Defeat against Ilirija in the Ljubljana showdown at Tivoli
Cedevita Olimpija suffered a 96–93 defeat against Perspektiva Ilirija on Sunday at Hala Tivoli in the Ljubljana derby of the 17th round of the first phase of the AdmiralBet ABA League. The Cedevita Olimpija senior team experienced a loss against Perspektiva Ilirija on Sunday in the “Temple of Slovenian Basketball” during the Ljubljana clash of … Continued
Cedevita Olimpija suffered a 96–93 defeat against Perspektiva Ilirija on Sunday at Hala Tivoli in the Ljubljana derby of the 17th round of the first phase of the AdmiralBet ABA League.
The Cedevita Olimpija senior team experienced a loss against Perspektiva Ilirija on Sunday in the “Temple of Slovenian Basketball” during the Ljubljana clash of the 17th round of the first phase of the AdmiralBet ABA League. With this result, the Dragons finished the first part of the regional league season with a record of 11 wins and five losses.
The team led by head coach Zvezdan Mitrović had already secured a spot among the top eight teams in the competition some time ago. Next weekend, Cedevita Olimpija will not take the court in the regional league. Before the return leg of the Spar Cup quarterfinals—where they will again face Ilirija—they will play twice in the EuroCup. There, the Slovenian champions continue to fight for a final second place in Group A. First, they travel to Hamburg on Thursday, followed a week later by another away game against Śląsk.
GAME REPORT:
The home team made the better start to the game and led by three points after the first quarter, extending their advantage to five at halftime (46–41). The third quarter initially brought no turnaround, as Perspektiva Ilirija went up by as many as 15 points in the 26th minute (60–45). However, the Dragons did not give up and fought their way back into contention for the win, even taking the lead in the fourth quarter.
The spectators at Hala Tivoli witnessed a tense finish, with the home side celebrating the victory after captain Jaka Blažič missed a difficult long-range shot to force overtime.
Jaka Blažič was Cedevita Olimpija’s leading scorer with 22 points, followed by Matthew Hurt with 20. DJ Stewart added 13 points, while Umoja Gibson contributed 11.
ADMIRALBET ABA LEAGUE, REGULAR SEASON, ROUND 17
Hala Tivoli (Ljubljana, Slovenia), Sunday, February 1:
PERSPEKTIVA ILIRIJA – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA 96:93 (24:21, 22:20, 21:23, 29:29)
Cedevita Olimpija: Stewart 13 (6 assists), Gibson 11 (8 assists), Girard III 5, Radović, Nikolić 5 (6 assists), Brajković, Blažič 22, Ustun, Cerkvenik 6, Hurt 20, Škara 9 (5 rebounds), Kennedy 2.
STANDINGS:
More to follow…
