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Nikola Djurisic played the biggest of roles in helping U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade to its first-ever Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament title.

MVP Djurisic delivers title to Mega despite injuries

Djurisic may not have had the greatest statistics, but the young leader fought off some nagging injuries and delivered when it counted most. That earned him the Most Valuable Player award. He averaged 20 points per game to go with 4.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals for an index rating of 16.3 in helping Mega finally claim the trophy after losing in the ANGT Championship Game in 2017 and 2019.

“The third time’s a charm. It was very tough - all four games, especially the championship game. Everybody gave their maximum, it was hard but we got the W,” said Djurisic, who struggled from the field, making just 37.1% of his two-pointers and shooting 21.1% on three-pointers while also committing 6.0 turnovers a game. Nevertheless, he made 22 of 28 free throws (78.6%) in just three contests.

“This MVP Award means a lot to me, but it would not have that importance if we didn't win the ANGT title,” said Djurisic, who was playing in the ANGT competition for a third season. “For me, it’s more important that we brought the trophy back to Belgrade after eight years because this is the highlight of our team, which has been together for three years with some changes.”

The recent changes could be a reason for Djurisic’s high turnover count. Andrija Jelavic (Mega’s third-leading scorer with 14.7 points per game) and Timotej Malovec (6.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists) both joined Mega two weeks before the ANGT Finals. And Bassala Bagayoko, who was named to the All-Tournament Team and ANGT Rising Star, only came to the team a week before the tournament.

Djurisic himself did not play at the ANGT Belgrade, where the team finished sixth and later received a wild card for the ANGT Finals. He has been dealing with a series of small injuries over the last couple of months and played just five games since he competed with the Serbian senior national team at the same time as the ANGT Belgrade. Three of those games were with Mega’s first team and two came in late April when he helped the club win the ABA U19 league title.

“He’s had some little injuries. I’m really happy for Nikola and all the other guys because next year they will not be able to play,” Mega coach Dragoljub Avramovic said.

The coach will miss having someone like Djurisic to come through in big moments. In the opening game against two-time continental champion U18 PFYM INSEP Paris, Djurisic scored a team-high 20 points. He tallied 19 points with 7 assists as Mega dethroned reigning champion U18 Real Madrid in the second game to book the club’s spot in the ANGT Championship Game.

Djurisic not only led Mega with 21 points in the title bout with U18 Next Generation Select Team but he also scored 10 of his points in Mega’s game-deciding 14-0 run in the fourth quarter.

“He said everything on the court,” Coach Avramovic said about his leader - and MVP Nikola Djurisic.

Nikola Djurisic MVP - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade champ Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Nikola Djurisic - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Top 10 photos: ANGT Finals Belgrade 2022

Aleksa Milenkovic - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade  - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Luka Vudragovic - U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Amadou Doumbia - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Noah Manet - U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Bassala Bagayoko - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Baba Miller - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Francois Wibaut - U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Urban Klavzar - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Rayan Rupert - U18 PFYM INSEP Paris - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

Noah Penda - U18 PFYM INSEP Paris - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022

The adidas NEXT GENERATION TOURNAMENT Finals took place in last week in Belgrade and produced a new champion: U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade. These are some of the best photos that the tournament produced.

Aleksa Milenkovic - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Luka Vudragovic - U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Amadou Doumbia - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Baba Miller - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Bassala Bagayoko - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Rayan Rupert - U18 PFYM INSEP Paris - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Francois Wibaut - U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Urban Klavzar - U18 Real Madrid - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Noah Penda - U18 PFYM INSEP Paris - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Noah Manet - U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Nikola Djurisic was named the Most Valuable Player award of the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals for leading U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade to its first ANGT title in club history. 

Djurisic named ANGT Finals MVP after helping Mega to title

At a ceremony at halftime of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Championship Game, Djurisic headlined the All-Tournament Team which also included his teammate and center Bassala Bagayoko, forward Pacome Dadiet of the U18 Next Generation Select Team, guard Kymany Houinsou from U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne and U18 Real Madrid center Eli Ndiaye.

