Regular Season Game 1 - October 26, 2006 CET: 00:00 Local time: 00:00 - BASKETBALL CENTER DRAZEN PETROVIC

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
0-0 Regular Season 0-0
0-0 Overall 0-0

Referees

Crew Chief
MITJANA, JUAN CARLOS, Spain
Referee
ZIEMBLICKI, GRZEGORZ, Poland
Umpire
MIKHAYLOV, SERGEY, Russia

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
0 Points 0
0 Rebounds 0
0 O. Rebounds 0
0 D. Rebounds 0
0 Assists 0
0 Steals 0
0 Blocks 0
0 Turnovers 0
0 2PT 0
0 3PT 0
0 FT 0
0 Index 0

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
0 Points 0
0 Rebounds 0
0 OR 0
0 DR 0
0 Assists 0
0 Steals 0
0 Blocks 0
0 Turnovers 0
0 2PT 0
0 3PT 0
0 FT 0
0 Index 0

THE TAKE

Two age-old rivals get their Group B seasons underway Thursday when Cibona hosts Union Olimpija at the Drazen Petrovic Center in Zagreb, Croatia. Cibona and Olimpija, who have played countless big games against each other over the decades, will do so twice this week, with an Adriatic League date between them scheduled for Saturday, too. Both squad mix young talent and experienced veterans, and their respective solid domestic campaigns so far point to two clubs evenly matched in their dual hopes of reaching the Top 16. This opener could be crucial for both teams. For Cibona, power forward Brent Wright, a former ULEB Cup MVP, has already taken on big responsibilities. Meanwhile scrappy guard Ender Arslan has been a spark for Olimpija, creating, scoring and playing good defense. Cibona will hope that its deep backcourt will have what it takes to dismantle the partnership of Arslan, Teemu Rannikko and Saso Ozbolt. Jamal McCullough will be the man likely called upon to take Arslan, with help from Davor Kus, Vedran Morovic and Goran Vrbanc. On the wings, Cibona relies on Levour Warren and Marijan Mance, who'll matchup with Manuchar Markoishvili and young Domen Lorbek. Inside, Olimpija has multiple options to try and wear down Wright. It can go with the explosive Marko Milicic or the powerful Hasan Rizvic, depending upon how the game develops. But Wright is not the only frontcourt threat on Cibona, which also boasts centers Marton Bader, Jurica Zuza and Luksa Andric. Olimpija can counter with center Christian Maraker or forwards Ivica Jurkovic and Miha Zupan. In games like this between teams like these, any number of players can make the difference to either Cibona or Olimpija getting a valuable victory to start the season.

Quotes Head Coaches

ANZULOVIC, DRAZEN
Cibona
“It's not a big secret that we've been focused on start of the Euroleague season during the first six games of the Adriatic League. It's also not a secret that I'm not very satisfied with what we have done. We played a great game against Partizan, but that was a long time ago. The most important thing for us is to start strong and play tough defense and everything else will follow that."
MAHORIC, TOMO
Union Olimpija
"If I was able to choose, I would have chosen the Euroleague to start a little later so I would have had more time to prepare my team. We are a group of rather young players, with little experience and we still need some time to reach a good level. Hence, the first weeks will show a Union Olimpija that is not playing at its best. The Drazen Petrovic Arena, where Cibona plays, is one of the toughest venues in the Euroleague so we will have to be aware that if we do not play our best ball, we won't stand a chance. Our main aim will be stopping Cibona's outside shot and lower the pace of the game, as they can play with 10 players to make it fast and hard to handle during 40 minutes. We have a big injury that makes it worse for us. Our starting guard Ender Arslan was injured in the last Adriatic League game, and will be out from 3 to 5 weeks."

Players

KUS, DAVOR
Cibona
“We are looking forward to new season. Our group is tough, but we just have to keep up with the tradition we've built in the last few years. Our main strength has been our home court, so we have to keep winning in Zagreb and try to catch a win or two on the road. We all hope that the fans will support us and that we will reach our goal of advancing to the Top 16."
MILIC, MARKO
Union Olimpija
"In the last games we have seen what it means to lack experience. We have lost them because we were not able to play at the same level during 40 minutes. The ups and downs are clearly seen when a team is young and inexperienced. I don't want to look for excuses but it is true that this team still doesn not play as it ought to. We have many aspects to work on still. Even though we travel to Zagrebwith a win in mind, it is clear that we will have to play very well and take advantage of every bad minute that Cibona might suffer during the game. They have a rather experienced team, without big stars, but at least ten players that can decide a game in any situation."
Marin Rozic - Cibona Cibona opened the 2006-07 Euroleague regular season with a big home win against a well-known opponent in Group B, as it beat Union Olimpija 77-61 in Zagreb, Croatia on Thursday. Cibona improved to 1-0 and will visit mighty Panathinaikos next Thursday, while Olimpija fell to 0-1 but hosts Lottomatica Roma on Wednesday. Chris Warren led the winners with 21 points while Brent Wright and Jurica Zuza each had 13 for Cibona. Saso Ozbolt had 13 points for Olimpija, Ivica Jurkovic added 12 and Marko Milic 10 for the guests. Zuza had 11 points in the final 6 minutes of the first half to lead Cibona to a 37-31 lead at the break. Back-to-back triples by Ozbolt brought Olimpija within 44-40, but Warren and Marin Rozic fueled a 16-2 run which allowed Cibona to get a 60-48 margin after 30 minutes. Olimpija never recovered, as Marijan Mance and Kus led Cibona to a well-deserved home win.

