Almost a year later from 21 May 2023, a Serie A Playoff match will be played again at the Il T Daily Arena: from the tears of Matteo Spagnolo in game 4 against Tortona, to the double date with the Italian champions in charge that between tomorrow and Sunday will decide (or possibly extend to game 5) the quarter-final between Dolomiti Energia Trentino and Olimpia Milano. Emotions in the Playoffs, History says, are never lacking.
Paul Biligha, who won the last two Scudetti with the Milan shirt and who knows a lot about the Serie A Playoffs, lived the first two rounds of the series as a silent leader, often leaving the stage to his teammates but being ready for direct confrontation with some of the best long men in Europe. His block on Napier was one of the most beautiful plays of a game 2 in which the attacks were the ones that stole the eyes, rather than the defenses: «Game 1 – said Paul – taught us that if we play our basketball and we manage to put the best version of ourselves on the pitch, we can play it to the end against anyone. The result demonstrated this, because winning in Milan is not easy for anyone and in the playoffs it was something that hadn’t happened for a while. However, match 2 reminded us of the type of quality and strength that our opponents can count on: the challenge that awaits us is to be able to stem Olimpia’s physicality and competitive spirit by making us ready and determined, in every possession, especially in defense. Every little mistake and every little hesitation inevitably against opponents as good as Milan are paid dearly. I believe that in game 3 our objective must be to become the most aggressive and intense team on the pitch.”
