Cibona Zagreb into Adriatic final

Cibona Zagreb upset the odds to defeat Crvena Zvezda Belgrade 75-70 and reach the final of the Adriatic League. Croatian outfit Cibona had finished fourth at the end of the Regular Season with a 17-9 record, but managed to down the season table toppers Belgrade to reach the final.

The game started slowly as both teams struggled under nerves to get going, and it was over 2 minutes before a basket was registered. It was Crvena Zvezda that got on the board with a four point flurry to commence scoring, but the Serbian powerhouse could not remain in charge through the first quarter and Cibona led 15-21 after ten minutes. Nerves once again descended on the court at the start of Q2 as scoring ground to a halt again. Zagreb made a 5-0 run to extend to 28-16 and powered through the quarter to hold a comfortable 37-28 lead. Cibona Zagreb exploded at the start of the third quarter and started sinking baskets with ease, amassing a large 61-45 advantage. However, the scoring soon dried for the team and Belgrade closed the gap to 66-58. Cibona was not kept out for long though and in the fourth stanza the team managed to keep Crvena Zvezda at arm’s length and win the game.

Jerel Blassingame led the scoring for Cibona Zagreb with 28 points, followed by Dario Saric´s 21.

For Belgrade, Jaka Blazic logged 25 points, DeMarcus Nelson 12 and Charles Jenkins 12