Dubai Basketball keep title dreams alive with thrilling overtime victory at home
Dubai Basketball have kept their league ambitions alive by edging out seven-time ABA League champions Partizan Mozzart Bet in Game 2 of the semi-finals – winning the pivotal clash 100:95 in the final five minutes of overtime.
Dubai welcomed Serbian powerhouse Partizan Mozzart Bet to Coca-Cola Arena on Thursday night following a shocking loss in Belgrade in the first leg of the semi-final.
Dubai Basketball kept Partizan on edge with unrelenting momentum and strong defensive tactics.
Hailing Dubai for their response, Partizan coach Zeljko Obradovic spoke about the intensity of playing at home. 'We knew they would try to be aggressive here [in Dubai], and they were.'
Dubai's physicality and determination were evident from the beginning moments of the first quarter. Holding a narrow three-point lead in the second quarter, the team gained confidence as they landed crucial three-pointers, pushing ahead into the second half. However, Partizan quickly retaliated, with American guard Carlik Jones and Belgian international Frank Ntilikina making an early impact and keeping the contest tight.
Leading by example was captain and Man of the Match, Klemen Prepelić. The Slovenian shooting guard has often been praised for his role in the debutant team, but his performance on Thursday night outshone his previous milestones for the team. Making him the night's top scorer, Prepelić contributed 30 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist. A scoreline that only another Dubai Basketball team member came close to – Nate Mason's perfectly executed free throws in the last 14 seconds of regulation time are what equalised the score and forced Partizan into overtime.
Praising the team's resilience, Dubai Basketball head coach Jurica Golemac said, 'I'm very proud. We didn't surrender; we didn't give up. You could see it in the players - the emotions in their eyes. We didn't want the season to end, and that was obvious.'
With over 7,000 fans in attendance, Dubai looked more confident than ever in the extra period. Spurred on by the home crowd, they secured the final points of the night and sealed a crucial win to force a deciding third game in Belgrade on Sunday.
'Our defence was unbelievable today,' Golemac added. 'I had the feeling there were 10,000 people inside — breathing and playing the game with us. They wanted to succeed just like we did.'
Dubai Basketball now head to Serbia for the final semi-final showdown, one step away from a coveted place in the ABA League finals - marking an already historic debut season for the team with a second home win against one of Europe's most decorated clubs.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Etihad
a day ago
- Al Etihad
YouTuber Paul cruises past Chavez Jr
29 June 2025 09:49 ANAHEIM, US (AFP)YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul cruised to victory over Mexico's Julio Cesar Chavez Jr on Saturday in a one-sided cruiserweight bout in whose last fight was a controversial clash with 58-year-old former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in November, dominated from the outset to win by unanimous 28-year-old influencer, who has earned millions from a string of lucrative contests in a ring career that has spanned 13 fights, had too much speed and power for Chavez three judges at ringside scored the 10-round fight 99-91, 97-93, 98-92 in Paul's Jr, the 39-year-old son of Mexican boxing great Julio Cesar Chavez, barely looked capable of mustering a response during a one-sided bout. Chavez Jr failed to land a single punch in the opening round, a pattern that followed the remainder of the contest, with Paul easily outscoring the veteran of 63 professional fights. Paul, who reportedly pocketed around $40 million for his made-for-Netflix fight with Tyson last year, received around $300,000 guaranteed from Saturday's bout. However the American is expected to earn around $8-10 million from the fight once earnings from pay-per-view and sponsorships are taken into account.
