Zeljko Obradovic's side has now won back-to-back games
Partizan powers past Maccabi, 79-91
Game Report
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 4 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade felt comfortable at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall on Thursday night, beating Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 79-91 at the Israeli team's temporary home on Thursday night. Sterling Brown netted almost half of his team’s points in the fourth quarter, a period in which Partizan outscored Maccabi 15-25 to clinch its second straight victory and first on the road. Following Partizan's win, both teams now boast a 2-2 record.
Brown paced Partizan with a game-high 20 points and Isaac Bonga went 4 for 5 from beyond the arc for 14 points. Frank Ntilikina scored 12 points for the visitors, with Iffe Lundberg and Carlik Jones adding 11 each. For Maccabi, Levi Randolph bagged a team-high 19 points, 17 of which were scored in the first half, with Jasiel Rivero netting 15 and Jaylen Hoard recording 14. Roman Sorkin had 11 points, while Tamir Blatt came close to recording a triple-double as he registered 10 points, 9 assists and 9 rebounds.
A frenetic start to the game saw the two teams score 12 points each in the first four minutes, with Randolph nailing two triples for the hosts and Bonga taking his tally to 5 early points for Partizan. Two three-point plays from Rivero sandwiched a three-pointer from Blatt as Maccabi pulled away with a 21-12 lead. Bonga netted a corner triple to end Maccabi’s 9-0 run before a Tyrique Jones layup in transition cut the difference to 21-17. Then, Aleksej Pokusevski scored his first EuroLeague points with a jumper before Jones and Lundberg tied it at 23-23. The latter nailed a corner triple to put Partizan ahead, with the Serbian side taking a 27-28 lead into the second quarter.
The two teams exchanged blows from inside to start the second before triples from Bonga and Carlik Jones gave Partizan a 36-42 cushion. Yet, Maccabi responded with a 10-0 run inspired by an extraordinary Randolph, who ended the first half with 17 points and 5 rebounds for a PIR of 20, to take back the lead, 46-42, at the break.
Rivero opened the second half with a buzzer-beating bucket from inside, but Ntilikina drilled one from beyond the arc and two buckets from Vanja Marinkovic put Partizan back in front, 49-51. Sorkin ended Partizan’s 8-0 run with a triple before a Blatt three-pointer and a Hoard basket put Maccabi back ahead, 57-55. Yet, Brown responded with a triple of his own and Davies netted a bucket to restore a 57-60 lead for the guests. Maccabi replied with a 5-0 run of its own, but Bonga netted his fourth triple of the night for the 21st lead change of the game, 62-63. The third quarter ended with a three-point play from Davies, allowing Partizan to maintain a 64-66 lead after 30 minutes.
The Serbian side started off the closing quarter the way they ended the third, with Lundberg completing a three-point play, 64-69. Partizan dictated the tempo and pulled away 70-77 thanks to Brown, who took his tally to 11 points. Then, Ntilikina nailed an open triple from the corner and Brown completed a three-point play for a 75-83 cushion heading into crunch time. Maccabi tried to fight back in the remaining 2 minutes, but buckets from Brown and Carlik Jones extended Partizan’s lead to double digits, 77-87, and practically finished the game off.
