Trip to Subotica for an important game against Spartak

Cedevita Olimpija basketball players will travel to Subotica on Sunday at 7:30 PM as part of the 26th round of the regular season of the AdmiralBet ABA League, where they will face Spartak Office Shoes in an important match in the battle for a playoff spot.

The senior team of Cedevita Olimpija continues to chase a playoff spot in the AdmiralBet ABA League. The Dragons will try to take another step toward a postseason berth in Subotica, where they will face Spartak Office Shoes on Sunday at 7:30 PM. Head coach Zvezdan Mitrović’s squad heads to Serbia with a streak of four consecutive wins in recent games, and with five games remaining in the regular season, the Ljubljana collective will play out the rest of their schedule.

After Sunday’s victory over Borac Mozzart (92:56) and Igokea m:tel’s loss on the road against SC Derby (109:111), the Ljubljana team is now tied with the Laktaši squad in the fight for fifth place in terms of wins and losses, though Igokea holds the advantage from their two head-to-head matchups.

If the Slovenian champions want to climb to fifth place, they will need to secure at least one more win than Igokea by the end of the regular season. Igokea will face Partizan, Krka, FMP, Dubai, and Mornar in their final five rounds, while Cedevita Olimpija, in addition to Spartak, will take on Cibona, SC Derby, Partizan, and Krka. Spartak itself is still fighting for a playoff spot, and the Subotica team proved its worth by defeating EuroLeague side Crvena Zvezda on the road in Belgrade in the 25th round.

The Ljubljana squad will travel to Subotica without captain Jaka Blažič and Andrija Stipanović, who have been training on adjusted programs and undergoing therapy over the past week. As a reminder, Blažič injured a ligament in his wrist during the EuroCup Round of 16 game against Beşiktaş, while Stipanović suffered a meniscus injury before the home game against Borac. Danilo Tasić also experienced some health issues with his eye at the start of the week but trained individually on Thursday and rejoined team practice on Friday.

TV BROADCAST:

The game will be available to watch live on Kanal A and Arena Sport 1 Premium.

PRE-GAME STATEMENTS:

“We strive to give our all in every game and every practice. Over the past week, we’ve had some challenges and completed our work process with a reduced roster—we’ve been training without Jaka Blažič and Andrija Stipanović, while Danilo Tasić rejoined team practice on Friday due to health issues. We’re facing a tough game against an excellent team, as Spartak proved in their last game against Crvena Zvezda. I’ve had great respect for our Sunday opponents since the start of the season, and they’re certainly capable of achieving much more than their current standing suggests. We’ve prepared for this difficult away game, we’ll give it our all, and we hope that will lead us to a good result,” said Zvezdan Mitrović, head coach of the Dragons’ senior team, before the trip to Subotica.

“We know we’re heading into a very challenging away game, as Spartak has been playing excellently lately. We need to approach the game with energy and focus and do everything we can to secure another win. This period, where we play one game per week, has its pros and cons. We spend the whole week waiting for the next game, but at the same time, we have a full week to properly prepare for the matchup, and then we can’t wait to step back onto the court,” said DJ Stewart, who scored nine points in the last game against Borac, ahead of Sunday’s match in Subotica.

GAME PREVIEW:

Cedevita Olimpija faces a matchup with one of the oldest basketball clubs in the region, as Spartak was founded back in 1945. Spartak earned its spot in the ABA League by winning the NLB ABA League 2 last season, and under the leadership of head coach Vladimir Jovanović, it continues to fight for a playoff spot, just like Cedevita Olimpija. They currently have 13 wins, one more than their closest pursuers—Zadar, Mega, and FMP—and three fewer than Cedevita Olimpija and Igokea.

In their last five games, Spartak has won three times and lost twice, against Igokea and Budućnost. Their most recent win was undoubtedly the most notable of the season, as they defeated EuroLeague side Crvena Zvezda on the road in Belgrade on Monday. The reigning regional league champions led for nearly the entire game, and with 90 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the scoreboard showed 77:73 in favor of the Red-and-Whites. However, Spartak staged a dramatic comeback, sealed by a layup from Rasir Bolton with two seconds remaining, securing a 78:77 victory.

It’s worth noting that Spartak outrebounded and outassisted Zvezda, while the Subotica team also hit 12 of 25 three-point shots. Spartak’s top scorer was Umoja Gibson with 21 points, followed by Stefan Momirov with 16 and Danilo Nikolić with 15.

The aforementioned hero of the Belgrade game, Bolton, has been Spartak’s most efficient player in the regional league this season. He averages 13.8 points, 3.1 assists, and 2.4 rebounds per game in 26.0 minutes of playing time.

In the 25th round, the Ljubljana team confidently earned two more points at home against Borac Mozzart. They won every quarter, taking a decisive step toward victory in the third, which they won 20:8, entering the final ten minutes with a 24-point lead (70:46). The Dragons won the second half by a commanding 42:18 margin. The 36-point victory was the second-highest for Ljubljana in the regional league this season, having previously beaten Mornar by 42 points in late January.

The top scorer for the Green-and-Orange squad, which played without Jaka Blažič and Andrija Stipanović, was Aleksej Nikolić with 20 points. Gregor Glas added 15, while Brynton Lemar contributed 14.

In their first meeting with Spartak this season in Tivoli, the Dragons started cautiously, allowing their opponents to pull ahead early (0:10, 4:16). They found their rhythm in the second quarter, balancing the game on the Tivoli court, and secured the win in the final stretch, taking it 23:12. The final score was 91:82 in favor of Ljubljana. Cedevita Olimpija’s leading scorer was Brynton Lemar with 22 points, followed by Devin Robinson with 16 and DJ Stewart with 12. For Spartak, Rasir Bolton scored 18 points, while Danilo Nikolić had 12.

ADMIRALBET ABA LEAGUE, 26TH ROUND OF THE REGULAR SEASON

Dudova Šuma Sports Hall (Subotica, Serbia), Sunday, April 6, at 7:30 PM:
SPARTAK OFFICE SHOES – CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA (TV broadcast on Kanal A and Arena Sport 1 Premium)

LOOKING AHEAD:

After the trip to Subotica, the Dragons will return to Ljubljana, where they will host Cibona the following weekend. Tickets for the game are available at vstopnice.olimpija.com. After the home matchup with the Zagreb team, Ljubljana will travel to Podgorica to face SC Derby.