Gulf Today
a day ago
- Gulf Today
Pegula downs Swiatek to win Bad Homburg title; Joint lifts Eastbourne crown to end Eala's history bid
World number three Jessica Pegula beat Poland's Iga Swiatek in straight sets to win her third title of the season at Bad Homburg on Saturday, two days before Wimbledon starts. The 31-year-old won 6-4, 7-5 in one hour and 46 minutes in the northern suburbs of Frankfurt for her second title on grass, after Berlin last year. The US Open finalist now trails Swiatek 6-5 in their meetings, but has won four of her last six contests with the former world number one, who was appearing in her first final on grass. The American played solidly on serve, conceding only one break point in the first set, which she avoided with a clever serve-and-drop combination. Pegula then converted her third break point at three-games all to take a decisive lead and clinch the set. In the second set, Swiatek piled up unforced errors. Pegula took the Polish player's serve at 5-5 with a superb forehand crosscourt shot from the baseline. Top seed Pegula did not falter on her serve to hand Swiatek a fifth defeat in 27 finals on the tour. Pegula added to her trophies in Austin (hard court) and Charleston (clay) this season. She now boasts nine career titles -- five in the last 12 months. 'This tournament shows there's hope for me on grass,' joked Swiatek after wiping away a few tears of disappointment. The five-time Grand Slam winner was playing her first final on a grass court, two years after reaching the semi-finals in Bad Homburg, her best previous result on the surface. Swiatek was playing in her first final in a year since she lifted her fourth French Open trophy at Roland Garros in 2024, and looking for her 23rd career title. The former US Open champion will face Russian Polina Kudermetova, ranked 63, at Wimbledon. Pegula, whose best result at Wimbledon was a quarter-final appearance in 2023, will open her campaign on Tuesday against 122nd-ranked Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto. Meanwhile, Australian teenager Maya Joint saved four match points to clinch the WTA title at Eastbourne with a dramatic victory over Alexandra Eala that ended the Filipina's history bid on Saturday. Joint survived a tense clash lasting two hours and 26 minutes, emerging with a 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (12/10) win to seal her second WTA Tour title. In the youngest Eastbourne final since 1981, world number 51 Joint staved off the four championship points in a gripping final-set tie-break. She finally wrapped up the title by drilling a backhand winner before collapsing to the turf in delight. Having also defeated former Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu at Eastbourne over the last week, Joint has underlined her status as one of the rising stars of the women's tour. After winning on clay in Rabat in May, the 19-year-old has proved she can thrive on grass as well ahead of the start of Wimbledon on Monday. Joint is also scheduled to partner Hsieh Su-wei in the Eastbourne doubles final against Marie Bouzkova and Anna Danilina later on Saturday. It was a painful defeat for Eala, who was so close to becoming the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA Tour title. The 20-year-old wiped away tears of frustration during the on-court trophy presentation. Eala had become the first Filipina to reach a WTA final after beating Varvara Gracheva in the last four at Eastbourne on Friday. Eala's run to the final has made the world number 74 one to watch in the coming months. After progressing through qualifying to make the main draw, Eala beat Lucia Bronzetti, former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, Nottingham Open finalist Dayana Yastremska and France's Gracheva. She had burst onto the scene with three shock victories over Grand Slam winners Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek to reach the Miami Open semi-finals in March. Eala is due to face reigning champion Barbora Krejcikova in the Wimbledon first round on Centre Court on Tuesday. Agencies
Al Etihad
2 days ago
- Al Etihad
Djokovic feeling good at Wimbledon as he looks to stay at top level
28 June 2025 19:40 London (PA Media/dpa)Novak Djokovic feels Wimbledon could be his best chance of adding a record 25th Grand Slam to his exceptional CV as he prepares for his 20th experience of the tournament. The Serbian, who has lifted the men's singles trophy seven times, exited the French Open at the semi-final stage after losing to a far younger player in Jannik 38 Djokovic is bidding to become the oldest winner of a major title, and with his prior Wimbledon form he considers the upcoming championship a prime opportunity to do so."My wish is to play for several more years, I would love to be healthy physically and also mentally motivated to keep on playing at the highest level," he said."That's the goal, but you never know at this stage."I would probably agree that Wimbledon could be the best chance (of a 25th Grand Slam) because of the results I have had, because of how I feel, how I play in Wimbledon - just getting that extra push mentally and motivation to perform the best tennis at the highest level."Whether it could be my last dance, I'm not sure, as I'm not sure about Roland Garros or any other slam that I play next." In the latter stages of his career Djokovic has focused less on his ranking and more on his performances in Grand Slams, an approach that has allowed him to be philosophical about losses in lesser events. He said: "I would say it's slightly different for me now in terms of I don't chase the rankings anymore in that regard. I'm trying to play the best tennis in Grand Slams and trying to win Grand Slams. That hasn't changed."Even though my level of tennis has been going quite up and down and fluctuating much more than it was the case for the most part of my career - if you see the last year and a half I've been kind of volatile with my results. Grand Slams stays quite consistent. "Except the US Open last year, was playing quarters or semi-finals. That's good. That's a good sign because that's exactly what I want. These tournaments give me the biggest drive still. "This year I played two semi-finals. Unfortunately in Australia I had to retire, in Roland Garros I was outplayed by Sinner. I think I still played a decent level of tennis that showed me that I can still play on a very high level at the later stages."
