Crvena Zvezda Meridian Bet Belgrade took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three Serbian League finals against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade after holding on for a dramatic 89-88 win on Monday night at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall. Game 2, hosted by Partizan, is scheduled for Wednesday at Belgrade Arena.
Zvezda grabbed an early 10-point lead behind Yago Dos Santos, who nailed three three-pointers in the opening quarter, but Partizan rallied behind Aleksa Avramovic, and had a slim 51-52 lead at halftime. The hosts went up again in the third as Dejan Davidovac took over, and opened a 71-62 lead, but Avramovic was at a center of another rally.
With Dos Santos and Nemanja Nedovic both getting injured for Zvezda, teams traded blows with the hosts remaining ahead. Partizan had a final possession and 8 seconds to win the game, but the ball went to Zach LeDay who missed a short jumper in traffic and Zvezda prevailed for its seventh consecutive win over Partizan in all competitions.
Davidovac finished with 23 points and 9 rebounds, while Dos Santos had 18 points and 7 assists. Rokas Giedraitis and Luka Mitrovic each finished with 12 points in a victory. For Partizan, Avramovic had 20 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds, Danilo Andjusic scored 17 while Jaleen Smith netted 14 in defeat.