Igokea m:tel pull off a stunning 4th quarter comeback to beat Split on the road
The visitors made a 19:1 run in the 4th quarter and seized the precious win at the start of the new season.
(Photo: Split/Ivica Cavka)
2024/25 AdmiralBet ABA League Round 1, Saturday, 21 September 2024:
Split – IGOKEA M:TEL 74:79 (14:14, 18:21, 31:24, 11:20)
Game recap: Igokea m:tel have scored a precious road win at the start of the new season as they defeated Split at Gripe after making a stunning comeback in the 4th quarter. The Laktaši troops were down by 9 points (59:68) after a minute played in the 4th quarter, while then they made a stunning 19:1 run in the following eight-and-a-half minutes to take over the lead and seize the win.
This game will stay remembered for the comeback appearance of Boriša Simanić who played his first official match after recovering from a life-threatening injury. Simanić was one of the best players in the winning team as he scored 10 points for Igokea m:tel.
Key moments: Only one team played in the 4th quarter and that was Igokea m:tel. We have already mentioned that the visitors made the 19:1 run that started 1 minute into the 4th quarter and ended just 30 seconds before the end.
Igokea m:tel improved their defense significantly in the 4th period, but we also have to say that Split also missed many shots that they should have scored. Everything that the home side was building during the opening 31 minutes just collapsed in the rest of the match and Split will definitely need some time to recover from this defeat.
Man of the match: Bryce Jones was the top scorer in Igokea m:tel with 13 points, but we will still give this award to Boriša Simanić who was the true hero today. The 26-year-old player has managed to return on court against all odds and to become a true inspiration to all the players around the world.
And on top of all that, he scored 10 points, without missing a single 2-pointer – 5/5.
Can’t trick the stats: When you score just 1 point in the period between 31st and the 40th minute, you just can’t hope to win a close game like this. Split’s gameplay just fell apart in the 4th quarter and Igokea m:tel used it to seize the win.
Stats
Players on court
| SPL | Min | PtsP | RebsR | AssA | StS | FoulF | ValV | |
| 2 | Shorter S. | 31:56 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 23 |
| 5 | Jordano A. | 25:42 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 10 | Kučić V. | 15:04 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| 11 | Vuko T. | 18:02 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| 24 | Škara D. | 25:42 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| IGO | Min | PtsP | RebsR | AssA | StS | FoulF | ValV | |
| 2 | Anim S. | 22:28 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| 4 | Gavrilović S. | 23:02 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| 7 | Jones B. | 28:14 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 23 |
| 21 | Milosavljevic D. | 22:06 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| 22 | Simanić B. | 22:28 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
Top players
| VALUE (INDEX) | ||||
| Shorter S. | 23 | - | 23 | Jones B. |
| POINTS | ||||
| Shorter S. | 17 | - | 13 | Jones B. |
| REBOUNDS | ||||
| Shorter S. | 9 | - | 4 | Jones B. |
| ASSISTS | ||||
| Kapusta B. | 7 | - | 9 | Jones B. |
