MEGA CAME BACK SEVERAL TIMES, FMP EVENTUALLY CELEBRATED AT THE HALL OF SPORTS

Mega was returning from a double-digit deficit, FMP denied the attack in the last quarter and came to victory!

Mega Basket lost to FMP in the 5th round of the AdmiralBet ABA League with 82:89 (22:21, 16:27, 26:18, 18:23). Coach Vladimir Jovanovic’s team managed to return from minus 12 from the beginning of the third quarter and equalize several times, but FMP punished Mega’s mistakes with threes in the last quarter and finally won at the Hall of sports Ranko Zeravica.

The most efficient in the ranks of Mega were Dayshon Smith with 17 points, as well as Malcolm Cazalon and Karlo Matkovic with 13. Bryce Jones stood out in FMP with 24 points.

After five played rounds of the AdmiralBet ABA league, Mega Basket has a score of 2-3, while FMP recorded four victories. In the next round Mega will play away against Crvena zvezda mts on Monday, November 1.

Vladimir Jovanović started the match with the following five: Smith, Cazalon, Jovic, Simanic and Balcerowski. A few steals balls by Mega at the beginning of the game, which leads 9:4 after four minutes of play. FMP catches the connection with passes, but Simanic and Matkovic from the paint maintain the advantage. The guests equalized, but Balcerowski stole the ball by throwing it on the floor and then pass it to Jovic, who in the continuation of the action assisted to Djurisic for a lay-up. The result of the first quarter is set by Kocovic from the free throw line in 22:21 after 10 minutes of play.

The beginning of the second quarter belongs to the guests who reach plus seven with a run of 0:8. The series of guests is interrupted by Balcerowski, who is then once again accurate from the paint, so Mega, with the lay-up of Jovic, slowly catches the connection. Simanic and Smith hit threes for the result of 34:34 in three minutes until the end of the half. However, the guests managed to punish the series of mistakes of the Mega players, so with a field goals from all positions, they managed to reach the biggest plus 10 at halftime, 38:48.

After minus 12 at the beginning of the third quarter, Caazlon hits a three-pointer and then, after steal of Cerovina, dunks in the counter. Mega’s great energy continued, the gap melted from minute to minute, and after a three-pointer and Alley-oop of Jovic, Mega came close to two points, 54:56. Basket for basket was played in the following minutes, on several occasions Mega equalized and the result before the last 10 minutes of the game was 64:66.

Mega’s players were not concentrated at the beginning of the last section, so FMP quickly reached an advantage of seven points. Jovic and Cazalon hit a three-pointer, but in the next attacks, FMP responded with the same measure and kept the advantage, 75:82 for four minutes until the end. Mega tried to return to the game, but the match was definitely resolved with a three-pointer by Nevels with two and a half minutes until the end, and the final result was set by Smith with a three-pointer for 82:89.

Mega Basket: Balcerowski 12 (4 steals), Vujic, Ruzhetsev, Jovic 12 (6 assists), Kocovic 2, Smith 17 (5 assists), Cerovina 2, Matkovic 13 (6 rebounds), Cazalon 13, Djurisic 2, Simanic 9, Bogavac.

FMP: Nevels 17, Pavicevic 4, Zajc, Vujicic 4, Jones 24, Saranovic, Nikolic 2, Tasic 15, Radonjic 6, Izundu 8 (10 rebounds), Simovic, Nerandzic 9.

Foto: Mega Basket/Ivica Veselinov