Ioannis Sfairopoulos's men added another resounding road win to their resume
Crvena Zvezda's 'joker' came through in historic win in Barcelona
Article
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Regular Season
Round 18 of 34
Group Regular Season
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It's been a season of ups and downs for Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, but when it comes to those ups, the team from the Serbian capital has been stacking up big road wins.
After downing Paris Basketball, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, AS Monaco and Virtus Segafredo Bologna so far this season, Zvezda victoriously check-marked another big road trip by edging FC Barcelona 74-78 on Friday night.
It was Zvezda's first-ever road win over Barcelona, and its first triumph against the Azulgrana after 12 consecutive losses, having waited since October 2017 to beat Barcelona.
This one came in a tight contest, one in which Zvezda made 8 triples on just 27.6% shooting, while it had one more turnover and one fewer assist than Barcelona.
But Zvezda had 5 more offensive rebounds and a determination to never back down. Not when Barcelona opened the game with a 10-0 run, not when Barcelona repeatedly went in front in the third quarter, which Dario Brizuela ended with a half-court shot.
Zvezda did not falter when it committed a pair of turnovers in the final two minutes; the first one allowed Kevin Punter to hit a triple on the other end and tie the game at 74-74, then the second one gave the hosts a possession to go in front.
But Zvezda withstood it all, pulling down all the important rebounds before showing its depth when it trusted Dejan Davidovac to fire the game-winning shot. The swingman, considered his team's X-factor or joker, who coach Ioannis Sfairropoulos did not use in the previous round after leaving him at the end of the bench, explaining: "I did not need a joker in this game."
Well, with 21 seconds to go at Palau Blaugrana, there was Davidovac, finding himself all alone in the corner with the ball in his hands. He had missed all 3 of his two-point shots and both of his three-point attempts to that point, but he nailed this shot: the game-winner. He gave Zvezda a 74-77 lead, and the team found a way to preserve its advantage thereafter.
Davidovac played nearly 27 minutes, second most on the team against Barcelona, after sitting out the last two games. But what he did at the end encapsulated exactly what this Zvezda team is capable of doing.
Without its leader Milos Teodosic, with energizer Ognjen Dobric sidelined, John Brown still not ready to play, and with Codi Miller-McIntyre, Isaiah Canaan and Nikola Kalinic shooting 1 for 11 from long range, Zvezda still pulled out a big road win.
In the past, Zvezda would need big performances from its main players to pull out resounding wins like these. But not this year's Zvezda, which once again showcased the depth of its roster and its experience in tight contests.
With a 10-8 record, and still nine home games left to play entering the new year, Crvena Zvezda is looking ready to keep climbing up the standings in 2025.