The Serbian team celebrated its fourth successive EuroLeague win and the third under its new coach
Crvena Zvezda rolls on under wary Sasa Obradovic as Baskonia stays winless
Report partita
3 Minuto di lettura
Regular Season
Round 6 of 38
Regular Season
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet BelgradeCZV
9072
Baskonia Vitoria-GasteizBKN
Overview
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Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade improved to 4-2 in the EuroLeague after yet another win under new head coach Sasa Obradovic, but the 56-year-old tactician, who returned for a second spell with his boyhood club earlier this month, was not entirely happy with the team’s topsy-turvy performance.
Zvezda ran out a comfortable 90-72 winner at home against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, which suffered its sixth straight defeat. However, Obradovic poured scorn on his players for a poor first-half performance before the hosts stepped up their game.
“We became more aggressive after the break and although we won, we’ve got a lot to learn from a hectic first half, as that’s not how we want to play,” he said. “It’s too early to talk about team chemistry as well, but it’s another big win at the end of the day and I want to congratulate the players,” added Obradovic, who notched his third successive EuroLeague win of the season and Zvezda its fourth after a 0-2 start.
Obradovic, who took over from Ioannis Sfairopoulos, criticized his men for not playing as a team in the opening 20 minutes.
“We acted as individuals in the first half and you can’t beat anyone with that kind of approach. We bounced back in the second half, found our offensive rhythm, but overall we were feisty in possession and didn’t stick to the game plan. We’ll stay positive after a big win though, as we take a look back at things we should have done better,” Obradovic told the postgame press conference.
Zvezda made a fast start and raced to a 10-4 lead before Baskonia turned the tide and led 40-43 at halftime. However, Zvezda conjured a decisive 17-2 run in the third quarter, which turned a 47-50 deficit into a 64-52 lead and the hosts never looked back, throwing its fervent fans into raptures on the buzzer.
Codi Miller-McIntyre and Chima Moneke shone against their former club as Miller-McIntyre netted a team-high 20 points for Zvezda and Moneke racked up 12 points and 8 boards, complementing the effort of the game’s top performer Jordan Nwora, who amassed 9 points and 7 boards.
Nwora drove Zvezda at both ends of the court, his offensive prowess going hand in hand with his athleticism and defensive steel, which kept Baskonia down to just 29 second-half points in the wake of the home team’s aggressive pressure.
Nwora pointed out that Zvezda was still gelling as a team and praised the entire outfit for a cohesive effort.
“We’re still finding our rhythm and getting to know each other as we are a new team,” Nwora said in his postgame comments. It’s easy to play with guys who trust you and count on you, just like I count on them.”
Miller-McIntyre added: “We came out a little slow, but we hit top gear in the second half and got the win. I want to thank the fans for standing by us and we’ll try to keep improving game by game.”
Zvezda is now 11-10 ahead against Baskonia in their head-to-head record, having beaten the Basque outfit for the third time in a row and although Obradovic may not be entirely pleased with the nature of his team’s victory, there’s no doubt he’ll be looking forward to the upcoming games as the Serbian side seems to be the EuroLeague’s in-form team at the moment.