Djurisic, Houinsou and Ndiaye all made the ANGT Finals All-Tournament Team in 2020-21 with Ndiaye being named MVP last season.

Djurisic spearheaded a big fourth quarter run in Mega's 82-61 victory over NGS in the ANGT Championship Game and finished with a team-high 21 points to go with 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal for a performance index rating of 8. For the tournament, the guard collected 20.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.3 steals and 9.0 fouls drawn for a PIR of 16.3.

Bagayoko played a major role in Mega getting the title as well as he tallied 16 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals for a PIR of 28 in the Championship Game. In three games, he averaged 17.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.7 blocks for an average PIR of 28.0.

Bagayoko also took home the Rising Star award as the best player born 2005 or later. The 2006-born big man follows in the footsteps of Paulius Murauskas, who won the only previous edition of the honor, in 2019.

Dadiet helped NGS reach the ANGT Championship Game, where he picked up 5 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals for a PIR of 4. For the tournament he had 13.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and an index rating of 13.5.

Houinsou averaged 13.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.7 steals and 6.7 fouls drawn for an average PIR of 24.0 for ASVEL, which finished with a 2-1 record.

Ndiaye had 15.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals 1.0 blocks and 20.3 PIR for a Real team that also had a 2-1 record.

All-Tournament Team Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade became the 11th club to win the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament title by knocking off U18 Next Generation Select Team 82-61 in the 2022 ANGT Championship Game.
 


Pretty in pink: Mega beat NGS celebrate first ANGT crown

It was third time lucky for the Serbian team, which had lost in the finale in 2017 and 2019 but gained control of the game in the Hala Sportova Ranko Zeravica with a 14-0 fourth quarter run. Nikola Djurisic scored 10 of his team-high 21 points in the big late run. Andrija Jelavic tallied 19 points and Bassala Bagayoko collected 19 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks for the new champion. Zacharie Perrin and Filip Jovic both scored 11 points in the losing effort.

In the annuls of ANGT history, Mega joins other champions U18 Real Madrid, U18 CSKA Moscow (both three crowns), U18 Zalgiris Kaunas, U18 FMP Belgrade, U18 PFYM INSEP Paris, U18 Rytas Vilnius (all two), U18 FC Barcelona, U18 Crvena Zvedzda mts Belgrade, U18 KK Zagreb and U18 Joventut Badalona.

Mega scored the first four points on layups by Jelavic and Djurisic. NGS failed to execute early on with four turnovers in its first six possessions before Perrin scored after more than 2 minutes. The selection team took its first lead on a Zinedin Mulic three-pointer for 8-9. The lead changed hands four times - once each on triples by Djurisic and Mohamed Diawara - and it was 13-14. Mega was facing foul trouble at this point with four players on two fouls and also failed to score for the final 2:46 minutes of the first quarter and a second Mulic triple made it 13-19 after 10 minutes.

After Alexandros Samontourov scored to open the second quarter, Bagayoko hit on Mega’s first possession and it was 15-19. NGS picked up three points on an unsportsmanlike foul as the lead extended to 17-26. Bagayoko countered with two baskets as the score was 23-28 when NGS took advantage of its strength on the glass with four offensive rebounds which resulted in dunks by Perrin and Pacome Dadiet and a three-pointer from Jovic to push the advantage to 25-37. Andrej Musicki responded with a three-pointer and helped Mega close strong and go into the locker room down 32-39.

Timotej Malovec’s three-pointer started the second half for Mega but a Perrin putback and Jovic triple had NGS ahead 40-44. Mega mounted a run though with Musicki scoring five points and Bagayoko picking up four in a 9-0 spurt to lead 49-44. A Jelavic three-point play extended the margin to 57-49 and the score was 57-51 after 30 minutes.

NGS tried to close the gap with Samet Yigitoglu scoring twice inside and it was down to 60-55. Djurisic was not ready to let Mega lose a third ANGT Championship Game, hitting a jumper, a three-pointer, two layups and a free throw within six possessions as the lead ballooned to 74-55 with just 5 minutes left. The game was decided as Mega took away precious seconds with each possession down the stretch and the party in Belgrade was bound to be the pink of Mega.

