AX Armani Exchange Milan kicked off the Italian League finals on a high note by stealing home-court advantage.
Ettore Messina's squad defeated the EuroCup champions Virtus Segafredo Bologna 66-62 (13-10, 15-17, 22-13, 16-22) in an away match and took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Game 2 is scheduled for June 10, at 20:45 CEST in Bologna.
After the close first half with Milan leading by one (28-27), Armani Exchange arranged an 11-0 run and had a 13-point lead (45-32) in the third quarter. 10 points (50-40) differed both clubs before the last tally.
Led by Tornike Shengelia, Virtus came back within two (57-59) with 3 minutes to go in the game. The hosts kept Milan without points for the straight three minutes but Ben Bentil terminated the silence (61-57). Luigi Datome added a duo (63-57), Milan got a couple of stops in a row, and defended a narrow lead until the final buzzer.
Shavon Shields accumulated 18 points (7/13 2PT, 4/5 FT), 6 rebounds, and 18 PIR for the winners.
Kyle Hines added a double-double with 10 points (5/9 2PT, 0/2 FT), 10 rebounds, 1 assist, and 16 PIR.
Milos Teodosic was the best player on the court for Virtus, registering 16 points (1/5 2PT, 3/5 3PT, 5/6 FT), 1 rebound, 6 assists, and 19 PIR.
Armani Exchange: Shavon Shields 18 (6 REB), Luigi Datome 13 (5 REB), Kyle Hines 10 (10 REB), Sergio Rodriguez 7 (7 AST).
Virtus: Milos Teodosic 16 (6 AST), Tornike Shengelia 11 (7 REB), JaKarr Sampson 9 (5 REB), Marco Belinelli 7.
Highlights
