NLB MATCH OF THE ROUND: Cedevita Olimpija and Crvena zvezda Meridianbet meet in legendary Tivoli Hall
On Saturday night, Cedevita Olimpija will be hosting Crvena zvezda Meridianbet at home in their Tivoli Sports Hall in Ljubljana.
Luka Mitrovic (Photo: ABA League j.t.d./Dragana Stjepanovic)
2023/24 AdmiralBet ABA League Round 15, Saturday, 6 January 2024:
CEDEVITA OLIMPIJA – CRVENA ZVEZDA MERIDIANBET
Where? Tivoli Sports Hall, Ljubljana
When? 17:00
Story of the game: On Saturday night, Cedevita Olimpija will be hosting Crvena zvezda Meridianbet at home in their Tivoli Sports Hall in Ljubljana.
It will be a game, where Cedevita Olimpija, under the guidance of new head coach Zoran Martić, will try their best to end Crvena zvezda Meridianbet’s 9 games long winning streak. They themselves will try at the same time to return to the winning track following the shocking defeat in the previous round against Mega MIS on the road in Belgrade.
It’s a clash of the leading team in the standings, Crvena zvezda Meridianbet, that are currently on a 13:1 record, against the team that shares the second spot with Partizan Mozzart Bet, currently at the 10:4 record. So it is expected that it would be a true battle on the court in Tivoli this time.
In the first game of the season between the two squads, Zvezda have outgunned Cedevita Olimpija by 43 points of margin (94:51) in Belgrade. However, a different story is coming up this time, as the Dragons have improved a lot since then through the season.
Previously, the clashes between the two squads in Ljubljana have always been close contests, since in 5 encounters in Ljubljana, the hosts have prevailed twice and the visitors three times. How will it end this time?
Match-up in focus: Perhaps the most interesting match-up of the game can be the one between Jaka Blažič of Cedevita Olimpija and Nemanja Nedović of Crvena zvezda Meridianbet, both of which are currently the top scorers of their respective squads, with Blažič averaging 16.9 points and Nedović 12.4 points per game so far. Blažič is also the second-leading passer of Cedevita Olimpija, averaging 2.9 assists and Nedović is the third-leding passer of Crvena zvezda Meridianbet with an average of 4.4 assists dished out per game. Who will lead his team to the win this time?
Head-to-head score in the regional league: In total 2:10, In Ljubljana 2:3.
