First Red Star then Cibona and now Partizan. You can call it a classic season opener for the “Yellows”. While the first ABA league game in Belgrade did not go well, KK Split was able to beat Cibona Zagreb 73:62 at home to start the Premijer Liga on the right foot.
Split’s newly appointed head coach, former team captain and assistant coach Srđan Subotić, expects repeating good games on the home court, and most importantly a big step forward compared to the devastating 97:61 loss in the 1st round of ABA League against Red Star.
“Against Cibona, it was seen how much wind in our backs the return of fans in the bleachers gave us. We will get back at them, this is a derby, we are motivated and ready, we will do all to keep the points at home for our fans at home,” were the Split coach’s words before the game.
Burak Canboy
At Gripe, the second game in the ABA league started slow for the home team, while legendary guest coach Željko Obradović saw his team take a 5:0 lead which Partizan was able to increase to 11:3 before Split got into the game and closed the first at 15:17 immediately after giving away their first lead of the match.
Burak Canboy
A very low shooting percentage was the reason why KK Split lost control of the game during the second quarter and had to watch Belgrade score attack after attack to take a 38:24 lead at halftime.
Tonko Vuko’s buzzer-beater to finish the third quarter 43:53 marked the only quarter Split was able to win (19:15) was also the signal for the “Yellows” to start the last effort to come back.
Burak Canboy
Three three-pointers by Toni Perković gave Split some momentum and got the home crowd from their seats in the final quarter of the game. However, the routine of Belgrade was enough to regain control and safely take the points home.
Burak Canboy
Perković was the only player in double digits for Split (17), LeDay (15 points, 10 rebounds) and Smailagić (12 points) were the top scorers for Partizan Belgrade.
Referees: Igor Dragojević, Miloš Koljenšić, Ernad Karović
Box score:
https://www.aba-liga.com/match-live/8/21/1/Overview/q1/1/home/split-partizan-nis/
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