Sasa Obradovic's team appears to have turned a corner
Ebuka Izundu, Crvena Zvezda defense step up in OT win at Monaco
Отчеты о матчах
3 Минутное чтение
Regular Season
Round 23 of 38
Regular Season
AS MonacoASM
96100
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet BelgradeCZV
Overview
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Just 11 days ago, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade looked to have hit a wall. A 32-point drubbing at Zalgiris Kaunas, coming on the heels of a 17-point home loss to Valencia Basket three days earlier, raised real questions about where Sasa Obradovic’s team was headed.
Those doubts have eased quickly.
Crvena Zvezda showed its resilience last Thursday with a 96-104 road win over EA7 Emporio Armani Milan. That was followed by the return of Joel Bolomboy from a long-term injury in ABA League action over the weekend. While Bolomboy was not on the game-day roster Tuesday night – meaning EuroLeague fans will have to wait a little longer to see him back – Zvezda delivered one of its most impressive results of the season: a 96-100 overtime victory at AS Monaco.
The win came against the hottest team in the EuroLeague, as Monaco entered the night riding a six-game winning streak.
With Bolomboy nearing a full return, Ebuka Izundu’s minutes could soon be under threat. But if his performance in Monaco is any indication, the EuroLeague rookie is not going to give them up easily.
In 21 minutes, Izundu recorded the first double-double of his EuroLeague career: 22 points and 12 rebounds for a PIR of 36 – all career highs. He added 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block. While Donatas Motiejunas, on loan at Zvezda from Monaco, did early damage in the paint, it was Izundu who took over from the second quarter onward.
Later, after Nikola Mirotic’s turnaround jumper gave Monaco an 87-77 lead with 4:42 remaining, Izundu sparked the comeback. He followed with a tip-in, then finished through contact on a dunk, converting the free throw to make it a five-point game.
Jordan Nwora – better known for his scoring than his defense – came up with a huge block on Matthew Strazel and split a pair of free throws to pull Zvezda within four.
Alpha Diallo’s three threatened to halt the momentum, but Jared Butler responded with a triple of his own despite a quiet night by his standards. Izundu then outworked everyone for a powerful put-back dunk to make it a one-possession game at 90–88 with 33 seconds left.
Strong defense from Nikola Kalinic forced a five-second violation on Monaco’s inbound, and Butler struck again, shaking Diallo and finishing off the glass to tie the game. Mike James had a chance to win it at the buzzer, but his three-point attempt came up short.
In overtime, Nwora – who had gone 0-for-4 from deep in regulation – knocked down two huge three-pointers to give Crvena Zvezda a 92-96 edge. Semi Ojeleye followed with a dunk off a clever Codi Miller-McIntyre pass, and Kalinic effectively sealed the win with a fastbreak layup as Zvezda closed it out 96-100.
“A little bit stressful for us, and for me personally,” Izundu said afterward. “We had the lead, and if we kept it we wouldn’t be in this position. But they’re a really good team, one of the top four in the league. I’m just happy we were able to fight back, take the lead and win. It was very important for us. Now we have to put it behind us and move on to the next one.”
Obradovic, making his first return to Monaco since mutually agreeing to part ways in November 2024, was particularly encouraged by how his team elevated its defense late in regulation and into overtime. From Mirotic’s jumper with 4:42 remaining that made it 87–77 to Kevarrius Hayes’s layup nearly two minutes into overtime, Monaco scored just three points – Diallo’s three.
“I would say we are in a different moment,” Obradovic said. “Especially in these two games – Milan and this one – the team showed great character at the end. If I’m not mistaken, in the last seven minutes or more they scored just six points, which is amazing for our defense. Everybody contributed. We have to continue with this confidence.”
The win moved Crvena Zvezda back into the play-in positions at 13-10. It will look to extend its resurgence Friday at Virtus Bologna.
Monaco, meanwhile, saw its six-game winning streak snapped and fell to 15-8, allowing Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv (16-6) to slightly widen its gap atop the EuroLeague standings. Vassilis Spanoulis’s team will try to respond Thursday night when it hosts Real Madrid.
