Partizan basketball players have mathematically secured second place in the ABA League with a victory in Ljubljana, defeating Cedevita Olimpija 71:81 in the penultimate, 29th round at Stožice.
This was the first (and hard-fought) triumph of the black-and-whites in the Slovenian capital in official matches since December 29, 2018, when the score was 66:72.
This time, Željko Obradović’s team led from start to finish, opening the game with a 10:0 run, largely thanks to captain Vanja Marinković who scored eight points.
Several times Partizan players reached a double-digit lead, but Zvezdan Mitrović’s team kept coming back, closing the gap to five points before the guests would again pull away with another run. Moments when this was especially visible occurred in the third quarter, when quick three-pointers by Isak Bonga and then Marinković immediately restored the lead to “+8.”
As for the top scorers from the winning team, Marinković scored 14 points (5/7 from the field and 4/5 for three), Sterling Brown (5/11 from the field, 2/5 for three) and Tyrique Jones (6/8 for two) scored 12 each, and Carlik Jones contributed 10 points (4/8 from the field), along with five assists and two steals.
The biggest contributor to Partizan’s victory was Canadian forward Isaiah Mike, who particularly shined on defense – six points (3/3 for two), four rebounds, two assists, three steals, and two blocks.
On the other side, Brinton Lemar stood out with 17 points (6/11 from the field, 3/6 for three) and J.R. Stewart with 13 points (4/7 from the field), while Joan Berenger also reached double digits with 4/6 from the field and 2/4 free throws.
The most notable player for the Slovenian team was Devonte Jones with six points (0/5 from the field, 6/6 free throws), five rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
For Partizan, guards Ife Lundberg, Arijan Lakić, and Mitar Bošnjaković did not play, while Mitrović could not count on Andrija Stipanović and Jaka Blažič due to injuries. Rok Radović played for Cedevita Olimpija after only one training session.
Partizan now has 25 wins and can only move up to first place in the ABA League if Budućnost fails to defeat FMP in Morača (Monday, 17:00) and Dubai away on Sunday at 16:00.
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Source: Sport klub Foto: Ales Fevzer via ABA liga