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade v U18 Next Generation Select Team (2022-05-21T10:30:00.000Z)

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade champ Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade champ Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 4- JT21

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade champ Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 3- JT21

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade champ Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 2- JT21

Illan Pietrus - U18 Next Generation Select Team - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Asim Djulovic - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Pacome Dadiet - U18 Next Generation Select Team - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Zacharie Perrin - U18 Next Generation Select Team - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

Luka Krajnovic - U18 Next Generation Select Team - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 Next Generation Select Team remained undefeated at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals by fending off U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 63-60  in the final game of the group stage. 

Diawara buzzer-beater gives NGS win over Zvezda

Zvezda scored the first four points and NGS answered with the next four points. The teams swamped runs of six points and then five points from Dadiet gave NGS its first lead 15-13. And the score was 15-14 after 10 minutes.

Zvezda started the second quarter strongly with Marko Sarenac and Lazar Djokovic both hitting three-pointers and Djokovic and Vukovic both converting three-point plays in a 5-17 run to jump ahead 20-31. Vukovic added six more points and Zvezda lead 28-39 at halftime.

NGS had the better start to the second half with the first eight points to pull within 36-39. Four Dadiet points and a Jovic three-pointer trimmed the margin to 43-45. Zvzeda answered with the last four points of the period and a 43-49 lead.

Vukovic’s basket to start the fourth quarter made it an eight-point game. NGS responded with an 8-2 spurt to pull within 51-53. And a 7-1 surge later evened the game 58-58 with 2 minutes to play. Lazar Gagic scored to put Zvezda back ahead before Jovic tallied but failed to hit the bonus free throw to leave it tied 60-60 with a minute left. After both teams committed a turnover, Matovic missed a jumper with 13 seconds to play leaving the game to be decided by the selection team and Diawara banked in his three-pointer at the buzzer.

U18 Next Generation Select Team remained undefeated at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals by fending off U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 63-60  in the final game of the group stage. Having already locked up its spot in Saturday’s ANGT Championship Game, NGS went back and forth with Zvedza before Mohamed Diawara hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to grab the win and a 3-0 record in Group B. Pacome Dadiet paced NGS with 13 points and Filip Jovic and Illan Pietrus both scored 11 points for the winners, who will next take on U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade to decide the 2022 ANGT champion. Andrija Vukovic poured in a game high 19 points while Ognjen Matovic collected 10 points and 12 rebounds, but Zvezda finished the tournament with a 0-3 record.

U18 Next Generation Select Team v U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade (2022-05-20T13:00:00.000Z)

Mohamed Diawara - U18 Next Generation Select Team - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

The players from the eight teams at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals learned some critical lessons about life off the court as part of the ANGT Educational Session, which focused on the jump from junior to senior player, dealing with social media and environmental sustainability.

Players learn important off-court lessons at ANGT Educational Session

Current Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade star Nikola Kalinic, EuroLeague Players Association managing director and former star Boki Nachbar, former EuroLeague champion Patrick Femerling and current NBA center Ivica Zubac were on hand to give tips about their experience to the youngsters.

Kalinic and Nachbar addressed the challenges of becoming a professional player.

"It's very hard at that age. I remember at that age, I didn't listen to anybody. I thought I was the smartest and I'm the best. It's normal when you are younger," said Kalinic. "For them, maybe it was boring to listen to some older guys. Let's get it over with and go to the hotel. I think it could help them to listen to the lessons from Boki Nachbar and myself. The faster they learn that they can ask older people for help and learn from them, the faster they're going to become the best version of themselves – basketball-wise and as persons."

The topics Kalinic and Nachbar talked about included listening to important lessons older teammates could give them, what to consider when looking for an agent, how to deal with contracts and getting good-minded people around you.

"This (Educational Session) should be implemented even more. Even more seminars or group meetings," Kalinic said. "These young guys are in for a ride. It's gonna be crazy. It's gonna be a lot of people, a lot of agents, a lot of successes, journalists, girls, everything. They're in for a great ride but they also have to be careful. I think if they talk to older teammates or other older people, they can learn more and go more safely and calmly through all that."

