Cedevita Olimpija survived Krka, 86-87, to win the title in dramatic fashion. Alen Omic was chosen MVP.
Domestic cups: Cedevita wins its 23rd cup title!
![Domestic cups: Cedevita wins its 23rd cup title!](https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/237b7fb5-56c1-4b8c-9bd7-8597932e1462.jpg?crop=1552%3A873%3Anowe%3A136%3A244)
Cedevita Olimpija is cup champion!
Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana had to suffer until the end but it managed to lift its 23rd Slovenian Cup trophy on Friday by beating Krka, 86-87. Big man Alen Omic was named MVP of the final. Nikola Radicevic and Jaka Blazic led the champs with 17 points, Omic added 16 points plus 8 rebounds, and Zoran Dragic contributed 12. This was Cedevita's third cup title in a row. The champions were almost depleted as they could not count on Justin Cobbs, DJ Stewart, Jaka Klobucar, Vukasin Todorovic and Luka Scuuka, all of them injured. Krka started dominating the first quarter, and even if things got closer in the second period, Krka still dominated at the break, 51-45. Cedevita found its winning edge during the third period, in which it won 16-25. It all came down to the final stretch. With two minutes to go, Gregor Glas nailed a three that made it 81-86 for Cedevita, but Krka used free throws to get close, 84-86. Blazic made only one of two free throws for 84-87 and 13 seconds to go. Krka looked for the three-point shot, but Marko Radovanovic missed it and Miha Skedelj's put-back could only leave Krka one point below as Cedevita players celebrated the 23rd cup title for the club.
Paris advances to the French Cup semis
Paris Basketball continues with its hallmark season. On Friday night, it defeated Saint-Quentin, 71-67, in the French Cup quarterfinals and will not meet As Monaco in the Saturday semifinals. TJ Shorts and Tyson Ward led Paris with 15 points apiece, Mikael Jantunen added 14 and Sebastian Herrera posted 11. Saint-Quentin started on a roll as it was already leading 17-23 after 10 minutes. Paris came back for real in the second and third quarters and managed to turn things around, but never could break the game open. In the last period, both teams tied at 17-17 and Paris made good use of the 4-point lead it had gotten at the end of the third period despite losing the overall rebounds battle, 37-38.
Mincidelice JL Bourg en Bresse is the first team to reach the semifinals of the French Cup after swatting aside SLUC Nancy Basket, 109-79. Frederic Fauthoux saw six of his players hit double digits in points, led by Maksim Salash with 23. Jeremy Morgan added 15, Bodian Massa, Isiaha Mike and Bryce Brown had 14 apiece, and Zaccharie Risacher chipped in with 10. Bourg came flying out of the blocks with a 33-point first quarter, as it led 33-20 after the first 10 minutes. The BKT EuroCup side kept its foot on the gas and erupted for 29 points in the second, compared to 23 for Nancy, making it 62-49 at the break. Bourg continued to outscore Nancy in the third and fourth quarters, winning those periods 24-19 and 23-17, respectively, en route to its 109-79 triumph.
Besiktas falls in semis to Fenerbahce
It will be the quintessential Turkish basketball derby in the Turkish Cup as Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and Anadolu Efes Istanbul will be playing for the title on Sunday. In the second semifinal, Fenerbahce routed Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul by 99-68 on Friday night. Johnathan Motley led the winners with 23 points, Sertac Sanli and Tarik Biberovic posted 13 apiede and Marko Guduric had 11. For Besiktas, Marko Simonovic led the way with 19 points and Jonah Mathews had 10. The game was broken open already from the first quarter, which Fenerbahce took by storm for a 32-8 after 10 minutes. Besiktas had a hard time to come back after that, even more so when Fenerbahce also won the second quarter and made it 61-28 at the break. The second half was a mere formality as Fenerbahce got ready to face Efes in the Sunday final.