Dragons start the new year with a win over Mega Soccerbet

Cedevita Olimpija broke the resistance of the Mega Soccerbet at the end of the fourth quarter to earn the 93:88 victory on the road in Belgrade. The Dragons recorded their seventh victory in the 13th round of the ABA League.

In the opening act in 2021, the Dragons from Ljubljana ended a two-game losing streak and recorded a 93:88 on the road victory against Mega Soccerbet. They thus improved their records in the current ABA League season to seven wins and three losses.

Ljubljana team opened the meeting with an effective play in the offensive half and scored 28 points in the first quarter. The home team came ready to play too, scoring a point more than the Cedevita Olimpija in the first ten minutes. Jurica Golemec’s team spent the lion’s share of the first half in the lead, but the Belgraders did not let them get too far ahead, as they dominated the paint. In the continuation of the match, the team from Stožice established a balance in the rebounding department, while managing to maintain a high field goal percentage, which led them to the first double-digit lead with a score of 90:79 a minute and a half until the end of the match. After 40 minutes of play in the Hala sportova Ranko Žeravica, the basketball players in green and orange jerseys recorded a win with a difference of five points.

Kendrick Perry lead the Dragons in scoring with 21. Jaka Blažič scored 17 points and seven rebounds in the second consecutive game, followed by Rion Brown with 16 points and Jarrod Jones, who scored 15 with six rebounds. In the company of basketball players with a double-digit number of points was Luka Rupnik, who registered 10.

The Ljubljana team will return to the home court on Tuesday, January 5, at 17:00, when they will host the Budučnost VOLI team in the postponed match of the 5th round of the ABA League in the Tivoli Hall. Jurica Golemec’s team will also play in Novo mesto before continuing to compete in the European Cup. Dragons will face Krka in Round 13 of the regional championship on Saturday, January 9th.

STATEMENTS AFTER THE GAME

Jurica Golemac, Head Coach of Cedevita Olimpija:
“This was an important win for us from a mental standpoint. Congratulations to the guys for really focused performance. Mega Soccerbet is a team from the top of the standings, they have two great NBA prospects and they are playing fantastically at the moment. Our opponents had seven days to prepare for this match, while we approached this match after a difficult rhythm and two consecutive defeats. Kudos to the guys. We had troubles with rebounding and defending the pick-and-roll, but we picked up the level of our defense in the second half. The whole team deserves praise but there is no time to rest. On Sunday we will start with the preparation for our next matchup.”

Kendrick Perry, Player of Cedevita Olimpija:
“It feels great. Coming off the two-game skid that we had it was important that we got this win. I am proud of the way we stepped up when our backs were against the wall. To everybody at Mega Soccerbet, I appreciate what they have done for my career throughout the last season but obviously, I had to get this win.”

ABA LEAGUE, ROUND 13

Hala sportova Ranko Žeravica (Belgrade, Serbia), Saturday, January 2:
MEGA SOCCERBET – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA 88:93 (29:28, 20:20, 21:24, 18:21)
Cedevita Olimpija: Radović, Perry 21, Hopkins 7, Murić 3, Ukić, Blažič 17 (7 assists), Hodžić, Jones 15 (6 rebounds), Dimec 4, Brown 16, Marinković, Duščak 10.

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