The Serbian team stretched its winning streak to five games
Partizan edges ALBA, 90-91, in dramatic finish
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade celebrated its fifth successive win and improved to 7-8 in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after eking out a dramatic 90-91 win at ALBA Berlin, as Carlik Jones produced another masterclass individual performance.
The playmaker led the visiting team’s charge with a game-high 24 points, 6 assists and 5 boards, including a clutch mid-range jumper with 1.7 seconds left on the clock. Big man Tyrique Jones chipped in with 20 points and 7 rebounds, while Sterling Brown added 18 points against his former club. At the other end, David McCormack paced ALBA on 16 points and 6 rebounds, while Matteo Spagnolo and Tim Schneider netted 13 points apiece.
With over 5,000 loud visiting fans thronging the Uber Arena, Partizan felt like the home team throughout and prevailed in a tense finish, as the Serbian side bounced back from an 88-84 deficit in the home straight to force the final twist.
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A see-saw first half saw the lead change hands time and again before Partizan took a 46-51 advantage into the locker room at the interval, with Tyrique Joes pouring 16 points through the opening two quarters as he dominated the paint at both ends of the court.
Carlik Jones pulled all the strings on offense and Duane Washington enjoyed a flawless second quarter, nailing 13 points in the opening half as the trio fired on all cylinders for Partizan. At the other end, Matt Thomas scored 11 points and Spagnolo added 7 for ALBA, with both sides shooting in fits and starts from long range.
Partizan seemed to be coasting after Brown rifled in 13 points in the third quarter and gave Partizan a 61-72 lead late in the period, but ALBA came storming back in the fourth and turned the matchup on its head down the stretch.
With Partizan’s offense coming to a screeching halt in the last few minutes, the home team engineered an 88-84 lead with a 13-2 run before Marinkovic nailed a 3-pointer for Partizan while Carlik Jones sank a pair of free throws followed by the audacious mid-range jumper.
With Partizan 89-91 ahead, McCormack drew a foul but missed the first free throw before inadvertently scoring with the second. Incredibly, Brandon Davies missed both shots from the foul line at the other end with 0.7 seconds left and gave ALBA one last chance to stun Partizan, but the home team’s desperate sideout from one end of the floor to the other fell short.