The home team shot the lights out from deep and prevailed at both ends in the paint
Rampant Buducnost fired on all cylinders against Joventut
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Buducnost VOLI Podgorica made a statement of intent with a comprehensive 107-75 drubbing of Joventut Badalona which put the Montenegrin team on the verge of reaching the BKT EuroCup Playoffs.
Buducnost visits Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius in the final round of the regular season and a win in Lithuania would seal qualification for the knockout stages of the competition.
The hosts sank an impressive 14 of 24 from downtown and limited Joventut to just 8 of 35, as they also won the battle of the boards 37-23. The two teams racked up 10 offensive rebounds each but Buducnost overwhelmed Joventut in their own paint, having also dished out 26 assists to the Spanish side’s 17.
The result means Buducnost has won five of its last six games to claw its way back into the playoff picture and will head to Vilnius buoyed by a fantastic performance, with player of the game Yogi Ferrell coming off the bench to pace the hosts on 20 points and 5 assists.
Five other players posted double digits as Buducnost shared the ball superbly on offense, while grinding Joventut to a halt with ironclad third-quarter defense which forced the visiting team to commit a barrage of turnovers.
“It was a great victory and a shout-out to the first unit for their defense,” a delighted Ferrell said in his postgame comments. “It gave us a lot of confidence out there. The last four games have been must-win, so we’ll go there [to Vilnius] poised to execute the game plan.”
Coach Andrej Zakelj also had one eye on next week’s tough matchup in Lithuania, with Wolves too vying for a top-six finish which would secure a berth in the business end of the competition.
“Congratulations to my players, they managed under pressure and played aggressive defense in the second half,” he said. “It’s not over yet, though, so we must focus and move on after getting some rest.”