Basketball News, Scores, Stats, Analysis, Standings

Yusuf Mohamed

It’s still too early stage of the Regular Season in Prva Liga, but even now we can clearly see the differece between stronger teams and outsiders. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The biggest surprise of round 3 in Prva Liga took place in Skopje where host Cair 2030 (2-1) edged Euro Nickel (3-1) 74-73 on Saturday evening. The best player for the winners was American forward Yusuf Mohamed (208-1998, college: Westminster, UT) who had a double-double by scoring 24 points and 12 rebounds. His fellow American import guard Dee Franklin (196-1992, college: FVSU) chipped in 25 points and 5 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was swingman Ivica Dimcevski (195-1989, agency: BIG) who recorded a double-double by scoring 16 points and 12 rebounds. Euro Nickel will play next round against TFT trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Cair 2030 will try to continue on its current victory against Kozuv in Gevgelija.
Gostivar defeated TFT at home 90-83. It was a good game for Georgian power forward Giorgi Korsantia (207-1998, agency: BIG) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 23 points, 17 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. Luwane Pipkins contributed with 22 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists for the winners. American forward Trent Buttrick (206-1998, college: UMass, agency: Mansfield and Associates) answered with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 12 rebounds for TFT. TFT’s coach Boro Smilkovski rotated ten players in this game, but that didn’t help. TFT will play next round against strong Euro Nickel trying to get back on the winning streak. Gostivar will try to continue on its current victory against Rabotnicki at Skopje.
Feniks 2010 (2-1) recorded a loss on the court of Strumica on Sunday night. Visitors were defeated by Strumica 98-92. It was a great evening for Svetozar Stamenkovic who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 36 points (!!!), 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals (perfect from the field making all eleven shots !!!). The best for the losing side was Bojan Trajkovski with 22 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Strumica will meet Pelister (#6) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Feniks 2010 will play against Kumanovo and hope to secure a win.

Other games of round 3 were very predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
Pelister defeated Akademija FMP in Bitola 79-70. Kumanovo beat Kozuv at home 92-78. MZT Skopje destroyed Rabotnicki on the opponent’s court 66-47.

Cair 2030 – Euro Nickel 74-73

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Akademija FMP – Pelister 70-79

But Akademija FMP was not able to use a home court advantage and was defeated by the opponent from Bitola 79-70 on Tuesday night. Pelister dominated down low during the game scoring 62 of its points in the paint compared to Akademija FMP’s 38. Pelister forced 19 Akademija FMP turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. It was a great evening for Bosnian forward Nedim Mustafica (199-1991) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 25 points and 16 rebounds. Bosnian power forward Sead Hadzifejzovic (202-1989) helped adding 17 points and 4 assists. Four Pelister players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was American point guard Zac Owens (180, college: Bethel, IN) with 18 points and 4 assists and the other American import center Joe Cortesio (206-1997, college: SW Christian, agency: SDJ Sports) scored 14 points and 7 rebounds (on 7-of-9 shooting from the field). Pelister will meet at home Strumica (#11) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Akademija FMP’s supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Skopje to the arena MZT Skopje.
Top scorers:
Pelister: N.Mustafica 25+16reb+1ast, S.Hadzifejzovic 17+4reb+4ast, K.Carpenter 13+2reb+3ast, D.Caruthers 12+2reb+2ast, O.Dvojakovski 7+3reb+2ast, D.Karadzovski 3+2reb+7ast
Akademija FMP: Z.Owens 18+4reb+4ast, J.Cortesio 14+7reb, A.Nastovski 13+5reb+1ast, V.Nikola 7+1ast, J.Chandler 6+3reb+3ast, K.Gabriel 6+4reb+2ast

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Gostivar – TFT 90-83

Gostivar defeated TFT at home 90-83. Gostivar made 20-of-25 charity shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Gostivar outrebounded TFT 54-34 including a 33-21 advantage in defensive rebounds. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 22 assists. It was a good game for Georgian power forward Giorgi Korsantia (207-1998, agency: BIG) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 23 points, 17 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. American point guard Luwane Pipkins (180-1996, college: Providence) contributed with 22 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists for the winners. American forward Trent Buttrick (206-1998, college: UMass, agency: Mansfield and Associates) answered with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 12 rebounds and point guard Aleksandar Kostoski (186-1988, agency: BIG) added 7 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists in the effort for TFT. Four TFT players scored in double figures. TFT’s coach Boro Smilkovski rotated ten players in this game, but that didn’t help. TFT will play next round against strong Euro Nickel trying to get back on the winning streak. Gostivar will try to continue on its current victory against Rabotnicki at Skopje.
Top scorers:
Gostivar: G.Korsantia 23+17reb+4ast, L.Pipkins 22+6reb+8ast, V.Efremovski 19+4reb+4ast, A.Vuckovic 9+11reb, A.Maslinko 8+8reb+2ast, M.Mitevski 7+3reb+4ast
TFT: D.McBrayer 21+1ast, T.Buttrick 15+12reb+1ast, J.Bishop 13+4reb+2ast, L.Anderson 11+5reb, G.Zafirov 8+1reb+2ast, T.Viktor 8+2reb+1ast