The players were also told about some of the dos and don'ts in the social media world, especially with the message that they themselves create their social media presence and should control the narrative. The third pillar of the Educational Session was sustainability and what players can do to help save the planet.  

adidas organized the event with executives from both adidas and Euroleague joining forces to prepare the presentations. adidas introduced its sustainable products to the players and also presented activations such as the Run for the Oceans program and how the players can figure out their carbon foot print. The players were also given a gift bag including sustainable products. And the evening concluded with an informal barbecue.

When asked what were the biggest lessons he learned from the session, Roi Behar of U18 Maccabi Tel Aviv said: "To fight for what's yours and know your rights and just be polite and be a good person above all."

Behar also appreciated Euroleague Basketball giving him and the other players the chance to experience the event and take in the messages.

"I feel blessed to be here. It's great to experience, these stations, and I hope this continues for others," he said.

Fabrizio Pugliatti of U18 Stellazzurra Rome said the organizers really are doing a great job to try to improve the players' lives. And he took the biggest message from the social media discussion: "Social (media) is important for me and they say control your social. So that was important."

The message about the environment was big for Noam Yaacov of U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne, who said: "The sustainability talks showed how important it is to really try to do your best to keep it green."

The guard also was very grateful for the opportunity to learn more about these issues.

"It's great. If every young player could get this it would be amazing, and we're very fortunate that we are here and get to learn from such great people," he added.


Players Educational Session - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 ASVEL Villeurbanne bounced back from its disappointing defeat to miss a chance for the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals title by fending off U18 Stellazzurra Rome 85-73 to finish Group B action with a 2-1 record. 

ASVEL bounces back to finish with win over Stellazzurra

After Visintin scored the first points of the game, Stellazzurra failed to score for 3 minutes and ASVEL hit eight straight points to lead 8-2. Visintin and Pugliatti knocked down triples at the other end as Stellazzurra cut the gap to 12-11, and a three-pointer and three-point play from Innocenti gave the Italian side the lead 18-19 after 10 minutes.

Risacher opened the second quarter with a triple and Parmentelot’s score made it 25-23. Innocenti led a Stellazzurra surge with eight points in a 3-16 run to lead 28-39. ASVEL was able to trim the gap to 34-40 at the break.


Innocenti continued his strong game with four points and pushed the cushion to 36-46. ASVEL temporarily trimmed it to a three points game only to have Pugliatti hit two triples and it was 49-55. ASVEL shut down Stellazzurra to close the third quarter with a 9-0 run to take a 60-56 lead after 30 minutes.

The surge went on and four Houinsou points made it 64-58. Stellazzurra responded with the next seven points to pull back ahead 64-65. Eric Dailey Jr.’s free throw had Stellazzurra within 69-68 with 4 minutes to play. The ASVEL defense cracked down one last time and held Stellazzurra scoreless for more than 3 minutes and Houinsou came up with seven points in a 12-0 run to decide the game at 81-68.

U18 ASVEL Villeurbanne bounced back from its disappointing defeat to miss a chance for the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals title by fending off U18 Stellazzurra Rome 85-73 to finish Group B action with a 2-1 record. ASVEL put together a 12-0 fourth quarter run to grab the win a day after losing to U18 Next Generation Select Team to end its hopes of winning its first U18 continental crown. Zaccharie Risacher was ASVEL’s leading scorer with 14 points, Killian Malwaya had 13 points and both Kymany Houinsou and Romain Parmentelot chipped in 10 points for the French side. Emmanuel Innocenti led all scorers with 22 points for Stellazzurra while Fabrizio Pugliatti had 19 points and Matteo Visintin scored 16 points in the loss. Stellazzurra ended the tournament with a 1-2 record.

U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne v U18 Stellazzurra Rome (2022-05-20T11:00:00.000Z)

U18 Real Madrid ended the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals on a high note as the reigning champion knocked off U18 PFYM INSEP Paris 73-82 in Group A’s final game. 

