U-BT Cluj-Napoca, defeated by Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana in a spectacular match » Refereeing, strongly disputed in BTarena

• 6631 viewers they witnessed the duel between U-BT Cluj-Napoca and Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana.

• The match began with a moment of silence in his memory Marius Crăciuna former exceptional basketball player who played in the last century for CS Universitatea Cluj-Napoca. He died today, at the age of 72.

• The symbolic commitment at the start of the game was made by Andrija Stipanovicthe beloved Bosnian basketball player, who played for U-BT Cluj-Napoca in the period 2020-2024.

Lacking precision, U-BT Cluj-Napoca suffered its 3rd defeat in the EuroCup

U-BT Cluj-Napoca started the match in BTarena well, but controlled the first quarter a lack of concentration at the free throw line allowed the Slovenians to come back from -10 down and from that point onCedevita Olimpija Ljubljana was in the lead almost constantly.

Mihai Silvășan's defense did not find solutions for the guests' dynamic offense, and they entered the locker room with a 5-point advantage: 39-44. After the break, U-BT was in constant pursuit of the opponents, but had problems with both fouls and accuracy from distance and from the free throw line.

Another important factor was represented by the arbitration in BTarena. The 3 referees made some controversial decisions, strongly contested by the fans, players and staff of the black and whites. Despite this, after a 3-pointer by Mitch Creek, U-BT regained the lead, 76-75, but could not hold on to it.

Cedevita controlled the final and won 93-87going 4-2 in the EuroCup and getting past U-BT.

The leaders of the black and white were Daron Russell (21 points), Iverson Molinar (19 points), Mitch Creek (14 points) and Dusan Miletic (13 points).

On the other side, DJ Stewart (17 points), Umoja Gibson (15 points), Aleksej Nikolic (14 points) and Thomas Kennedy (12 points) stood out.

Mihai Silvășan: “Defeats are part of sport. We have to learn and move on”

Congratulations to Cedevita for the victory. It hurts. We had 18 fouls again, we didn't shoot very well from the 3-point line either. Both teams are physical, we didn't score too well from the free throw line either. We tried to fight but that was the history of the game and we have to move on.

In moments like this we must stay together, move on. I'm angry, like after any defeat. It was quite painful. But this is sport. And defeats are part of sports. We have to learn and move on

– Mihai Silvasan

Asked if the team's management is considering strengthening the squad, considering that U-BT's rotation was affected by several players who had problems with fouls and that Mitch Creek played almost 35 minutes, Silvășan answered as follows:

“No, we are not thinking about an extra player. Unfortunately, Miletic went out quickly with 5 fouls. He played 14 minutes. Taylor could no longer perform after the hit. He tried at the start of the second half, but he was groggy and it didn't make sense. That's it, we have to find solutions. Mitch Creek is used to playing these minutes. And in Canada and Australia he played them. He's a leading player, that's why I leave him so many minutes on the field. This is the batch we have at the moment, we will see later if we need to make any substitutions or not. But we will definitely tackle the next matches with this team.”

Final. U-BT Cluj-Napoca – Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, in the EuroCup: 87-93

Final match in the BTarena. 87-93. Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana managed the end better and won by 6 points.
Min. 38. 79-86. The guests are getting closer to victory.
Min. 36. 76-80. 5-0 run for the Slovenians, after 2 contested refereeing decisions, but also after 2 modest offensive actions by the “students”.
Min. 34. 76-75. Creek scores a 3-pointer, U-BT regains the lead, the room erupts like a volcano, and Mitrovic calls a timeout.
Min. 32. 69-74. And-one succeeded by Girard, after a foul by captain Patrick Richard.
Start of the 4th quarter.

End of quarter 3. 67-69. High tension in the derby of the 6th stage in group A. 2 points difference before the decisive act.
Min. 29. 62-67. Russell scores 5 consecutive points, but the Transylvanian defense doesn't work.
Min. 27. 57-62. The arbitration, vehemently contested in BTarena. Branko Cuic, the executive director of U-BT, is extremely nervous and reproaches the officials for the manner of arbitration.
Min. 25. 54-54. With the help of the public, the hosts restore the tie. Woodbury, great offensive performance.
Min. 23. 47-52. The visitors are again 5 points apart. Miletic reaches 4 fouls, after 2 questionable decisions by the referees.
Min. 22. 47-47. The Cluj players came back better from the locker room and managed to equalize. Russell, Miletic and Woodbury score for the hosts.
Start of the 3rd quarter.

End of quarter 2. 39-44. U-BT Cluj-Napoca fails to find solutions for Ljubljana's offensive and is led to the break.
Min. 19. 39-40. Very intense pace in the BTarena. The fans vehemently dispute the refereeing.
Min. 17. 32-34. Zvezdan Mitrovic's students take the lead. Time-out requested by Mihai Silvășan.
Min. 16. 32-30. The guests managed to equalize, but Miletic put the hosts back in front.
Min. 14. 29-23. Cedevita is close to 6 points, after several frees received. U-BT reached 5 fouls and is in penalty.
Min. 12. 25-17. Many interruptions in the game in BTarena.
Start of the 2nd quarter.

End of quarter 1. 22-15. The final seconds of the first sequence were spectacular: Iverson Molinar scored, but then missed the free throw, and Umoja Gibson was fouled at the other end and converted both one-point shots.
Min. 7. 13-10. Joseph Girard III, the visitors' shooter, brings Cedevita to one possession.
Min. 4. 10-5. After a defensive tackle, Jeffery Taylor leaves the field with a broken nose. The referees initially dictated a foul in favor of the guests, but now they are reviewing the phase. In the end, the Slovenians were penalized with an unsportsmanlike foul.
Min. 3. 4-2. U-BT Cluj-Napoca takes the lead for the first time, after a basket near the ring by Dusan Miletic.
Start of match.