VLADIMIR Dragicevic scored 18 points and Ivan Maras added 17 as Montenegrin champions KK Buducnost Podgorica beat Madisons APOEL 89-76 in the third game of the FIBA EuroChallenge Last 16 on Tuesday night in Podgorica.
After a slow start to the Group K game, things did not look promising for the hosts as the Cypriot champions led by as many as 10 points in the opening stages of the second period when Brandon Heath made a three-pointer to make it 28-18.
However, from that point until the end of the first half, Dejan Radonjic’s men outscored the visitors 29-11 to take an eight-point lead at 47-39 as the teams headed for the locker rooms at half time.
“I am very satisfied with the victory and with the game that we had tonight. We entered the game without any energy or concentration and we played in that way for a while,” commented KK Buducnost’s Head Coach Radonjic after the game.
“We then imposed our rhythm and put more pressure on the ball. We played better as the game went on and with a lot of easy points our self-confidence grew,” he added.
In the third quarter, the Cypriot side tried to stay in the game but the hosts eventually increased their lead to 13 points with the final ten minutes to be played.
As the crowd expected the visitors to try and make a final push to get back in the game, they failed to do so and the hosts reached their game-high lead with 3:09 left on the clock when Dragicevic made two foul shots to make it 85-64.
“In the second half our defense was much better. It was a deserved win. I hope that we can continue. According to the results in our Group K, nothing is over yet,” concluded Radonjic.
KK Buducnost and Madisons APOEL now both have a 1-2 record in Group K, but the Montenegrin team is currently second, while the Cypriot champions are fourth according to the basket difference.
Italian powerhouse Scavolini Scar Pesaro lead the group with a 3-0 record, while Elan Chalon of France are third with an identical record to APOEL.
Marko Simonovic had 14 points for KK Buducnost, while Nemanja Gordic chipped in with 11. Cedomir Vitkovac and Goran Jeretin had 10 points apiece.
Heath led APOEL with 16 points, while Lewis Sims added 15. Milan Dozet and newcomer Marcus Hall had 13 and 12 points respectively.
APOEL’s Head Coach Christos Stylianides reflected on the game afterwards. “Congratulations to KK Buducnost on the win and thanks for the hospitality,” he said.
“They were better than us in all areas of the game. If you look at the statistics, you will see that they had more than 82 percent shooting for two points and 47 per cent for three, which is something incredible.
“We knew that they are a good team. It is difficult to play against a team that is so aggressive defensively, with so much pressure on the ball. They tried to put us in their rhythm and they succeeded. This is only one defeat. There are three more games in front of us and both teams still have chances to advance,” he added.
In Group I , Proteas EKA AEL lost to Krasnye Krylia of Russia 70-67 away from home after Denis Khloponin made a three-pointer ninety seconds from the final buzzer to secure the home team’s victory.
Luis Flores led Krasnye Krylia with 23 points, while Marcus Douthit added 18.
Quincy Taylor had 14 points for Proteas EKA AEL, while Ioannis Yiannoulis and Courtney Fells had 12 points each. Miah Davis finished the game with 10 points.
The national cup holders now lie at the bottom of Group I after the defeat, with a 1-2 record, together with the EiffelTowers Den Bosch of Holland.
The Russians share two spot with German side BC Gottingen with two wins in three games.