Real beats PFYM, finishes on high note

Real opened with the first nine points of the game and PFYM did not score in the first 4 minutes. Klavzar picked up five points in a 2-13 run as the lead grew to 4-22. PFYM answered with six straight points but still trailed 10-26 after 10 minutes.

The French side fought back into the game with the first eight points of the second quarter and Rupert’s three-pointer made it 23-30. A Garuba triple pushed the advantage to 26-38 before three-pointers from Theo Pichard and Penda trimmed the gap to 37-42. And it was 41-47 at intermission.

PFYM charged out of the locker room with a 10-3 run to take its first lead 51-50 and Ajinca’s triple had the French side ahead 54-52. Nicolas Cebrian answered with a three-pointer and Real surged to a 58-65 cushion. PFYM finished the quarter with the final four points and the score was 62-65 after 30 minutes.

Real started the fourth quarter with the first six points to push the gap to nine points. Penda countered with five points and Ajinca hit a three-pointer to pull within 72-77 with under 4 minutes to play. Real’s defense stepped up when it counted most, giving up just one free throw the rest of the way to finish the tournament with a win.

U18 Real Madrid ended the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals on a high note as the reigning champion knocked off U18 PFYM INSEP Paris 73-82 in Group A’s final game. Real wasted an 18-point lead but gave up just one point in the final 3:45 minutes to bounce back from its disappointing loss a day earlier against U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade which cost a chance to defend its crown. Urban Klavzar paced the winners with 20 points, Eli Ndiaye had 13 points, 14 rebounds and 4 steals and Sediq Garuba chipped in 12 points. The two-time champion PFYM finished with a 1-2 record in the group. Noah Penda poured in 23 points and Rayan Rupert scored 20 points while the pair combined for 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 steals. Melvin Ajinca was the only other player in double figures with 14 points.

U18 PFYM INSEP Paris v U18 Real Madrid (2022-05-20T09:00:00.000Z)

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade rallied from a 13-point fourth quarter deficit to knock off U18 Maccabi Tel Aviv 87-85 and remain perfect at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals. 

With starters resting, Mega rallies to beat Maccabi

With Mega already in the ANGT Championship Game, Mega head coach Dragoljub Avramovic rested his starting five. Doron opened the scoring for Maccabi and Milenkovic scored four points in a 10-2 run to lead 10-4. It was still a six-point lead when Doron hit two three-pointers to help Maccabi pull ahead 18-19. Behar also had a triple and Maccabi led 21-22 after 10 minutes.

The game remained close the entire second quarter with four points being the biggest lead. There were eight lead changes before Maccabi went ahead 32-33 and a triple from Ido Iluz made it 32-36. The Israeli side was up 36-38 at the break.

It remained tight through most of the third quarter with four ties and then Omer Mayer, Doron, Behar and Ori Ziv Cohen all hit three-pointers for a 54-60 cushion. Behar added another triple to help Maccabi lead 56-65 after 30 minutes.  

Noam Yaacobi also hit a three-pointer and the advantage grew to 57-70. Mega rushed back into the game with the next 10 points in 2 minutes and Sergej Jeremic and Djapa added three-pointers to nose ahead 75-74 with an 18-4 run. Behar punched back with a three-pointer and a Tomer Agmon jumper put Maccabi up 79-83. Mega was not done and a Danilo Dozic three-point play knotted the game 83-83. Both teams scored and then failed to convert before Doron missed a three-pointer to give Mega the chance to decide it. Markovic was fouled and made both foul shots with 6.1 seconds to play. And the win was Mega’s when Behar’s jumper was off target.

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade rallied from a 13-point fourth quarter deficit to knock off U18 Maccabi Tel Aviv 87-85 and remain perfect at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals. Mega went into the game having already locked up its spot in Saturday’s ANGT Championship Game and used an 18-4 run in the final frame to get back into the game before Bogoljub Markovic hit the game-winning free throws with 6.1 seconds left. Markovic finished with 29 points while Nikola Djapa scored 19 points and Aleksa Milenkovic chipped in 11 points for the 2017 and 2019 finalist, who will face U18 Next Generation Select Team on Saturday for the 2022 trophy. While Mega finished Group A play with a 3-0 record, Maccabi dropped to 0-3 despite Roi Behar scoring 19 points and Shachar Doron picking up 18 points.

