The Slovenian side got back to winning ways after losing two in a row
Cedevita Olimpija gets back on track with statement win at Cluj
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 6 of 18
Regular Season
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U-BT Cluj-NapocaUBT
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Cedevita Olimpija LjubljanaCOL
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Overview
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After a strong start to the season with three straight victories, two defeats in a row dealt a blow to Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana’s morale. Zvezdan Mitrovic’s side desperately needed a bounce-back performance to get back on track, and his men did just that at one of the toughest away arenas in the BKT EuroCup on Wednesday night.
Cedevita didn’t start the game as it may have hoped. Fatts Russell and Dusan Miletic netted 5 each, with Iverson Molinar scoring 7 as U-BT Cluj-Napoca secured a 22-15 lead after 10 minutes. The hosts dictated the tempo and punished the Slovenian side with their offensive prowess.
But everything changed in the second quarter, with Cedevita pushing back and dictating the tempo by preventing the hosts from speeding up the pace.
“We controlled the rhythm of the game in the second quarter to slow down the game a bit, because it’s very difficult to play in transition rhythm against the players of Cluj, [as] they are really dangerous and everybody can score,” Mitrovic stressed in the post-game press conference.
Jaka Blazic came off the bench to inspire a comeback run, with the guests holding Cluj to 17 points and taking a 39-44 lead into the second half.
“A slow start, but we managed to pick our rhythm, especially defensively – that’s the key of this game,” Aleksej Nikolic explained at halftime. “We just played better defense, boxed out, got the rebounds, scored some easy shots and got some rhythm.”
Cedevita had already laid the foundation. The duel turned into a game of runs after the break, with Cluj going on an 8-3 surge to tie it at 47-47. However, Cedevita responded with a 0-7 run of its own and kept absorbing Cluj’s comeback attempts until the very last whistle.
The hosts even took the lead when a triple from Mitch Creek with 6:30 left made it 76-75. What followed was a 0-7 spurt to reestablish a safety cushion that Cedevita maintained throughout.
“Every time they pushed and wanted to come back, we responded really well,” Nikolic added after the game. “In tough moments, we made tough shots and that’s the key to win on the road.”
Despite heading into Wednesday’s clash as the best offense in the EuroCup, Cluj managed 10 points less than its season average (97.6). Russell, who leads the league’s scoring charts, may have ended the game on 21 points, but Cedevita managed to force 5 fouls from Cluj's dominant big Miletic, who featured for just over 14 minutes.
More importantly, in a stop-start battle of numerous fouls, Cedevita managed to remain calm from the charity stripe, going 27-for-31 on free throws.
“In a game like this, if you miss a lot of free throws, it’s very difficult to win it,” Mitrovic declared.
Having improved its record to 4-2, the Slovenian side is set to host four of its next five EuroCup games. Following Wednesday’s statement road win against Cluj, Cedevita will look to keep its momentum going in next week’s clash against Umana Reyer Venice.
