By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne, which is more than strong at home, Crvena Zvezda proved once more that they are on the rise.
Despite stellar start and a 30-13 lead after the first quarter for the hosts, Zvezda completed a furious comeback on the way to the final 83-80 win and a 9-9 record, good enough for the eighth spot of the standings.
Kevin Punter, with 18 points, including the winning three with one second left, was the star of the game and redeemed himself for the turnover that led to a 80-80 tie.
Vladimir Stimac was the top scorer with 22 points plus he had a big block over Rihards Lomasz at the buzzer, while Lorenzo Brown added 13 points and seven assists. “It’s like deja-vu for me because I played here a couple of weeks ago”, said Stimac who has been also to France as a member of Fenerbahce. “Respect to ASVEL, they are a great team. We came out and played with our hearts and gave our best and we won a very difficult game on a very difficult court – because this is one of the hardest courts in the EuroLeague. And I respect ASVEL very much, and their coach and fans. I am happy we prevailed and won the game. We have to shoot better free throws at the end. But in the end, all props to Kevin and coach”.
The Serbs trailed by 19 at halftime (49-30) with Adreian Payne leading a solid team effort of the French side with 10 points in 12 minutes of action.
However, the guests cut the lead to three points (57-54) with a 24-8 partial score in the middle of the third quarter with Stimac having 15 points on 7/7 shots.
Thanks to a three by Punter, Zvezda made it a one-point game (65-64) at the end of the quarter and, in total, scored 34 points, four more compared to the first half.
The guests finally got the 74-72 lead with Punter scoring again, and Stimac gave them a crucial six points advantage (79-73) entering the last two minutes.
It was not enough to seal the deal. Rihards Lomazs put ASVEL into a striking distance with a three (80-78) seconds left, and David Lighty stole the ball from Punter and tied the score at 80 with 15 seconds left. But Zvezda’s US import had the last word.
The hosts dropped to 8-10, Payne finished the game with 17 points, and Lomazs had 14.
“Everything was wrong in the first half”
For coach Dragan Sakota, things were quite simply for Zvezda: “Everything was wrong in the first half. We didn’t have any speed. In the second half, we changed everything in our defense and increased our speed on defense. We stopped everything and we controlled the game and we came back. This showed character, which is very important in these kinds of games. They surprised us with the energy they had starting the game. They were very, very aggressive. They beat us in every screen. We were late. But after that, we understood how we were supposed to play and everything was okay.”