Former Olimpia player LeDay leads Hapoel; Virtus loses: Mumbrú is clear about the reason for the loss

A two-faced Virtus Bologna suffered a defeat at Sofia’s Botevgrad Arena, the neutral venue that hosted the EuroLeague matchup against Hapoel Tel Aviv. Leading by twelve points at halftime, the Vu nere were overwhelmed by a 54-33 run in the second half, ultimately falling 90-81 at the final buzzer: This brings to an end their winning streak of four games in Europe and seven in the league, in a game dominated by former Olimpia Milano player Zach LeDay, who recorded 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists. Alston and Diarra were the top performers for Virtus, each with 12 points.

“Tonight we saw two different games within the same game,” said Virtus Bologna coach Alex Mumbrú bluntly. “In the first half, we managed to control the game and impose our rhythm, both offensively and defensively, putting into practice what we had prepared. After halftime, however, Hapoel came out strong and punished us.”

“From that moment on,” added the Catalan coach, who has been at the helm of the Vu nere this season, “we were no longer able to maintain our rhythm. The result was a completely different game compared to the first twenty minutes, partly because in the first four to five minutes of the second half, we weren’t ready to stay in the game.”

The schedule now offers Virtus a very brief break to catch their breath: the next game is, in fact, the big league matchup scheduled for Sunday, October 25, at 4 p.m. on the road against Olimpia Milano, while in the EuroLeague, the Bologna team faces a pair of home games against Zalgiris on Wednesday, the 28th, and Besiktas on Friday, the 30th.