A memorable shooting night (16 for 24 from three) allowed Trieste to upset Olimpia, in Milan, 100-81. It’s the second loss of the Italian League season, the first overall during a great ride in January, with ten wins in a row across all the competitions. “We came here with no energy, both physically and mentally we were spent, then we lost Vlado Micov to an injury,” Coach Ettore Messina pointed out at the end. Olimpia decided to rest Malcolm Delaney, Kevin Punter and Zach LeDay, who needed the game off more than everybody else, Jeff Brooks and Paul Biligha were not available so Micov early exit was another tough punch to absorb. “We should give Trieste a lot of credit, however, they came here, defended well, moved the ball extremely well and shot at a high rate, I guess they’d win the game even we had more energy and more depth, I guess,” Messina said.

With its depleted roster, Olimpia struggled from the beginning, especially at the defensive end of the floor. Early in the third, the margin was reduced to two points, when Juan Fernandez started to work, making three after three (he finished 6-for-7 from downtown). Gradually, Olimpia lost some confidence and couldn’t realistically challenged a Trieste team that played very well and over time gained confidence and enthusiasm.

Kyle Hines and Gigi Datome led Olimpia with 15 points each. Sergio Rodriguez added 13 and Shavon Shields 10. Milan had 14 turnovers and shot 9-for-28 from three, way below its usual percentages, but above all couldn’t stop Trieste offense. In the first half, it found some success attacking off the dribble to get to the line (18-for-21), but in the second half it earned only three trips to the line. “It’s a home loss, we’ll have to make up for on the road, but at this time we just need to get ready for Friday’s EuroLeague game in Villeurbanne, another tough one,” Coach Messina.