Regular Season
Round 15 of 18
Group B
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Elite defense, Green’s contributions guided Buducnost
Article
3 Mins read
Buducnost VOLI Podgorica put on a solid defensive display to end Hapoel Vegan Friendly Tel Aviv’s seven-game winning streak with an 89-79 victory on home soil in Round 15. Heading into Tuesday’s game at Moraca, the visitors boasted the finest attack in the competition with an average of 87.9 points scored per game. Yet, Buducnost managed to hold the visitors to just 79 points by conceding fewer than 20 points in each of the first three quarters.
Despite leading the league in assists with an impressive average of 21.7 per game, Hapoel Tel Aviv struggled to create on offense; it recorded just 13 assists alongside 14 turnovers. Buducnost once again demonstrated that it has one of the finest defenses in the competition, averaging a EuroCup-low 74.7 points conceded per game.
The hosts practically killed the game off in the early stages of the fourth quarter by grabbing a 73-53 lead with 8 minutes to go.
“We didn’t start the game with the right attitude to compete with a team like Buducnost, especially at their home court,” Hapoel's head coach Danny Franco noted after the game. “The beginning of the game frustrated us, it made us take a lot of bad decisions on the offensive side and that’s not how we are leading the EuroCup in points and assists. We didn’t look like that today.”
Buducnost took advantage of Hapoel Tel Aviv’s frustration in the first half to build momentum through defense and went on a decisive 17-0 run in the second quarter. Erick Green scored more than 20 points for the second game in a row and the visitors could find no answers in their bid to contain the Buducnost guard, who recorded 13 points in the second quarter and finished with 21. Green shot 3-for-4 (75.0%) on two-pointers, 2-for-5 (40.0%) from behind the arc and 9-for-12 (75.0%) from the free-throw line, as he inspired his team off the bench to a statement win.
“For us, it’s so important to play not just average, or good defense. We have to be at the highest level in [defense] if we want to play a good game,” Buducnost's Coach Vladimir Jovanovic noted. “Today I think that all players were at the highest level in terms of being focused. On the other side, we were good on offense, we created lots of easy and open shots.”
With its win on Tuesday, Buducnost enhanced its chances for a top four finish and dealt a hard blow to Hapoel Tel Aviv, who saw its winning streak snapped. Buducnost will play away at Dolomiti Energia Trento in Round 16, while Hapoel will try to get back to winning ways when it welcomes Veolia Towers Hamburg to Israel next week.