Red Star Edges Cedevita 87-88 in Adriatic
Serbian powerhouse Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) Telekom Beograd managed to keep its pristine record in the Adriatic league intact with a tight 87-88 road win against KK Cedevita Zagreb. The clash between the two Euroleague participants would prove to be a true nail-biting affair that kept the fans on the edge of their seats until the final whistle was blown. This is just Cedevita’s third loss in the ABA and the Croatian club still sits comfortably in the third position in the league standings with their 6-3 slate. That said, they still have to stay sharp on their toes, as five teams carry 5-4 slates and are eager to climb up the ladder and challenge their position.
As expected, Crvena Zvezda came out strong and began the game with an 11-0 run, hoping to set the tone early on. The double digit lead was not enough to perturb the hosts and Cedevita quickly came back at them, nullifying their advantage to tie the score at 17-17 by the end of the first period. Cedevita showed that they were not going to be a pushover opponent for the leaders’ to simply breeze passed. They were, after all, coming off a six-game winning streak of their own and were playing quite well lately. They made sure that their guests were quite aware at how prepared they were for this contest. As both teams walked off to their respective locker rooms at the end of the first half’s action, Cedevita found themselves ahead by two points over Red Star, 38-36.
Coming out fresh after the break, Crvena Zvezda seized the initiative once again and stormed out with a 12-2 run to kick off the third frame. Their offense was ticking and Cedevita could not keep pace. The hosts found themselves trailing by double digits, 57-67, with only one quarter remaining in regulation. The Croatian fans of Cedevita rallied their club and Red Star felt first hand how much their home court advantage really meant. As a team, Cedevita rallied like there was a championship on the line and not only did they catch up to the visiting Serbian club, but they managed to come away with a two-point lead with one minute to go. Red Star had the depth to look to their reserves to come up with some big plays. Maik Zirbes sank a free throw to bring them within one and Jaka Blazic knocked down a two-point shot to push them ahead by one. With merely seconds remaining, Cedevita had one last chance to snap up the win, but unfortunately Ante Delas missed the last shot attempt.
Truly, this was one of the most exciting games in the Adriatic league for the 2014/15 season so far. The fans who came out to support their respective teams surely got their money’s worth in this encounter between two of the league’s giants.
Jaka Blazic relied on his hot shooting from three-point range to lead Red Star with 20 points. Maik Zirbes added 13 points, while Luka Mitrovic was excellent on both ends of the floor with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Cedevita was anchored by Fran Pepic, who led all scorers with 21 points. Miro Bilan and Ante Delas chipped in 13 and 12 points, respectively.