Cibona beat Krka for their first win in the ABA League

Cibona beat Krka of Novo Mesto 99-84 at the Dražen Petrović Basketball Centre in Round 5 of Group A of the AdmiralBet ABA League, picking up their first win of this year’s competition. The Wolves played an excellent game in front of their home fans, and the decisive moments came in the second quarter.

Cibona started the game with McGill, Badžim, Mazalin, Hepa and Katanović. The first quarter was evenly matched and ended 21-20 in the visitors’ favor, with Baldwin standing out for Krka.

In the second period the Wolves showed their best side. Good defense and quick ball movement helped them win the quarter 33-18 and go into the long break 14 points up (53-39).

The third quarter went to the hosts 25-22, and they led 78-61 going into the final ten minutes. Krka tried to make a comeback late on, led by Baldwin and Smith, but Cibona kept control. Krka won the last quarter 23-21, with McGill adding seven points in it, while Mazalin, Sikirić, Serdarušić and Badžim scored three each.

Six Cibona players scored ten or more points. McGill was the best with 21 points and four assists, Badžim added 16, and off the bench Gnjidić (13), Serdarušić (12) and Sikirić (10) brought valuable energy. Mazalin had 11 points and seven rebounds, and Hepa grabbed as many as 10 rebounds to go with his seven points. For Krka, Baldwin led the way with 22 points and six assists, while Galin Smith and Mahkovic scored 15 apiece.

Cibona head coach Andrej Štimac said after the game:

“Congratulations to the guys on the win. I have to say that Neven Nikolić contributed to this win just as much as I did, and I believe the players who carried it out left their mark in their own way. We got two points on the board, changed the picture a little and gave ourselves some emotion. We’re aware of our good shooting, but also of some mistakes. We gave up 16 points in the last five minutes, which is the only complaint, and Cibona’s identity has to be that we don’t let up until the very end. That’s the only way we can hope to represent this name the way it should be represented.”

Krka head coach Domen Zevnik said:

“I don’t have much to say. If you give up 99 points, your chances of winning are very slim. Cibona looked today exactly the way we feared: energetic, quicker, more athletic and a bit more combative, which is probably a result of a reaction. It was a reaction for this game, and we had no chance. Cibona controlled the game all night.”

The Wolves are back at home on Sunday, 25 October, at 18:00 at the Dražen Dome, hosting Zagreb side Virtus in Round 5 of the SuperSport Premier League.