Armani Milano nails team-record 21 3-pointers in rout

Armani Milano scored the first 10 points and rode the wave of hot outside shooting against Italian Serie A foe Fortitudo Bologna en route to a 98-72 victory on Sunday.

In the rout, coach Ettore Messina’s club buried 21 of 31 3-point attempts. It was a league record for the team.

So what was Messina’s assessment of his team’s offensive performance?

“We had a great start, very active, we moved the ball, shot at a very high percentage and 29 assists are obviously a beautiful number,” Messina commented.

Armani Milano shooting stars

Shooting guard Kevin Punter paced Armani Milano with 25 points. The New York City native had 22 points in the first half. He finished 6 of 7 from beyond the arc and 8-for-10 from the floor.

It wasn’t a one-man offensive show. Milano built a 59-33 halftime lead.

Michael Roll, who sank 4 of 4 from long range, poured in 16 points, Vladimir Micov provides 11 points, including a pair of 3s. Playmaker Sergio Rodriguez was 3-for-3 on 3s in an 11-point, seven-assist effort. Rodriguez recently became the eighth player to score more than 3,000 points in the EuroLeague.

Setting the standard

With the win, Messina’s team improved its Italian Serie A-best record (16-2).

On the other hand, Fortitudo Bologna fell to 7-11. Dario Hunt led the way with 17 points. Teammates Adrian Banks and Wesley Saunders added 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Meanwhile, with Armani Milano at the top, Happy Casa Brandisi and Banco de Sardegna Sassari are tied for the second-best record (13-5).

EuroLeague update

In the run-up to the match against Fortitudo Bologna, Armani Milano defeated EuroLeague foe Khimki Moscow 84-74 on Thursday. The winners made 11 of 25 3s in the game, a far cry from Sunday’s lights-out shooting.

Success for Armani Milano star

Punter produced a EuroLeague career-high effort with 27 points against Olympiakos in Armani Milano’s 90-79 victory on Jan. 27.