Domestic leagues: Buducnost claims Montenegrin championship

Buducnost claims Montenegrin championship

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica won the Montenegrin League championship for the 14th time after defeating Mornar Bar 90-82 on Wednesday. Buducnost needed the maximum five games to take the best-of-five series. Kendrick Perry shined with 27 points and 6 assists to pace the winners, Filip Barovic scored 11 and Zoran Nikolic contributed 9 points, 7 boards and 3 blocks. Sead Sehovic paced Bar with 24 points, Aleksandar Lazic contributed 14, Marko Jeremic 13, Taylor Smith 11 and Strahinja Micovic 10.

Bar led 29-30 after Sehovic was fouled shooting a three-pointer and made the resulting free throws. Five Buducnost players scored in a 13-0 run after that and a triple by Perry put the hosts up 13 before Lazic’s three-pointer trimmed the gap to 45-35 at the break. Bar started the second half on a tear with Jeremic leading a 1-9 rally to get within a basket. Back-to-back threes by Perry and Marko Jagodic Kuridza put the hosts back in control and it was 69-60 through three quarters. Bar scored the first 5 points of the fourth quarter and got within 74-73 before Popovic came through with clutch baskets to rescue Buducnost and Perry put the game and series on ice.

Virtus drops opener in Italian finals

AX Armani Exchange Milan held off Virtus Segafredo Bologna 62-66 to take the opening game of the best-of-seven Italian league finals. Shavon Shields led the winners with 18 points, Luigi Datome added 13, Kyle Hines posted 10 points and 10 rebounds and Sergio Rodriguez scored 7 and dished 7 assists for the winners. Milos Teodosic produced 16 points and 6 assists for Virtus in defeat and Tornike Shengelia added 11 points and 7 rebounds.

There was little to separate the teams in the first half, in which neither team ever led by more than 5 points. Milan held a 27-28 advantage at the break. Milan made its move with a 0-11 third-quarter run that Datome capped with 5 points to make it 32-45. Free throws by Shields maintained a double-digit margin, 40-50, at the end of the third. Teodosic came alive to halve the deficit and Shengelia got the hosts within 57-59. Ben Bentil and Datome helped Milan add to its lead and the visitors held on the rest of the way.

Joventut loses to Barcelona in Game 3 of Spanish semis

FC Barcelona took a 2-1 lead in its Spanish League semifinals series against Joventut Badalona with a 77-83 road win. The series is a best-of-five affair. Nikola Mirotic scored 18 points and grabbed 7 rebounds to lead the winners, who never trailed. Corey Higgins added 13 points and Nicolas Laprovittola had 10. Ante Tomic paced Joventut with 21 points and 7 rebounds, Derrick Willis scored 17, Guillem Vives 13 and Pau Ribas 10.

Brandon Davies scored twice as Barcelona took a 0-6 lead, which grew to double figures on a Laprovittola three-pointer. The margin sat at 14-23 after 10 minutes. Vives and Ribas cut into the Joventut deficit early in the second quarter and Joel Parra made it 29-30. Back-to-back threes by Kyle Kuric and Mirotic gave Barca breathing room and Higgins made it 36-46 at halftime. Willis and Tomic rallied the hosts to 45-48, but they could get no closer and the score stood at 56-61 after three quarters. Free throws by Davies made it a 10-point margin, though Joventut continued to battle and got within 5 in the closing minutes. Tomic made it 74-77 with a minute to go, however, a triple by Nick Calathes all but sealed the victory.