U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade v U18 Maccabi Tel Aviv (2022-05-20T07:00:00.000Z)

Bogoljub Markovic - U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 Next Generation Select Team secured a spot in the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Championship Game as it fought back from 14 points down to beat U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 83-82 and remain perfect in Group B of the ANGT Finals. 

Championship Game set: NGS beats ASVEL, sets date with Mega

Malwaya scored the first points of the game for ASVEL with Luka Krajnovic’s three-point play giving NGS its first lead 5-2. After Krajnovic tallied four more points for an 11-7 lead, Francois Wibaut and Houinsou both hit triples in a 3-10 surge to put ASVEL ahead 14-17. NGS reclaimed the lead 18-17 only to see ASVEL mount a 1-9 spurt to make it 19-26. The score was 22-26 after 10 minutes.

The ASVEL push continued in the second quarter, allowing just one score in the first 4 minutes and Noam Yaacov scored seven points for 24-37 lead. NGS was twice able to cut the gap to nine points but Wibaut converted a three-point play and the cushion was up to 30-44. The teams went into the break with ASVEL up 35-44.


ASVEL kept up its defensive pressure and four points from Malwaya had the French side up 39-52. NGS tried to get back into the game and a Pietrus three-point play and dunk from Samontourov cut the deficit to 50-56. Yaacov countered with a three-point play and ASVEL led 52-59 after 30 minutes.


After Malwaya put-back increased the lead to 53-62, NGS got back into the game with Zinedine Mulic scoring five points, including the triple to make it 63-64. Risacher answered from deep and two Houinsou foul shots had the lead at 63-69. Pietrus took command with two three-pointers among his six points and an assist in a 15-2 run to put NGS ahead 80-73 with 47 seconds left. ASVEL refused to die with Houinsou converting six free throws in a span of 12 seconds and it was 80-79 with 22 seconds to play. Pietrus only split two free throws but Houinsou could not hit his layup at the other end to miss a chance to tie the game. Perrin secured the rebound and then calmly hit two free throws with 10 seconds remaining as it was two-possession game 83-79. Risacher kept his team alive with a three-pointer with 6.0 seconds before sending Mohamed Diawara to the line with 4.6 seconds to play. He missed both but Samontourov  grabbed the offensive rebound only to miss two foul shots himself, Luis Garcia snatching the offensive rebound and locking up the victory.

U18 Next Generation Select Team secured a spot in the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Championship Game as it fought back from 14 points down to beat U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 83-82 and remain perfect in Group B of the ANGT Finals. NGS decided the game with a 15-2 late run and survived missing four free throws in the final 4.6 seconds. NGS will face off against U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade on Saturday to decide the 2022 ANGT champion. Illan Pietrus led the way with 17 points, Zacharie Perrin picked up 12 points and Alexandros Samontourov scored 10 points. ASVEL dropped to 1-1 despite Kymany Houinsou collecting 17 points and 10 rebounds while Zaccharie Risacher scored 16 points, Killian Malwaya had 13 points and Romain Parmentelot chipped in 9 points and 10 assists.

U18 Next Generation Select Team v U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (2022-05-19T13:00:00.000Z)

U18 Stellazzurra Rome collected its first victory of the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals by knocking off U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 65-75 in Group B. 

Stellazzurra downs Zvezda for first win

Pavlovic’s free throws opened the scoring and Dailey Jr converted a three-point play for Stellazzurra’s first lead 2-3. Vukovic picked up seven points and Filip Radakovic converted an and-one to help Zvezda pull ahead 17-13. Vudragovic added four points and the margin was 23-17 before Stellazzurra trimmed it to 23-20 after 10 minutes.

Vukovic continued his strong game with four points as Zvezda started the second quarter with a 6-0 run and Vudragovic’s floater led to the first double-digit lead at 35-25. Stellazzurra was within 36-29 at the break.


