Crvena Zvezda needed to quickly bounce back from their overtime loss to Partizan, and they did so in the most emphatic way possible. Ibon Navarro's team steamrolled Maccabi Tel Aviv at Belgrade Arena, broke the 100-point barrier, and improved to 5-3.
A demolishing first quarter
The game was decided in seven minutes. Christian Koloko, making his Zvezda debut, scored the first four points, and from there the Serbian team unleashed an offensive onslaught: 28-9 in seven minutes and 34-15 at the end of the first quarter. Tyson Carter scored 14 points in that period, and Chris Jones dished out seven assists.
Maccabi found no way to stop the bleeding. Midway through the second quarter, the lead reached 28 points (50-22), and halftime arrived at 55-30.
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Maccabi improves in the second half
After the break, Maccabi found their three-point stroke and won the final two quarters (23-25 and 22-23), but never got close enough to trouble a Zvezda team that controlled the pace until the final buzzer. Jimmy Clark led the Israeli team with 19 points.
Carter at home with Navarro
The big news for Zvezda is the level of Tyson Carter. The shooting guard posted 24 points with six three-pointers, his best scoring output in the EuroLeague, and reunites with his best form alongside Ibon Navarro, with whom he won two Basketball Champions League titles at Unicaja. He returns after missing nearly five months due to a pulmonary embolism. Jared Butler (21) and Jordan Nwora (18) completed an offense that distributed 28 assists.
Zvezda returns to action Thursday at home against Bayern. Maccabi falls to 2-6.