Barcelona was imposing in the battle with Virtus Bologna and with forwards Nicolas Laprovitola and Billy Hernangomet reached a comfortable victory with 84-57.
Barcelona were stormy in the match against their opponent Virtus Bologna, over whom they emphatically prevailed with 84-57.
The two teams were tied for second place, but the Catalans got the upper hand and climbed to 16-8, dropping the Italians to 15-9 in the EuroLeague standings.
Billy Hernangometh (17 points, 6 rebounds) and Nicolas Laprovitola (16 points, 4/8 three-pointers) made the difference for the Blaugrana, with Jan Vesely dominating the paint (9 points, 13 rebounds), while his team Banky lacked scoring solutions.
The race
Barcelona flattened Virtus Bologna defensively in the first half, holding them to just 27 points after 20 minutes. Nicolas Laprovitola was the main exponent of the Blaugrana’s offensive actions, while the Italians did not even have a double figure until the break. 41-27 at halftime pretty much sums up the game.
The Catalans continued at the same pace and did not allow Banki’s team to get close to a single-digit difference. Billy Hernangometh entered the equation for the Blaugranas, who claimed victory in the fourth quarter with a 17-point advantage (61-44). The Italians could not get back into the match and Barcelona cruised to a comfortable 84-57 victory.
THE REFEREES: Belosevic, Nikolic, Chichi
THE DECADES: 20-17, 41-27, 61-44, 84-57
BARCELONA (Grimeau): Da Silva 2, Pauli, Vesely 9 (13 rebounds), Brithuela 11, Kalinic 6, Satoranski 5 (5 rebounds, 7 assists), Hernangomet 17 (6 rebounds), Laprovitola 16 (4/8 three-pointers), Parker 11, Naji, Yokoubaitis 7 (1/2 3-pointers), Para
VIRTUS BOLOGNA (Banki): Cordinier 12 (5 rebounds), Lundberg 11, Belinelli 4 (4 rebounds), Paiola, Dobrich 2, Lomaz, Hackett 4, Miki 8 (3 rebounds), Polonara 6, Zizic 2, Dunston 4, Abbas 4 (4 rebounds)
Barcelona’s team stats: 27/51 2-pointers, 7/19 3-pointers, 9/12 shots, 47 rebounds, 18 assists, 6 steals, 10 fouls
Virtus Bologna team stats: 20/40 2-pointers, 4/25 3-pointers, 5/8 shots, 31 rebounds, 11 assists, 4 steals, 12 fouls
The next matches of the two teams: The following matchday, Barcelona travel to Belgrade for the match with Red Star (2/2, 21:00), while Virtus Bologna welcomes Partizan (2/2, 21:30).