The eternal Belgrade derby had everything and ended in Partizan's favor. Joan Peñarroya's team dominated for three quarters, watched as Ibon Navarro's Crvena Zvezda mounted a 15-point fourth-quarter comeback, and ultimately won in overtime (85-82) thanks to a three-pointer from Alessandro Pajola. The matchup between the two Spanish coaches snapped Zvezda's four-game winning streak and leaves both teams with four wins and three losses.
Partizan's dominant start through halftime
Partizan came out firing. They won the first quarter 31-21 and continued to punish in the second, with Carlik Jones as their main reference point: the point guard had 15 points at halftime. Zvezda tried to respond with an 8-0 run that made it 38-29, but the home team's answer was immediate. Pajola scored, Lamar Stevens threw down a dunk and then hit a three-pointer, and Partizan went into halftime with 52-38. Shortly after the restart, the lead reached 18 points (56-38).
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Zvezda's comeback and Pajola's game-winner
The third quarter was low-scoring (13-12) and Partizan entered the fourth with a 15-point lead (65-50). Everything changed there. Zvezda tightened their defense, Partizan managed just ten points in the entire fourth quarter, and Ibon Navarro's team, with a 10-25 run, forced overtime (75-75).
In the extra period, the game was decided by the slimmest of margins. Pajola, who finished with just seven points, nailed the three-pointer that gave Partizan the victory, winning overtime 10-7. Jones finished with 26 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists, Stevens with 16, and Kevarrius Hayes with 13 and 8 rebounds. For Zvezda, Jones (22) and Jordan Nwora (16 and 8 rebounds) led a comeback that came up just short.