Milan are 1-5 and concede 93.2 a night. Poeta's next test is Barcelona
Dwayne Bacon took six three-pointers at the Unipol Forum on Thursday and made all six, and Olimpia Milano's season slid a little further. Dubai won 101-97, Milan's fourth EuroLeague defeat in a row and their fifth in six games, and coach Peppe Poeta admitted the record "is not what we wanted".
- Bacon scored 29 points in 24:37 for Dubai, who led 83-68 after three quarters before Milan cut it to two in the final minute (EuroLeague box score).
- Milan are 1-5 with 559 points conceded, 93.2 a game; their only win is 87-85 over Virtus in round 2.
- Next: Napoli away in Serie A on Sunday, then Barcelona at the Forum on Thursday, 22 October.
The game was lost long before the end. Dubai, coached by Xavi Pascual, scored 29, 27 and 27 in the first three quarters and went into the last ten minutes 83-68 up. Milan's 29-18 final quarter, to 97-99 inside the last minute, only made the scoreline look closer than the game was. Garrison Mathews (21) and Moses Wright (16) led Milan, while Mfiondu Kabengele added 18 for Dubai behind Bacon.
Poeta did not hide from it. "Siamo dispiaciuti, il bilancio non è quello che volevamo," he told the club's website: we are disappointed, the record is not what we wanted. He saw "tanti segnali positivi" in the late comeback, but added: "Purtroppo non è stato abbastanza per vincere la partita." The Italian press has started to use the word crisis about Milan's European season.
The numbers point at the defence. Milan lost 92-76 at Partizan, 86-76 at Baskonia, 97-79 to Maccabi Tel Aviv in Belgrade, 98-89 at home to Real Madrid and now 101-97 to Dubai, and have conceded 559 points in six games, an average of 93.2. No team with play-off ambitions can carry that for long. No report so far suggests the club is reconsidering Poeta's position, and we are not suggesting it either.
Milan also lost both home games in Europe this month, and the Forum has stopped being an advantage. What happens next: Napoli v Milan in Serie A on Sunday, 18 October, at 12:00 CEST, then Milan v Barcelona in the EuroLeague on Thursday, 22 October, at 20:30 CEST.
Poeta's problem is defence, not a bad run
Our editorial team thinks the 1-5 record is telling the truth. A team that allows 93.2 points a game is not unlucky in close finishes; it is giving up too much before the finish arrives. If Milan hold Barcelona under 85 at the Forum next Thursday, Poeta has a base to build on; if they concede another 95, the questions about his job will start from inside the building.
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