Crvena zvezda’s basketball players were defeated by Olimpia Milano with a score of 92:82 at the start of the EuroLeague in a crowded Belgrade Arena.
Milano looked more confident on the court in the first half, while Zvezda relied on the shooting of Jordan Nwora and one-on-one plays from Tyson Carter.
A large number of turnovers by Zvezda in the first 20 minutes cost the red-and-whites a better result, and Milano went to halftime with a four-point lead, 45:41.
Two early fouls by the unfocused Chima Moneke, along with a poor performance from McIntyre, prompted Sferopoulos to lean on Carter’s creation, supported in his role by Nikola Kalinić and Ebuka Izundu.
On the other side, Milano tormented Zvezda in the pick-and-roll game, with the tandems Mannion–Booker and Bolmaro–Booker standing out, while also adding the routine one-on-one play of Zach Leday – the former Partizan star who patiently waited for mismatch situations.
The second half brought a completely different Moneke, primarily in terms of energy. His rebounding on both ends of the court and defensive aggressiveness woke up the entire Arena, and Zvezda managed to take the lead midway through the third quarter.
However, Marko Gudurić appeared at the end of the third quarter and determined the further course of the game.
Zvezda began making mistakes in the fourth quarter and losing possessions rapidly, allowing Milano to quickly extend the lead to plus 12.
At that point, Red Star also faced problems on the defensive rebound, which Milano exploited, while Gudurić continued to spread the game and score.
Zvezda failed to maintain aggressive and purposeful play on offense until the end, and despite waking up and closing the gap to minus five, they were ultimately deservedly defeated by Milano, who played more composedly tonight.
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Source: Kurir, Foto: Printscreen X