Lively Stožice stands welcomed the win by Cedevita Olimpija

Cedevita Olimpija squad has presented itself to the Stožice crowd for the first time in this preseason and beat Bayern Munich with the score of 74:68. Former Dragons head coach Slaven Rimac and former player Žan Mark Šiško were part of the visiting side this time around.

Cedevita Olimpija returned to the Stožice court in front of 1500 fans in a victorious fashion. The squad, led from the bench by head coach Jurica Golemac, beat EuroLeague side Bayern Basketball with the score of 74:68 and thrilled the gathered crowd.

Before the start of the game, Tomaž Berločnik, the president of KK Cedevita Olimpija, has handed a cheque with the donation of 25,000 € to the President of Slovenian Basketball Federation Matej Erjavec, as a present for the great performances of the Slovenian Basketball National Team at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

At the same time, the Ljubljana side has presented the project, that will take place at the beginning of the season, the celebration of 75 years of BC Cedevita Olimpija, which the club will enter in cooperation with the Museum of Slovenia’s New History.

This time, the team has performed without Marko Radovanović, who suffered an ankle injury lately and Edo Murić, who still feels the pain after a blow, suffered at the game against Pesaro.

The beginning of the game, that has been seen by Dallas Mavericks star and former Dragon Luka Dončić, was tight and the visitors have won the first quarter with 2 points of advantage (17:19). The Ljubljana team has afterwards turned the game upside-down and departed to the big break with 5 points of advantage (38:33). At the beginning of the second half, they went on to further increase their lead and led by 13 points (61:48). Five minutes before the end of the game, the guests have cut the gap to only two points, but the Dragons have defended their advantage and won 74:68.

Jaka Blažič was the most efficient player at the home side, as he had 13 points, while Jacob Pullen and Melvin Ejim added 12 apiece.

QUOTES AFTER THE GAME:

Jurica Golemac, Cedevita Olimpija Head Coach:
»Congratulations to the guys for the win, they have needed it badly to return their confidence. We must know that preseason games are not reality. Just like we haven’t revealed our true face in Opatija, Bayern did not do it against us. The legs are heavy and you miss a lot of shots, besides that you make plenty of mistakes. Together we have had really just one practice, on Sunday night. Now we will have a bit more time to practice and will take advantage of it to get to know each other better.«

Jaka Blažič, Cedevita Olimpija captain:
»A win against the EuroLeague side is a great sign. It means that we are working well and are on a right track, but this does not mean anything decisive. We have been playing without Edo Murić and Marko Radovanović, but they also had several absent players. Both teams are still at the beginning of their preseasons. Both will look quite differently soon.«

PRESEASON GAME

Arena Stožice (Ljubljana, Slovenia), Monday, 6 SEPTEMBER:
CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA – BAYERN BASKETBALL 74:68 (17:19, 21:14, 23:15, 13:20)
Cedevita Olimpija: Pullen 12, Ejim 12 (9 rebounds), Keene 11, Auguste 7 (6 rebounds), Blažič 13, Hodžić 6, Ščuka 6, Dimec 3, Daneu, Carmichael, Rupnik 4 (5 assists).

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