Fight until the end but the victory got away

Cedevita Olimpija suffered their fourth defeat of the 2020/21 season in the ABA League. In the 21st round of the regional competition, the Dragons were defeated 70:76 by Igokea in Laktaši.

The Cedevita Olimpija basketball players suffered their first defeat in the ABA League in 2021. In a difficult away game in Laktasi, they failed to break the resistance of Igokea, which climbed just below the top of the league table with a victory. In the dramatic finale, the Dragons failed to seize the opportunity for a turnaround and were defeated with 76:70.

The introductory minutes of the match in the Laktaši Sports Hall offered the expected balanced performance. The teams exchanged the lead several times in the first quarter, but the protégés of head coach Jurica Golemec took control of what was happening on the court and with a partial result of 23:18 in the second quarter they took the lead before the start of the second half.

In the third quarter, the balance of power shifted to the side of the hosts, who after a series of consecutive baskets achieved the first double-digit lead in the game. The Ljubljana basketball players were having trouble scoring points in a transition, which in the 2020/21 season became one of the trademarks of the team from Stožice. On the back of Edo Murić, the Ljubljana team managed to close the gap to five points before the end of the third quarter, but in the chaotic final they ran out of a bit of sports luck and did no complete a total turnaround. At the end of the game, the Igokea basketball team celebrated a victory with a score of 76:70.

Kendrick Perry scored 13 points, Edo Murić and Mikael Hopkins (11 rebounds) both had 12. They were followed by Luka Rupnik with 10, one point less was scored by Rion Brown. Jarrod Jones finished the game with seven points and five rebounds, while captain Jaka Blažič scored five points.

The busy competition schedule will not allow the Ljubljana favorite basketball team too many days of rest. In the following days, they will compete in two games of the Nova KBM League for the champion, namely on Tuesday against the basketball players of Terme Olimia from Podčetrtek and on Thursday against Šenčur. A new test in the ABA League will be played by Jurica Golemec’s team next Saturday when Zadar will play in the Stožice Arena.

STATEMENTS AFTER THE GAME

Jurica Golemac, Head Coach of KK Cedevita Olimpija:
“Congratulations to Igokea for the win. I can’t say we didn’t want to win, guys really fought. We have not been our best selves lately and we are on the road for ten days. There is no time to practice and it can be seen we don’t have the stamina and focus. We missed some open shots and free throws. We have to get in the gym and put in the work. We will analyze the mistakes and improve in the next game.”

Mikael Hopkins, Player of KK Cedevita Olimpija:
“Igokea is one of the top teams in the league. We knew it was going to be tough to get a win on the road and unfortunately we were unsuccessful. We have to look forward to our next game.”

ABA LEAGUE, ROUND 21

Sports Hall Laktaši (Laktaši, Bosnia and Herzegovina), Saturday, March 13
IGOKEA – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA 76:70 (17:15, 18:23, 28:20, 13:12)
Cedevita Olimpija: Radović, Perry 13, Hopkins 12 (11 rebounds), Murić 12, Rupnik 10, Blažič 5, Brown 9, Hodžić, Jones 7 (5 rebounds), Ščuka, Marinković, Dimec 2.

STATS
GALLERY

STANDINGS