BK Klosterneuburg Dukes vs. Adiraoil Skrljevo
73:79 (22:14, 35:29, 57:55)
Referees: Jäger, Wittwer.
Audience: 100.
Venue: Dukes Castle.
Scorers BK Klosterneuburg Dukes: Miletic 18, Burgemeister 12, Jakubowski 11, Hopfgartner 9, Blazevic 8, Alper 5, Cl. Leydolf 4, Lakoju 3, Bavcic 3.
Scorers KK Skrljevo: Riewer 22, Vucic 14, Barnjak 10, Batur 9, Panduric 8, Kolic 8, Sekelja 6, Cvitkovic 2.
After a well-balanced opening phase, the Dukes were able to break away for the first time after almost six minutes to 15:9. Even though Dukes-Headcoach Werner Sallomon made a lot of substitutions his team was able to win the first quarter by 8 points. In the first five minutes of the second quarter, both teams had problems taking off offensively and the gap remained constant. In the final phase the guests from Croatia could catch up a little and Klosterneuburg went with a 6 point-lead into the half-time break.
In the second half the distance remained about the same and the big highlights were missing. In the final phase of the third quarter, however, the Dukes acted unfocused and made some mistakes. Skrljevo took advantage of this and took the lead with a 7-0 run for the first time since the first quarter. Thanks to a Buzzer Beater of Youngster Alper, the Dukes got the lead back again and had a 2 point lead in the final quarter. The guests took over control and increased their lead. The Dukes found neither offensive nor defensive rhythm and so it was 70:61 for Skrljevo in the middle of the quarter. Led by Miletic, Klosterneuburg tried to come back. But it was too late, in the end Skrljevo secured the victory.
Werner Sallomon, head coach of Dukes: “We played well in the first half, but the second half was disastrous. The young players played a lot, that was a condition for today. Two of our top players are injured, so it’s not easy for any team.”
Julian Alper, player of Dukes: “Over short distances we played really well and put pressure on the game. Especially in the second half we didn’t do what we wanted, especially in the defense. Basically it wasn’t a bad game and for the young players it was a good opportunity to gain experience.”
Damir Rajkovic, head coach of Skrljevo: “It was a great win for us without three important players. Our young players played well and I am very happy.”
Jordan Riewer, player of Skrljevo: “It’s a great win for us especially for our younger guys. We started the season out slow, but the coach keeps pushing us.”
