Partizan cruised to win over Mega at the Aleksandar Nikolic arena by 96:68, securing their spot in the final of the Serbian Superleague.
The routine win for the ‘Black and Whites’ provided an excellent opportunity to give minutes to Aleksa Dimitrijevic and Sava Drezgic.
From the first minute, Zeljko Obradovic’s team displayed incredible character, resulting in an early lead of 19:2. Marko Barac’s team seemed helpless against the formidable performances of Kevin Punter, Zach LeDay, and Bruno Caboclo. Only Nikola Djurisic showed a noteworthy performance on the other side, but it wasn’t enough to mitigate Mega’s catastrophe. After 10 minutes of play, Obradovic’s team had a massive 30-point lead (39-9).
In the second quarter, the ‘Black and Whites’ showed a completely different face, resembling Mega’s performance in the first period. They waited for three and a half minutes to score their first points, managing to score only eight by halftime. Obradovic also gave Jaleen Smith a chance, but nothing could improve the lackluster performance of the ‘Black and Whites’. The guests gradually reduced the deficit, which stood at a decent minus 16 after 20 minutes of play (47:31).
The halftime break served the home team well to ‘reset’ in the locker room, evident from the beginning of the third quarter. Uros Trifunovic, Zach LeDay, and Danilo Andjusic created a 13:2 run, bringing the ‘Black and Whites’ back to a significant plus 28. Filip Jovic applied the brakes for Mega with several good plays, making the mentioned period somewhat decent for his team.
The favorable score on the scoreboard gave Zeljko Obradovic the opportunity to give chances, primarily to Aleksa Dimitrijevic, who logged his first senior minutes, and Sava Drezgic. The youngest first-team players from Humska showcased truly brilliant performances, sealing the convincing win for the ‘Black and Whites’.
Dimitrijevic finished the game with eight points on an impressive field goal percentage (4/5).
Zach LeDay was the top scorer for Partizan with 17 points, while Filip Jovic stood out for Mega with 21.
The final between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan begins on June 3, with the host role going to the red and whites.