MEGA STOPPED IN THIRD QUARTER, IGOKEA TOOK AWAY WIN FROM BELGRADE

Weak third quarter for defeat of Mega from Igokea!

Mega Mozzart were defeated by Igokea in the 21st round of the ABA League with 71:81 (15:14, 22:18, 13:28, 21:21). The empty minutes of the home team in the third section cost Mega too much in a duel that was extremely important in the fight for the sixth place that leads to the playoffs. Although Mega had the lead and a very solid game in the first 20 minutes, all that was unfortunately gambled of in the second half.

The most efficient in the ranks of Mega were Nikola Jovic with 22 points and Karlo Matkovic with 17. In the Igokea team, Antabia Waller stood out with 17 points.

After 21 rounds of the ABA League, Mega Mozzart has a score of 8-12 with a game less, while Igokea has 11 wins and 9 losses. Mega Mozzart will play the next game in Ljubljana against Cedevita Olimpija, and the match is scheduled for Sunday, March 13 at 5 pm.

Mega came out on the Igokea with starting five Smith, Djurisic, Jovic, Simanic and Matkovic, and the beginning of the match was marked by extremely strong defenses. Igokea dictated the pace at the start, had a slight lead, but the finish of the first section was in the sign of Mega. The home team closed all the approaches to their basket, Igokea was without points for three and a half minutes, which the home team used in the right way and with Matej Rudan’s points Mega reached the first lead of 15:14.

From the moment they took the lead, coach Vladimir Jovanovic’s team played much more confidently. They kept the necessary aggression in defense, they managed to parry the extremely strong Igokea players in the jump, which gave them a certain dose of security in attack. In the finish of the second quarter, Nikola Jovic and Karlo Matkovic played great, so Mega reached the maximum eight-point advantage – 35:27. However, the home team went on a big break with five points in excess, although the lead could have been more convincing. But, the desire for easy points from the counters resulted in two lost balls in a short interval, so Mega had +5 on their account after the first half.

Mega played the third quarter of the duel with Igokea for oblivion. They simply couldn’t do anything. The opening three minutes were without baskets, and the experienced Igokea team used it all in the right way. The guests from Aleksandrovac gained a double-digit advantage for the first time with a run of 2:17 (39:49). Their lead went to a maximum of 13 points in the finish of the third section, but with a three with the sound of a siren, Samson Ruzhentsev restored such hope.

However, in the last section, Mega did not have the strength to make a turnaround. Igokea controlled the events on the floor of the “Ranko Zeravica” sports hall, and the mistakes of the home team, which were simply too many in this match, even contributed significantly to playing against a team of lower quality than the very strong Igokea team.

Mega Mozzart: Vujic, Ruzhentsev 10, Jovic 22 (8 rebounds, 5 assists), Rudan 5, Uskokovic 5, Kocovic, Smith 3, Cerovina, Matkovic 17 (12 rebounds), Djurisic 2, Simanic 5, Musikic 2.

Igokea: Vulic, Robinson 7 (8 assists), Tanaskovic 7 (9 rebounds), Radanov 12, Josilo 14, Talic, Stephens 10, Waller 17, Fundic 4, Djordjevic 10, Delalic.

Foto: Mega Mozzart/Dragana Stjepanović