Another huge win for Union Olimpija in Tivoli
Union Olimpija have beaten another powerhouse in Tivoli Hall. After Partizan NIS, another Playoffs side Budućnost VOLI were not good enough for the green and white in the legendary hall in Ljubljana!
Gregor Hrovat (Photo: Union Olimpija/Ales Fevzer)
ABA League Regular Season, Round 23, Wednesday, 22.2.2017:
UNION OLIMPIJA – Budućnost VOLI 81:79 (23:19, 22:21, 19:22, 17:17)
Story of the game: Union Olimpija are continuing their battle for the final fifth place in the standings. They have achieved another huge triumph at home in legendary Tivoli Hall, where they have edged out Partizan NIS recently. This time they were too strong for another Playoffs side – Budućnost VOLI. This win eliminated all doubts regarding the chances of the team of Ljubljana to avoid relegation from the ABA League and with 10 wins on their record now they remain also in the race for the fifth place after regular season. On the other side, Budućnost VOLI keep their record of 16 wins grabbed so far, which will not help them in the battle for the second place after regular season and home court advantage in the Semi-finals.
Key moments: With three minutes remaining on the clock the teams were still tied at 73:73. It was Nikola Janković, who scored four points for Union Olimpija over the next two minutes and helped his team enter the final minute with the 77:73 lead since Budućnost VOLI failed to score until it was too late. They did score 2 desperate three-point shots in the dying minute, but Olimpija were accurate enough from the free-throw line and did not allow them to turn the game around anymore.
Man of the match: With a phenomenal double double performance (24 points, 11 rebounds) Nikola Janković has earned him the best player of the game award. He did not only give his team the necessary stability with dominance in the paint, but has also been the key man of his side in the first half (15 points by the break), when they have created themselves the first important lead. Of course, as mentioned above, he scored the crucial points in the end, that gave his team the victory in the end.
Can't trick the stats: Assists and turnovers. This is what has decided the winner this time. While Union Olimpija had 21 assists and only 11 turnovers, Budućnost VOLI had 15 assists and 16 rebounds. Need any additional proof of how important is this ratio for the final outcome?
