Mitrović received the award for best coach in the ABA League, then demolished Red Star: Struggle leads to a turnaround

Cedevita-Olimpija defeated Red Star 92:86 in the second match of the ABA League quarterfinals.

1486 views 0 comment(s)
Zvezdan Mitrović with league director Dubravko Kmetović, Photo: Cedevita Olimpija/Ales Fevzer
Zvezdan Mitrović with league director Dubravko Kmetović, Photo: Cedevita Olimpija/Ales Fevzer
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

The head coach of the Montenegrin national basketball team and the coach of Cedevita-Olimpija, Zvezdan Mitrović, was recently elected the best coach of the AdmiralBet ABA League this season, and he celebrated winning the award in the best possible way - with a victory over Red Star in Ljubljana, in the second match of the quarterfinals.

Cedevita-Olimpija celebrated 92:86 last night in "Stozice", tying the series (1:1), and before the match, the league director, Dubravko Kmetović, presented Mitrović with the award for the best coach in the region.

And Mitrović's team made a big turnaround last night, as Red Star had a 21-point lead in the second quarter (39:18). The next game is a masterstroke, the decisive match is scheduled for Friday (19 p.m.) in Belgrade.

"It's really nice when you play in an atmosphere like this. We don't have many opportunities during the season, but that's the help - it's hard to make a turnaround like this in an empty stadium. I would like to congratulate the players for not giving up and congratulate the opponent on a quality game. We needed aggression, we were too soft, we had to calm down the game and play harder defensively. I told the players to congratulate them and thank them, because everyone contributed. Gibson could have been a tragic figure, but he became a hero. He missed those penalties, did some crazy things, although he had great energy and that's the only way to win a Euroleague team," Mitrović said after the match.

The winner of the master class will face Partizan in the semifinals.

"A fight is a turning point. The rival has a lot of experience, they overran us in the first 10-15 minutes. We didn't panic, we tried to play defense. Point by point we came back, in the end we broke through and won. That's it - calmness and firmness. That's the formula. We expect an exceptionally aggressive Red Star in the match. They entered the second half a little softer. They were very good at the start and we expect the same in Belgrade," concluded Zvezdan Mitrović.

See more: