Adriatic League: Three Teams Still Unbeaten
Cedevita defeats BC Partizan
Round 3 of the Adriatic league was completed last night after Mega Vizura (Serbia-KLS) upset 2014 defending league champions KK Cibona VIP Zagreb (Croatia-A1) 78-74. Three teams managed to keep a pristine record so far in the competition. Montenegro’s Buducnost, Serbia’s Red Star (Crvena Zvezda), and Slovenia’s Krka Novo Mesto are now atop the league standings with 3-0 slates.
The round as a whole favored all the home teams, with no visiting club managing to steal away a victory. Take Cibona’s case, for example, their loss puts them off to a very poor start this season and have to dig themselves out of a 0-3 hole. Mega Vizura on the other hand are now 2-1 are currently in fourth place in the standings.
Cibona got off to a good start and capped off the first quarter with a 19-27 lead. Mega Vizura was not able to create much of a dent on their advantage and faced a 36-43 deficit heading into the halftime break. Mega Vizura seized control of the game in the third frame and managed to hold off Cibona in the final period. Cibona did their best to stay in the game via their outside shooting. They made 10-of-27 shots from downtown, compared to Mega Vizura’s 2-of-19. The key to Mega Vizura’s win came from the free-throw line. They sank 18 more free throws than Cibona and those free points spelled the difference. Mega Vizura was also more active on the boards and ended the game with a 17 rebound advantage.
Cibona’s loss on the road was truly unfortunate as some of their players performed quite well. Ivan Siriscevic led his team in scoring with 19 points, thanks to his 5-10 shooting from beyond the arc. Marko Kuridza Jagodic flirted with a triple-double, scoring nine points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and dishing out seven assists.
The winners were paced by Nikola Jokic’s double-double performance, scoring 19 points and taking down 13 boards. Nenad Miljenovic added 15 points and seven assists.
Here are the rest of the game results from Round 3:
KK Zadar vs. BC Levski Sofia, 86-75
KK Buducnost Voli Podgorica vs. KK MZT Skopje Aerodrom, 96-69
Krka Novo Mesto vs. Metalac Farmakom Valjevo, 89-59
KK Cedevita Zagreb vs. BC Partizan NiS Beograd, 70-50
Crvena Zvezda Telekom Beograd vs. Union Olimpija Ljubljana, 73-65
Szolnoki Olajbanyasz vs. BC Igokea Aleksandrovac, 63-60