Maccabi comeback stuns Milan 99-101 in overtime

Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv rallied late and into overtime to complete an improbable comeback from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to stun host EA7 Emporio Armani 99-101 on Wednesday at the Final Four venue of Mediolanum Forum in Milan, Italy. Maccabi made a major step towards reaching the Final Four by erasing Milan's home-court disadvantage to grab a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Milan hit 13 three-pointers, and led in double digits for almost entire second half. David Moss made it 82-70 with under 4 minutes to go in regulation, but Ricky Hickman and Tyrese Rice rallied Maccabi to an 86-87 advantage with 11 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Keith Langford tied it for Milan with a free throws and less than a second left, but when he missed the second, potential game-winner, the game went to overtime, where Rice and Hickman continued doing damage. After Curtis Jerrells hit a three-pointer to put Milan in front one last time, 96-95, Hickman remained perfect from the free throw line in the final 30 seconds, securing Maccabi's crucial win. Hickman scored 18 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to pace Maccabi. Rice added 17 points, and both made 9 of 9 free throws. Sofoklis Schortsanitis had 17 points in 15 minutes, while Joe Ingles scored 11 in victory. Milan dominated on rebounds, 41-25, and put six scorers in double figures, but came up just short. Langford scored 16 of his 18 points after halftime, Samardo Samuels collected 17 points plus 7 rebounds, while Jerrells netted 15. Gani Lawal had most of his 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks in the second quarter, Daniel Hackett added 11 points and 6 assists, while David Moss hit for 10 points. Milan hosts Game 2 on Friday night.