Cedevita Olimpija defeated in Podgorica

Morača remains an unconquerable fortress for the basketball players of Cedevita Olimpija. Ljubljana team lost to Buducnost VOLI (75:89) in the postponed match of the 18th round of the ABA League.

Great desire and fighting spirit were not enough to win the round 18 game of the ABA League in Podgorica. After the clash with Buducnost VOLI, the Cedevita Olimpija basketball players had to congratulate their rivals for the victory with 89:75. For the favorites of the Ljubljana audience, this was the fifth defeat in the regional championship.

Jurica Golemec’s protégés attacked the victory on the always adverse away game in the Montenegrin capital until the last quarter, when the basketball players from the Dragon’s Nest lost the strength for another comeback. The match did not start too promisingly for Ljubljana, but the basketball players in green-orange jerseys halved the two-digit gap from the opening minutes of the match before the end of the first quarter. With a solid defense, they completely immobilized the home team’s attacks between the 12th and 17th minutes, and the basketball players of the Ljubljana team went to the break between the halves with a five-point advantage.

In the third quarter, the locals took the lead by five points before the final act of the basketball performances in Podgorica. In the last ten minutes, the Dragons did not manage to catch the attacking rhythm, and the team in blue and white jerseys increased their advantage until the last sound of the buzzer and the defeat of the Ljubljana team with 75:89.

With 26 points and six rebounds, Jaka Blažič was the leading scorer of the Ljubljana team. He was followed by Luka Rupnik with eleven, and among the scorers with a double-digit number of points was also Kendrick Perry, who registered ten. Rion Brown collected nine points and five rebounds, and Mikael Hopkins (seven rebounds) scored a point less.

As early as Friday, the Ljubljana team will continue its tour of Montenegro in Serbia. The Dragons will travel to Bar, where they will clash with the Sailors on Sunday at 21:00. In the first match of the season in Stožice, Bar celebrated the victory with 93:88. This will be followed by the relocation of Cedevita Olimpija in Belgrade, where the remaining match of the 11th round with Crvena Zvezda mts awaits them on Wednesday at 18:00, and Jurica Golemec’s team will face the people of Belgrade for the first time this season.

STATEMENTS AFTER THE GAME

Jurica Golemac, glavni trener KK Cedevita Olimpija:
“In the second half, we lacked energy and offensive flow. You can’t win a game if you score less than 30 points in the second half. We were competitive in rebounding but we lacked the energy to finish the game in an even position. Congratulations to Budućnost VOLI for a deserved victory.”

Luka Rupnik, igralec KK Cedevita Olimpija:
“We fought. Unfortunately, we had not played a game for quite some time now. We played well at the beginning of the match, with a lot of energy. In the third quarter, we got into a slump which we were afraid of. Unfortunately we were not able to regroup till the end.”

ABA LEAGUE, ROUND 18

Sports Center Morača (Podgorica, Montenegro), Thursday, April 8:
BUDUĆNOST VOLI – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA 89:75 (28:23, 15:25, 25:15, 21:12)
Cedevita Olimpija: Perry 10, Hopkins 8 (7 rebounds), Duščak, Murić 4, Rupnik 11, Brown 9 (5 rebounds), Blažič 26 (6 rebounds), Hodžić 3, Jones 2 (7 rebounds), Marinković 2, Dimec.

STATS
GALLERY

STANDINGS