SCG - Partizan down Buducnost to reach Superleague final

BELGRADE (Superleague) - Partizan Belgrade remain on course to win their fifth consecutive title after brushing aside the challenge of Buducnost to reach the final of the Serbia & Montenegro Superleague play-offs.

Buducnost were little competition for the reigning champions, who won Game Three 86-80 to claim a 3-0 whitewash in their semi-final series.

Partizan were quickly into their stride in the third match and had established a 15-point lead by the 12th minute.

However Buducnost, led by Nenad Mijatovic who finished with 26 points, refused to let their title hopes vanish without a fight and they pulled back to within one point at 72-71 with three minutes to go.

That set up an intriguing climax to the match but Partizan pulled away again in the final minutes to become the first team to down Buducnost on their own court this term.

Partizan coach Dusko Vujosevic was full of praise for their opponents despite the comprehensive series scoreline.

"Buducnost played extremely well even without their injured starting center (Slavko) Vranes who missed the whole Superleague," Vujosevic said.

"I have to be satisfied with this victory, as this was the first Buducnost defeat in their Moraca hall this season."

In the final, Partizan will meet either arch-rivals Red Star or FMP.

Red Star currently hold a 2-1 lead in that series after winning Game Three 83-73 away from home.

The hosts had led 59-51 towards the end of the third quarter but Red Star were much the stronger over the closing stages to take the win.

Visiting captain Goran Jeretin was the star of the show in the final quarter, scoring 15 points on his own compared to just 13 by the entire FMP team.

Jeretin finished the match with 21 points while his team-mate Milan Gurovic, the league’s leading scorer, added 13.

FMP’s leading scorer was Dusko Savanovic with 20 points. However he fouled out with four minutes to go and was forced to watch from the sidelines as his side slumped to defeat.

Red star coach Dragan Sakota said: "It was a hard but well-deserved win. We have had quite a few problems with Savanovic, but when we tightened our defence everything started to be as good as we've planned.

"Still, we haven't finished anything. We have to be calm and cautious, even though we can claim our place in the final in our next match."

From Darko Nicolic, PA Sport, Belgrade