Zvezda had the better start to the second half with Radakovic hitting a triple to extend the margin to 42-31. The advantage was 44-33 when Zvezda fell apart, committing five turnovers and failing to score the final 6:40 minutes of the quarter. Lucas Fresno drained two three-pointers and Pugliatti scored seven points in a 0-23 run to lead 44-56 after 30 minutes.


The host team was not ready to lose again with Vukovic and Vudragovic combining for 12 points and Matovic hit a triple to pull it within 59-61. Pugliatti answered with a score and Fresno knocked down another three-pointer to extend the gap to 59-66. Zvezda twice trimmed the deficit to five points before back-to-back scores by Visitin closed the game for good for a 63-72 lead with 53 seconds to play. Stellazzurra committed turnovers on two straight possessions but Zvezda could not punish the Italian side.

U18 Stellazzurra Rome collected its first victory of the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals by knocking off U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 65-75 in Group B. Stellazzurra fought back from 11 points down and laid the foundation for the win with a 0-23 third quarter run to improve to 1-1 and remain alive for a chance to return to the ANGT Championship Game for the first time since losing in 2018. Matteo Visintin poured in 24 points with 5 steals for Stellazzurra with Fabrizio Pugliatti collecting 13 points and 11 rebounds, Eric Dailey Jr adding 13 points and Emmanuel Innocenti contributing 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. The 2014 continental champion Zvezda dropped to 0-2 in the group despite Andrija Vukovic tallying 19 points and 9 rebounds, Luka Vudragovic scoring 16 points and Vladimir Pavlovic adding 11 points and 8 assists.

Fabrizio Pugliatti - U18 Stellazzurra Rome - Next Generation Tournament Final Four Belgrade 2022 - JT21

U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade v U18 Stellazzurra Rome (2022-05-19T11:00:00.000Z)

Andrija Jelavic has already experienced the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament but he cannot wait to play for the pink of U18 Mega Mozzart Belgrade at the ANGT Finals and take the next step in his career.

ANGT Finals: Jelavic can't wait to compete in Mega pink


Jelavic signed with Mega about two weeks before the ANGT Finals, joining the club from Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, with whom he played at the ANGT Belgrade in the 2020-21 season.

"Last year's tournament was a great experience that will help me be even better this year," said Jelavic, who averaged 19.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.5 steals at the qualifier in the Serbian capital.

"I learned a lot because I was playing against great teams and great players who were one year older than me and taught me to play faster and stronger. That's why I think I'm ready to play much better than last year and hopefully will achieve great results with Mega."

The 17-year-old Croatian called signing with Mega the biggest success thus far in his career. Jelavic is a late bloomer who didn't start playing basketball until 2018. Competing against Mega at the 2020-21 ANGT Belgrade made him want to play in the Serbian capital – in part because of the club's distinctive color.

"When I first saw Mega at last year's ANGT, they instantly caught my attention – the pink jerseys, the fast-play style, tall players playing as playmakers and shooting threes," the 2.04-meter forward said. "They really played modern basketball, similar to the NBA. And that's why I wanted to play for them."

Mega's history of developing top-level talent was another reason for him to head to Serbia.

"The best thing about Mega for me personally is that they are giving young players a chance to be the leaders of the senior team, and they have the best training program for young players. I think Mega is the best place for a young player like me to become a great player one day," Jelavic said.

But right now, the focus is on helping Mega at the ANGT Finals. And Jelavic believes Mega is a worthy recipient of a wild card for the competition after taking sixth place at the ANGT Belgrade in February.

"I think Mega deserved a wild card for the ANGT Finals because they have achieved some huge successes back in 2017 and 2019 (both times reaching the ANGT Championship Game)," he said. "And the Mega team was not complete during the Belgrade qualifying tournament. I think a complete Mega team is an excellent team with excellent players, and I'm looking forward to showing that at this year's ANGT Finals."

Despite only just joining the team, Jelavic is confident of Mega's chances in Belgrade.

"I think there will be no problems because the whole team is maximally focused and I think we are serious candidates for great results at this year's ANGT finals," he said.

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