Wright opened fire and soon both teams traded baskets for an early 4-4. Wright scored again to match Milic's 4 points while the game increased its pace with both teams running. Cibona seemed to get the most of that situation when Warren made it 8-10 and Kus 9-10 with a free throw. Milic stayed on fire for Olimpija as he scored to tie 12-12 after Warren's three. Kus also sank a bomb after good ball circulation in offense from Cibona. The hosts tightened their defense as Marton Bader locked Wright's drive, but the latter made up soon with a layup for 17-14. However a free throw by Saso Ozbolt and a last basket after steal by Jurkovic made it 17-17 after 10 minutes.

Warren slammed the ball for Cibona but Domen Lorbek lifted a layup for a quick 21-19. Wright paced Cibona through the next moments as he scored and rebounded to make it 25-19, but Manuchar Markoishvili replied with a fastbreak. Jurica Zuza appeared with five straight points for Cibona and a maximum lead of 30-21. An unsportsmanlike foul called on Kus allowed Teemu Rannikko to score twice from the line, but Jerry McCullough connected a three for a double-digit lead, 33-23. Zuza put back an offensive rebound, but Rannikko scored an easy jumper for the guests and Saulius Kuzminskas added a triple, but only after Zuza's 11th point, which allowed Cibona to get a 37-31 edge at halftime.

Teemu Rannikko - Union OlimpijaFive straight points by Warren pushed Cibona again when the second half started. Ozbolt blasted two triples himself to erase Wright's new basket and put a 44-40 score as Olimpija was alive and kicking. Wright blasted in his own three-point play to save Cibona, but Kuzminksas insisted from the low post and Warren had his own reply from the arc. The double-digit lead was back on the scoreboard when Marin Rozic hit the bottom of the net for 52-42 and forced a new Olimpija timeout. Two straight breaks by Warren and Rozic sparked a new burst of Cibona for 56-42, but Lorbek and Jurkovic hit back to back triples to save the moment for Olimpija, 56-48. McCullough scored the last basket of the quarter for a Cibona 60-48 lead after 30 minutes.

Lorbek tried to ignit the Olimpija comeback with a mid-range jumper but Mance matched it in the other end to make Cibona keep a 62-50. Rizvic scored around the basket, but points came the hard way for both teams now. Olimpija called timeout, but Mance punished his former team with a three-pointer which gave Cibona a 65-52 lead. Olimpija finally managed to shut down Cibona's offense, while Jurkovic slashed to bring the guests within 65-54. The guests kept struggling to score, however, while a free throw by the ever-present Mance made it a 12-point game, 66-54, midway through the final period. Olimpija needed a wild rally now but all its shooters were off-target in crunch time. The guests went scoreless for 2 minutes until Jurkovic buried a triple from the top of the key, but it happened to be too little, too late for Olimpija. Kus followed free throws with a corner three-pointer, enough for Cibona to seal the win, 72-58, already in the final 2 minutes.
Referees: MITJANA, JUAN CARLOS (ESP), ZIEMBLICKI, GRZEGORZ (POL), MIKHAYLOV, SERGEY (RUS)
Attendance: 3000
By Quarter1234
Cibona17202317
Union Olimpija17141713
End of Quarter1234
Cibona17376077
Union Olimpija17314861
Head coach: ANZULOVIC, DRAZEN
Cibona
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
00 WRIGHT, BRENT 27:00 13 6/8 0/1 1/1 3 5 8 3 3       2 3 25
4 WARREN, CHRIS 32:00 21 5/8 3/5 2/2 2 2 4 1 2 1     2 2 22
5 KUS, DAVOR 29:00 9 0/1 2/6 3/4 2 1 3 5 1 4     3 6 11
7 KRASIC, BARISA 9:30   0/3     1   1           2   -4
8 ANDRIC, LUKSA DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
9 MCCULLOUGH, JERRY 24:15 5 1/2 1/5     3 3 2   1     1 1 4
14 BADER, MARTON 17:45         2 5 7           3   4
16 ZUZA, JURICA 17:15 13 6/11   1/1 3 3 6     2     3 2 11
20 ROZIC, MARIN 19:30 7 3/5   1/2 1 3 4   1 1     1 4 11
21 MANCE, MARIJAN 19:15 9 1/5 2/4 1/2   4 4     2     3 2 3
24 VRBANC, GORAN 4:30           1 1 1   1     1 1 1
Team                                
Totals 200:00 77 22/43 8/21 9/12 14 27 41 12 7 12 0 0 21 21 88
51.2% 38.1% 75%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: MAHORIC, TOMO
Union Olimpija
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
3FG
M-A
FT
M-A
Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
8 RIZVIC, HASAN 14:15 2 1/3     1 2 3   1 1         3
9 RANNIKKO, TEEMU 35:30 8 2/3 0/7 4/6   1 1 5 2 2     3 5 6
10 HOHLER, DEJAN 4:30           1 1     2     1 1 -1
11 MARKOISHVILI, MANUCHAR 16:15 2 1/1 0/3     1 1 1   2     4 1 -4
12 MILIC, MARKO 19:45 10 4/5 0/1 2/3   2 2 1 2 3     4 4 9
13 JURKOVIC, IVICA 30:45 12 2/4 2/5 2/4 1 3 4 2         2 3 12
14 KUZMINSKAS, SAULIUS 22:15 5 1/3 1/1   2 6 8 1   2     3 2 9
21 CEBULAR, SANDI DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
23 LORBEK, DOMEN 25:00 9 3/4 1/3   1 1 2 1         1 2 10
31 OZBOLT, SASO 28:15 13 2/3 2/5 3/4       1 2 1     2 3 11
55 MARAKER, CHRISTIAN 3:30   0/1 0/1     1 1           1   -2
Team                                
Totals 200:00 61 16/27 6/26 11/17 5 18 23 12 7 13 0 0 21 21 53
59.3% 23.1% 64.7%
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