Nutrisport Ilirija – BC GGMT Vienna 69:81 (20:26, 13:22, 19:18, 15:15)
Referees: Jovović, Reić, Anzulović
Attendance: 50
Venue: Hala Tivoli, Ljubljana
Scorers – Ilirija: Klobučar 17, Shashkov 12, Kures 10, Orel 8, Heine 6, Kruzynski and Mikus each 4, Kmetic and Vončina each 3, Padjen 2
Scorers – Vienna: Savic and Carlos Novas each 17, Radoš 13, Manigat and Vujosevic each 10, Murati 8, Thomas 6
Radoš from Vienna opened the game with 2+1. After a foul from Ilirija, Vienna took the lead 0-5. The first 3-pointer in the game put Vienna up 0-8. But Vončina on the other side answered with a 3. Shashkov scored 5-8. Savič scored for 2 to put Vienna up 5-10. But with a fast basket from Kureš, it was 7-10. After another great defense and a fast basket, Ilirija came up 9-10. Shashkov scored from mid-range for the first Ilirija lead of the game 11-10. Vienna answered with 4 easy points. But with a 3, Kureš tied the score to 14. After a couple of successful Vienna attacks. Modrić took his first time-out of the game with a score of 15-19. Ilirija comes close again with another 3, 18-19. A monster dunk from Klobučar put the score to 20-23. The quarter ended at 20:26. Vienna opened the 2nd quarter with 2 fast and easy baskets. A 3-pointer and a 20-34 Vienna lead left Modrić with no other choice but to take the time out. Ilirija answered with 2 baskets, but Vienna was on the offensive attack, 24-39. With another 3 from Kureš, the score was 29-42. Ilirija was fighting on the defensive end, but Viennas‘ attack was too strong. The halftime score was 33-48.
Vienna opened the quarter with a free throw. Then the teams exchanged the 3s. Ilirija played great defense but was having trouble with Vienna‘s offense. To Vienna‘s offensive attack, Ilirija answered with 3 fast and easy baskets. That led to Viennas‘ coach taking his 1st time-out. Ilirija continued with good defense and fast counterattacks, putting the score to 47-59 after a Shaschkov 3. Ilirija continued with a strong defense, but Vienna had an answer. End of the quarter – 54:66. Vienna started the last quarter with a 2-pointer, but Ilirija on the other side, answered with a 3. Ilirija continued strong and 8 minutes till the end of the game, the Viennas lead was back to only 10 points. After an easy Schaschkov 2, the Viennas lead was only 8, but they answered with a 3, putting the lead back to 11. Ilirija was pushing on offense and was tough on the defense, but was no match for Vienna’s offense. With 2 easy baskets and 2 minutes till the end of the game, they had a glimpse of hope for the win, but in the end, Vienna was just too strong and finished the game with another win – 69:81.
Post-game quotes:
Stipe Modrić, head coach of Ilirija: “Congratulations to Vienna on the deserved win. Our youth and too many mistakes cost us. 23 turnovers is absolutely too much. We have to be more careful with the ball and have fewer turnovers. As I said, the team is young and we still need some time. But I think we are getting better every day.”
Anej Orel, player of Ilirija: “We started the game a bit scared, at the beginning, our defense was not the best. When we started running and pushing the ball, we came back into the game. We were more aggressive. They had a shorter rotation of players, so in the end, we came close, maybe with a bit more experience, we could turn the game around. Congratulations to Vienna for the win.”
Zoran Kostic, assistant coach of Vienna: “Tonight it was obvious that we were tired, because we played a few games with only 7 players, so we were out of concentration, but winning was the most important thing. And I wish the Ilirija team good luck in the continuation of the season.”
Stefan Savic, player of Vienna: “We knew it was gonna be a tough match, they are a young talented team that can run in transition and is tough to play against but we managed to win and it’s a very important win for us. We are now 3-0 and are in a good position after the last 3 games.”
