Montepaschi Conquers PalaLottomatica and It’s 3-0
4 June Mens Sana House
ACEA ROMA-MONTEPASCHI ROMA 69-78 (14-16; 27-28; 41-57)
ACEA ROMA: Goss 13, Jones 13, Reali ne, Tonolli ne, Righetti, D’Ercole, Hosley 13, Mayo 3, Baron 4, Moraschini 2, Mbakwe 19, Kanacevic 2. Cch. Dalmonte
MONTEPASCHI SIENA: Viggiano 5, Hunter 8, Cournooh ne, Haynes 12, Carter 5, Janning 11, Ress 8, Ortner 2, Nelson 12, Udom ne, Batori ne, Green 15. Cch. Crespi
Montepaschi besta Acea Roma 69-78 and takes game three of the semifinal series.
Rome starts off strong and leads 8-4 after 3′. Hosley adds points and Green lands 1/2 from the line. Jones scores at the buzzer, but Siena hits the target through Carter for 12-8 at 4’40”. Nelson’s triple has Siena trailing by 2 (13-11), then Viggiano ties the score at 1’13” (14-14). The “Admiral” puts his team in the lead from the line and the quarter ends 14-16 for Siena.
Mbakwe ties the score at the start of the second, but Green responds the very next play. The Nigerian big man ties it up again from the line, but Viggiano hits one off the backboard. Hunter brings a 4 point lead (18-22 after 4’). Roma ties it back up with a 4-0 break that Nelson ends with an underhand shot. Goss triples for the lead (25-24). It’s Hunter for Siena with 4 consecutive points (25-28 at 2’30”). Jones brings Acea within 1. The two teams head into the half 27-28.
Hosley kicks off scoring third quarter, but Siena responds with Ress on the arc. Jones knocks down a center triple, then the ex Sassari athlete brings in a three point play that puts Rome up by 4 with a minute and a half left (35-31). Haynes lands 2/2 free throws, then Mbakwe dunks. the captain triples to make the score 37-36, then the Nigerian big man hits one off the backboard. Haynes brings his team within 1, then Green hits the mark for a Siena lead (39-40 at 5’30”). Milano’s ex athlete adds two other points in the heart of the paint. Ress adds free throws for a 5 point lead and Haynes makes that 7 from the line (39-46 at 4’). Janning increases Siena’s lead to 10. Kanacevic doesn’t miss from the line and reduces the gap to a single digit. Green-and-white #12 knocks down 3 consecutive triples and third quarter ends 41-57.
Virtus makes an 8-0 break at 7’40” to trail by 8 (49-57). The “Admiral” makes a layup and adds the free throw. Hunter scores for Montepaschi, then Jones goes 2/2 for 51-62 at 6’30”. Green brings some magic for a 13 point lead, but Mbakwe responds. Haynes lands the basket but missed the free throw. Goss triples to trail by 10 (56-66), but Nelson scores from the inside. It’s Mbakwe for Roma, then Green adds three points to make the score 58-71 with 2’20” left. Virtus gets points from Goss but the ex Virginia Tech athlete triples down the center and then adds two more points in the paint (62-76 at 1’05”). Baron and Jones narrow the gap. Haynes sinks a two-hander. Mbakwe triples to end the game. Siena takes game 3 69-78 and the semifinal series stands at 3-0.
