyone”.

Game 1 Story

1°Q	Diego Flaccadori with 7 points, a key steal and a three-point play switched momentum: Olimpia went from 14 points behind to three: 21-24
2°Q	Nico Mannion, scoreless in the first, scored nine straight points and led Olimpia up by seven at the half: 46-39
3°Q	Olimpia scored nine points in the third but managed to tie the score: 55-55
4°Q	After lead several lead changes, Zach LeDay with 5 straight points interrupted the trend and pushed Olimpia up: 73-70 was the final score