Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade kept alive its long-shot hopes for the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs by using its long-range attack for a 92-76 victory at home over Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv. Billy Baron drained 5 three-pointers in scoring 22 points and Kevin Punter chipped in 4 treys and 22 points for Zvezda, which improved to 11-17.
Zvezda shooters prove too much for Maccabi, 92-76
Game Report
1 Min read
The Serbian club, which also got 12 points and 12 rebounds from Vladimir Stimac and 12 points from James Gist, picked up a much-needed win after having lost eight of its last nine games as well as four of its last five contests at home. Maccabi saw Tyler Dorsey lead the way with 19 points off the bench and Scottie Wilbekin had 11 points, but they were not enough to keep its record from dropping to 19-9. Maccabi had its five-game winning streak snapped and the Israeli power had won three of its last four road games.
Regular Season
Round 28 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Zvezda head coach Dragan Sakota was back on the bench after having missed the last two games due to medical reasons. Baron started the scoring and soon showed his outside shooting prowess with 4 three-pointers on successive possessions. His streak was followed by long balls on the next two trips down the floor by Branko Lazic and Gist to put Zvezda up 23-14. Jake Cohen hit his second triple in helping Maccabi pull within 23-18 before Baron downed a layup for his 16th point and a 27-20 Zvezda advantage after 10 minutes. Dorsey started the second quarter with a triple that Baron answered from long range for the fifth time. Maccabi got close as Dorsey, Aaron Jackson and Elijah Bryant all were on target from long range to make it 41-38. The outside barrage continued with Punter knocking down his second from the arc for Zvezda, which moved ahead 47-38 before Wilbekin's three-ball made it 49-43 at the break.
Wilbekin's triple to start the second half trimmed the deficit to 49-46 but Maccabi then went nearly 3 minutes without a point after that. Meanwhile, Lorenzo Brown and Baron had 4 free throws in a 10-0 surge to a 59-46 lead. Gist added baskets as Zvezda tacked on an 8-0 spurt for a 67-48 advantage. Another pair of bombes by Punter bombs increased the margin to a high of 23 points before settling at 79-58 after 30 minutes. Punter's first points of the final frame pushed the advantage to 81-58. After Dorsey hit a triple, Maccabi managed to put together a 2-8 run to pull within 85-69 with under 5 minutes to play. But Gist threw down a big exclamation point dunk at 87-69 and Maccabi did not get closer than 13 points the rest of the way.
Game Leaders
Pivotal performer
Billy Baron set the stage early with 4 straight three-pointers in the first quarter. He ended up with not only 22 points but also 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
Starters didn't get it done
Other than Scottie Wilbekin's 11 points, the other four Maccabi starters -- Elijah Bryant, Quincy Acy, Othello Hunter and Yovel Zoosman -- combined for just 13 points.
Telling numbers
Zvezda connected on 13-of-23 three-pointers for 56.5% while also forcing Maccabi into 19 turnovers, winning the points-off-turnovers category 24 to 13.
Dragan Sakota, Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade
"We were probably fresher than them. We played smarter than we did in the last few games that we lost and we corrected some things on offense when the opponents changed defenses. We adjusted very well. Our three-point shooting in the first half – around 70% -- was not real, so we knew that number would come down, but in the end, we found other solutions with our inside game. We also played better defense in the second half, controlling their three-point shot. So I think we deserved this to be a clear victory."
Ioannis Sfairopoulos, Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv
"I would like to congratulate Zvezda for the win. They deserved to win because, from the beginning, they played much better than us. They started the game shooting well from outside, and not only in the first period, with Baron leading the way. The first half, they made seven from outside. Although they played good, we were still close, within six points at halftime. But in the third period, we allowed them to score 30 points and I think it was obvious that we were not ready, mentally, to play a tough game."
Billy Baron, Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade
"We've let a couple of games slip away during the season. Even when we played at their place, we had a chance to win at the end. It was good to make up for some of those games that we lost. It was a good team effort. We played really smart on offense. [Kevin Punter] was huge tonight. [Vladimir] Stimac was big, [James] Gist was big, Lorenzo [Brown]. It was a whole team effort. It was a big win to keep us in the playoff race. We have six games left. Hopefully, we can carry this momentum through those last six games."
Vladimir Stimac, Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade
"We played really good in Istanbul [against Fenerbahce], too, but we made a couple of turnovers at the end, and that probably cost us the close win there. I didn't play well there in some points of that game, so maybe I was the part we were missing to get that win there. I felt I played bad in that game but today we won and that is most important for us. You have to move forward. We played like a team today and if everybody does their job we are going to win the game – no doubt about it. This is a team favored to reach the Final Four and we showed today that we can play with them with no problem and I hope that we have many more games like this."
Aaron Jackson, Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv
"A tough game. We weren't focused. From the start of the game, they got hot and made some big shots. We didn't really come out and play our game. Coach did a good job on the game plan, and we had it down. But like I said, we were one step behind them every play. But this is something you can learn from. I hope we can. We can look at our offense, our defense, and figure it out. You need games like this before going to the playoffs. Hopefully, we can watch the film, get ready and get back."