Olimpia came back strong after a spiritless first quarter and won 91-89 in Treviso. A lethargic start to the game allowed Treviso to gain a 17-point shocking lead early in the game. However, Olimpia responded with a huge second quarter defensively. Treviso was held to six points, didn’t score at all in the first six minutes and at the half the deficit was cut short to one single point. Olimpia made its move in the third period, leading by nine at a certain moment. Nonetheless, Treviso mounted a desperate rally, retook the lead at the end and stayed in the game in the fourth quarter. However, Olimpia controlled the score, led by as many as seven points several times and pushed Treviso back.

Kyle Hines was instrumental in the win. He set the tone with his coming in the game late in the first. He started with a three-point play that launched the comeback. he had another one in the second period and essentially never made a single mistake. he finished the game with eight points, five rebounds, 4-for-4 from the line, countless defensive plays. But in spurts different players contrbuted. Shabazz Napier second half was huge and he finished with a team-high 20 points. Stefano Tonut was supern, attacking the rim and scored 17 points going 5-for-7 on twos. Johannes Voigtmann had a big start in the second half when he scored eight points with two threes and Shavon Shields finished strong.

Olimpia was severely plagued by absences. Devon Hall, Maodo Lo and Nikola Mirotic were all out. Then, even Coach Ettore Messina was unable to sit on the bench because of a death in his family. Assistant Coach Mario Fioretti acted as the head man in Treviso. “We started the game poorly, probably we couldn’t have done any worse, but give a lot of credit to Treviso too. Their first eight or nine minutes were impressive. They are healthy and have talented players on the perimeter. We regained control of the game with our big effort in the second quarter. Our defense especially the first six minutes was really huge. Then, it was a battle and little detail made the difference in our favor.”