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Kumanovo – Kozuv 92-78

There was a small surprise when Kumanovo (1-2) defeated at home Kozuv (1-2) 92-78 on Saturday. Kumanovo looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. It was a great evening for Serbian power forward Dusan Juzbasic (207-1999) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 22 points and 13 rebounds. Naturalized Serbian Nenad Zivcevic (203-1987, agency: Mansfield and Associates) helped adding 12 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Four Kumanovo players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was American guard Myron Gordon (190, college: BGSU) with a double-double by scoring 27 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists and Ilia Kolev (195-1996) scored 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Kozuv’s coach tested ten players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Kumanovo will meet Feniks 2010 (#4) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Kozuv will play against Cair 2030 and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Kumanovo: D.Juzbasic 22+13reb, D.Nacevski 20+5reb+2ast, M.Kelly 18+2reb+6ast, N.Zivcevic 12+9reb+7ast, J.Rizman 9+4reb+1ast, D.Luka 7+1ast
Kozuv: M.Gordon 27+10reb+4ast, I.Kolev 16+5reb+4ast, S.Aleksandar 9+1reb+2ast, L.Petrovski 8+5reb+1ast, M.Grkovic 6+2reb+1ast, G.Glavchev 5+9reb+3ast

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Rabotnicki – MZT Skopje 47-66

Very expected game when Rabotnicki (0-3) was rolled over at home by MZT Skopje (2-1) 66-47 on Wednesday. It was a great evening for American guard Brae Ivey (188-1997, college: SJSU) who led his team to a victory scoring 16 points and 6 rebounds. International power forward Bojan Krstevski (206-1989, agency: BIG) helped adding 14 points and 6 rebounds. The best for the losing side was American guard EJ Crawford (198-1998, college: Iona, agency: 011 Sports) with 16 points and 7 rebounds and the former international center Filip Bakoch (202-1996, agency: BIG) scored 10 points and 6 rebounds. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. MZT Skopje’s supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Skopje Akademija FMP.
Top scorers:
MZT Skopje: B.Ivey 16+6reb+2ast, B.Krstevski 14+6reb+1ast, V.Stojanovski 11+8reb+1ast, A.Magdevski 8+5reb+4ast, M.Caffey 6+5reb+3ast, D.Pandev 5+1reb
Rabotnicki: E.Crawford 16+7reb+1ast, F.Bakoch 10+6reb, E.Nottage 7+4reb+3ast, S.Andrej 3+4reb+2ast, G.Markovski 3+8reb+1ast, M.Bogdan 3+1reb

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Strumica – Feniks 2010 98-92

Feniks 2010 (2-1) recorded a loss on the court of Strumica on Sunday night. Visitors were defeated by Strumica 98-92. It was a great evening for Serbian forward Svetozar Stamenkovic (206-1990) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 36 points (!!!), 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals (perfect from the field making all eleven shots !!!). Serbian guard Stefan Krstajic (190-1995) helped adding 18 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. The best for the losing side was the former international power forward Bojan Trajkovski (207-1988, agency: Mansfield and Associates) with 22 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists and American guard DeMonte Buckingham (193-1997, college: UNCG, agency: Mansfield and Associates) scored 20 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists (went 10 for 10 at the free throw line !!!). Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Strumica will meet Pelister (#6) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Feniks 2010 will play against Kumanovo and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Strumica: S.Stamenkovic 36+14reb+6ast, S.Krstajic 18+7reb+4ast, I.Volkanovski 12+5reb, Z.Dimitar 11+2ast, I.Asrat 7+3reb+1ast, R.Mamuzikj 7+2reb+1ast
Feniks 2010: B.Trajkovski 22+9reb+4ast, D.Buckingham 20+9reb+5ast, P.Marin 14+1ast, M.Andrej 13+2reb, C.Falden 9+3reb+1ast, I.Viktor 8+2reb