Virtus CEO Baraldi calls loss to Tortona 'a humiliation', sends message to Scariolo / News - Basketnews.com

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Saturday's elimination by Bertram Tortona in the Italian Cup semi-final brought feelings of disappointment, anger, and helplessness at Virtus Segafredo Bologna's camp. For the reigning Italian champs, the minimum goal in the Final 8 was for the team to reach the final game. Tortona were much better, prevailing by 94-82, and club CEO Luca Baraldi didn't mince words talking to Italian media outlets "Corriere Dello Sport" and "Il Resto del Carlino - Bologna"."This is certainly the heaviest and ugliest defeat ever suffered during our management. It was a big disappointment for everyone," Baraldi initially said."However, I am confident that we will overcome this dark passage, starting from the EuroCup where now we can no longer make any mistakes. Tortona were very good and they fully deserved it," he went on to say.The Italian executive clarified that no one "expected such a performance," while apologizing to the fans because "expectations weren't met despite the roster's quality."

Baraldi used strong language referring to Virtus's elimination, addressing the issue as a "humiliation".

"I am also sorry for (club owner) Dr. Massimo Zanetti, who is investing a lot in this project and who has seen the team being humiliated by a newly-promoted team. Tortona are an excellent team and well-trained, but it is one thing to lose to an opponent who is stronger than you and another thing is to be humiliated," he pointed out.

Credit Massimo Solimene/Pacific Press via ZUMA Press Wire-Scanpix

Baraldi didn't forget about coach Sergio Scariolo and his share of responsibility in the elimination. “The coach has taken on all responsibility," he said, adding that "a loss like that is not only the players' fault but also the whole staff's. They will have to find the reasons for this bad result. We can no longer allow an approach like the one we had vs. Tortona," Baraldi noted.Furthermore, the 61-year-old exec made some judgments on players' condition. "Our last defeat was identical to the one we suffered by the same team in the Serie A and this means that we didn't learn much. At the time, there are players who are not in the best physical condition possible, so they could sit out in order to recover.

I appreciate the reaction of Teodosic, Belinelli and Jaiteh, but they also need to have some teammates who are able to follow them."Lastly, Baraldi didn't hesitate to send a message to the coaching staff. "As a member of the management, I can give the staff only one piece of advice: improve the quality of your relationship with players by making less use of technology, and by relying much more on direct contact."

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