Nikola Ivanovic exploded on the offensive end to help Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade defeat FMP Meridian Beograd 71-59 (15-9, 19-22, 25-14, 12-14) and earned the team the Serbian Basketball League (KLS) title.
Ivanovic scored 21 points on 7-for-10 shooting in the match, grabbed 6 rebounds, dished out 5 assists, and made 3 steals for 31 PIR points.
It was a low-scoring battle from the very start with both teams having difficulties scoring the basket. However, Crvena Zvezda gained the upper hand at the end of the first quarter with Ivanovic already scoring at will and had a six-point lead after the first 10 minutes of the match (15-9).
Although Zvezda gained an 11-point lead with under 5 minutes to go in the second quarter (28-17), FMP pushed back with a 9-0 run to narrow the deficit down to only two points (26-28).
The teams battled back and forth in the beginning minutes of the second half but then Crvena Zvezda took the match into their own hands. The EuroLeague team finished the quarter on an 8-2 run, and never looked back.
The final 10 minutes were controlled by Zvezda, and the club became the champions of Serbia for the 7th time in a row.
Meridian Beograd: Marko Radonjic 14 (1/3 2PT, 3/9 3PT, 5 REB, 6 AST), Nenad Nerandzic 11 (4/8 2PT, 1/5 3PT), Aleksa Stepanovic 11 (3/5 2PT, 4 REB).
Crvena Zvezda: Nikola Ivanovic 21 (4/4 2PT, 3/6 3PT, 4/6 FT, 6 REB, 5 AST, 3 STL, 31 PIR), Nikola Kalinic 12 (2/6 FG, 3 REB, 5 AST, 3 STL).
